The season-opener is the first of five games the Hornets will play as part of the Emerald Coast Classic and it's the first time ASU and Virginia Tech have met on the hard court.
 
The Hornets have been practicing for over a month and are ready to get the season started.  With seven returning players and nine newcomers, the Hornets have had a month of trying
 
"It (practice) has been quite an experience," Head Coach Lewis Jackson said.  "We've had a lot of injuries and with nine new players there has been a lot of teaching going on.  It's been different but the guys have been working hard to learn the system and learn how we want to do things here at State."
 
The Hornets will have a little different look this season with the team being so deep at guard.  ASU will look to get out and run at every opportunity, a tempo they showed in their exhibition game with Huntingdon last week.
 
"I see we are good at the guard position and of course there's a lot of work to be done, but we're strong with our guards," Jackson said.  "Our bigs are not playing well and we have to work and get better defensively."
 
ASU finished 19-10 last season and had a second place conference finish with a 14-4 record.  Seniors Jamel Waters and Bobby Brown are back to lead the Hornets.
 
Steve Rogers is also back after a freshman campaign which saw him named the SWAC Freshman of the Year following last season.  ASU also welcomes back Terrance LeFlore who played a lot of basketball during his freshman season two years ago, but missed all but a few games last season after being injured early in the year.
 
Robert Ojeah has battled injuries during his time on campus, but appears to be healthy and ready to go for his final year and Chidozie Omile is a player the coaches are looking at to provide a lot of minutes.
 
Virginia Tech is coming off a year which saw the Hokies finish 11-22 and 2-16 in the ACC.  The Hokies have been picked to finish 14^th in the conference this season, but have four starters returning that could change that prediction and cause a match up problem for the Hornets.
 
"The problem is going to be that their point guard is 6'-4" and all of their guards are 6'-5" or 6'-6" and can put the ball on the floor," Jackson said.  "They have a 6'8" and seven-footer that are screening the ball, similar to how we are trying to play so it's going to be interesting."
 
"Hopefully they won't start posting our guards cause that will pose a problem for us, but we look forward to getting out there and working and trying to see where we are early on here in the season."
 
The game is scheduled for a 6 p.m. (CT) tip and will be broadcast live on ESPN3.  For more information check with Game Day Central Saturday before the game.