Virginia Tech will sail into uncharted waters tonight when they play in North Carolina's Dean Dome for the first time in school history. The #25 Hokies, 15-point underdogs, will try to do the unthinkable -- defeat #4 UNC for the second time this season. That's a tall task, and to do it Tech will have to do the exact same thing they did back on January 13th -- shoot well and take care of the basketball.

Back on January 13th, the Hokies defeated then-#1 UNC by shooting 52.6% from the field and 53.8% from three-point range. They were also +6 in the turnover margin and jumped out to lead by as many as 23 points before holding on to win 94-88.

North Carolina newspaper reports have indicated that the loss in Blacksburg hurt the Tar Heels' pride. Carolina defensive stalwart Marcus Ginyard had several interesting comments in the Winston-Salem Journal:

When your lineup is as flush with talent as Carolina's is, losses are going to be few and far between.

UNC Starting Lineup
Pos	Name	Ht	Wt	Year	Pts	Rebs
G	Ty Lawson	5-11	193	Fr.	10.2	2.5
G	Wayne Ellington	6-4	195	Fr.	12	2.6
F	Reyshawn Terry	6-8	232	Sr.	9.6	5.9
F	Brandan Wright	6-9	205	Fr.	15	6.5
C	Tyler Hansbrough	6-9	245	So.	18.4	7.8

For those keeping count, that's four McDonald's All-Americans in the starting lineup. The only starter that wasn't a McDonald's All-American is senior wing forward Reyshawn Terry, and he is skilled enough that he is a likely NBA Draft Pick this summer.

With the exception of one loss to NC State, UNC has been rolling since they were upset in Blacksburg. A major reason for that is the play of freshman point guard Ty Lawson, who has increased his scoring average from 8.8 points to 10.2 points since UNC's first meeting with Tech. He has become more aggressive and is getting better each and every game. Lawson has 129 assists and 60 turnovers, a great ratio for a freshman. Despite his height, Lawson can really get to the glass. The Hokies need to stop him from penetrating, as they did Sean Singletary on Saturday.

A big key to Tech's first win over UNC was denying the basketball to outstanding inside players Tyler Hansbrough and Brandan Wright. The Hokies need to try and do the same in their second meeting and force the Tar Heels' freshmen guards to make difficult decisions on the perimeter.

Senior forward Reyshawn Terry is a very talented player. His one knock is his inconsistency. He looks like an All-American at times, and other times he just disappears. Against Virginia Tech on January 13, he had just five points and three rebounds in 16 minutes. Against NC State, he had two points, no rebounds and five fouls. The Tar Heels lost both games.

But in UNC's narrow 79-73 victory at Duke, Terry finished with 10 points and 10 rebounds, and he played great defense. He was the difference in that game, and he can get the Tar Heels over the hump in close games, if he plays well. He is a mismatch, with good inside moves and a nice three-point stroke (45.5% from three-point range).

Perhaps UNC's greatest strength is their depth off the bench. The Tar Heels go 11 deep, and no player on the team averages more than 28.8 minutes per game. This keeps them fresh, and it's tough to play with them for a full 40 minutes.

North Carolina vs. Virginia Tech (ACC Games Only)
Category	North Carolina		Virginia Tech
Category	Stat	ACC Rank	Stat	ACC Rank
FG %	49.1%	1	47.8%	2
FG % Defense	40.5%	1	43.1%	3
3-Pt. %	34.7%	5	37.7%	2
3-Pt. % Defense	35.3%	8	31.1%	2
FT %	72.0%	7	72.1%	6
Rebounding Margin	+9	1	-4	9
Turnover Margin	+1.5	3	+2.1	2
Assist/TO Ratio	1.21	1	1.17	2
Scoring Offense	86	1	73.6	7
Scoring Defense	68.4	2	71.8	5
Average		3		4

Based on the stats, this is a more evenly matched game than many people would think. Virginia Tech, long considered a below average shooting team, is #2 in the ACC in field goal percentage and three-point percentage in ACC play. They've even got their free throw shooting above 70% and in the top half of the ACC in conference games. The Hokies are also an excellent field goal percentage defensive team, especially from three-point range.

The Hokies still rank #2 in ACC games in turnover margin. The hidden stat there is that the Hokies have won the turnover margin just once since beating UNC, and that was against NC State, a 70-59 loss, so Tech hasn't won the turnover margin in a game they've won since they beat UNC, exactly one month ago. They've been beating teams (or losing to them) straight up. Tech likely won't be able to beat the Tar Heels straight up on the road, so they need to get back to their old ways of winning turnover margin.

UNC had a problem last season on the defensive side of the ball. The Tar Heels weren't as focused and locked in as they should have been. That has been corrected this season, for the most part. UNC is first in the ACC in field goal percentage defense, and second in scoring defense.

In UNC's three losses this season, some of their impressive statistics have been totally reversed. In three losses:

Pay attention to shooting percentages and turnovers. They will likely tell the tale. The Hokies can be streaky with their shooting. In wins over UNC, Miami, Georgia Tech and UVA, the Hokies shot at least 52.6% from the field. They shot 56.5% against Florida State. They have also put up some stinkers, including 35% against NC State, 39.2% against Wake Forest and 39.7% against Maryland. It seems like the Hokies are either hit or miss, pun intended, from a shooting standpoint.

It's important to get off to a fast start. The Hokies fell behind UNC 17-9 in Blacksburg, but behind a home crowd, they were able to come back. Bad starts doomed Tech in their three ACC losses to FSU, NC State and BC, so a good start will be important if the Hokies want to hang with UNC on the road.

Some of you have asked me off the TSL.com message boards: "�who's looking good for my Final-4 pool b-st.?"

What would you say regarding the chances of a team with the following national rankings making its way down south to play in the ATL on the first weekend in April?

Note that I did not even bother to list UNC's additional five major statistical categorical rankings of 31st or better outta 325 D-1 men's hoops teams. That's how great this UNC basketball team is. In fact I'll go ahead and say it: this is the D-1 team to beat, and if this team does not get to at least Atlanta it will be a shame. The Tar Heels have absolutely smoked people at home all year, winning eleven times by 20 or more and eight times by 30 or more. UNC's average home margin of victory in ACC games is a totally implausible +25.6 points!

In these two teams' last respective five games, UNC is only 2% ahead from the floor, 0.2% ahead from the charity-stripe, and actually down 3.5% from 3-point land. But over that same timeframe, UNC holds a +10 rebounding margin edge, and a 20-point scoring margin edge. On top of that, UNC will have some regular season payback on their minds, while the sizzling Tar Heel assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.94 just does not fit the Greenberg visiting profile for winning. VT may hold bragging rights as having been one of only three, possibly four, teams to have beaten the 2006-2007 NC2A hoops champion when this year is all said and done.