PRINCESS ANNE, Maryland — Following a break for Christmas, the University of Maryland Eastern Shore Hawks men's basketball team will be back in action Friday night (Dec. 28) against the Virginia Tech Hokies at 7 p.m.

The Hawks (1-12) are coming off an 82-58 loss to American on Dec. 22. Redshirt junior Isaac Taylor (Wachapreague, VA) played his first game since March 2017 versus AU and had 11 points in 18 minutes of action.

Friday's game against Virginia Tech will be the third time Eastern Shore will face a team from the Atlantic Coast Conference this season. The Shore suffered defeats to NC State on Nov. 10 and Pittsburgh on Dec. 15 in their other matchups with ACC opponents.

The contest will also be the Hawks third straight game without leading scorer AJ Cheeseman (Snellville, GA) as he deals with an upper body injury that should keep him sidelined for a few more weeks.

Virginia Tech (10-1) currently sits as the number 10 ranked team in the country. The Hokies have not been ranked this high since the 1995-96 season when they reached the number eight spot. That team was led by Hokie Hall of Famer and current Hawks assistant Adrian "Ace" Custis.

VT boasts a balanced attack on offense as they have four players averaging in double figures. Nickeil Alexander-Walker leads the team in scoring with 18.5 points per game and preseason second team All-ACC performer Justin Robinson averages 14.5 points and 5.9 assists per game.

The game can be heard locally on Fox Sports 960 AM WTGM and online at EasternShoreHawks.com. Pregame coverage begins at 6:45 p.m. with Will DeBoer on The Shore Sports Network.

For more information on Eastern Shore Athletics visit http://www.easternshorehawks.com/.