Bleakness in Blacksburg as 'Hoos lose 70-68 - SCACCHoops.com

Bleakness in Blacksburg as 'Hoos lose 70-68

by UniversityBall.org

Posted: 1/5/2016 2:29:43 PM


A power outage kept me from viewing last night’s game. Following the carnage on my phone in darkness and the eerie silence that floats in after various electronics stop whirring felt like I was in some nightmare about a post-apocalyptic society where light is dark, the refrigerator is off limits, and the Pack Line and ball security are things of the past. Occasionally, the silence would be suddenly and brusquely broken by my son waking up in a panic because it was a little too dark and a little too quiet. I was in a similar state (over something with similarly small real world implications) out in the family room.

We lost. It was the first time in the last eight games that we’d lost a basketball game to Virginia Tech, which renders the meager “just like football” chant they tried to drum up pretty funny unless they meant that we’re going to win this November to stop their streak.

Buzz Williams deserves a lot of credit for going small and fleet to attack our size advantage. 6’10” Kerry Blackshear was the lone traditional big among the eight Hokies who played (and even he’s not all that traditional — he pops threes here and there), which helped take Mike Tobey (four points and four fouls in nine ineffective minutes) out of the equation. Zach LeDay, a 6’7” forward who typically operates from the elbow in, camped out on the perimeter and hoisted threes (he made three of four after being 2-12 for the season entering the game), which served to really throw Anthony Gill (just three defensive rebounds) for a loop. Gill appeared uncomfortable all game, struggling with how close to guard LeDay and appearing so rattled by two early fouls that he ceded a couple of baskets and committed to a couple of attempts to draw charges so early that his Hokie assignment dribbled around him like a practice cone.

Tech moved the ball expertly last night, zipping it around to the tune of 17 assists and a 69.2% assist rate, both of which are way higher than what we’re used to. The cold-shooting Hokies nailed nine threes in 17 tries (who’s surprised? me), with a couple of them coming when we left Hokies all alone on inbounds plays and dared them to go up with it. We just didn’t seem energetic or all that prepared. 9pm games on 48 hour turnarounds are tough — especially in that gym, against a rival — but still. I expect a little more. Tony’s taught us to.

The offense was saved by London Perrantes. LP hit a career-high seven threes, with six coming in the second half, but even his explosion couldn’t put us up by more than a possession or two because we couldn’t never get the gap (three straight stops) that we needed to put this game to bed. After his 7-9 performance, he’s now second in the NCAA in three point percentage at 59.2%.

Gill ended up with 17 and an acceptable final stat line that belied how Tech hounded him with doubles, Brogdon had 15 quiet points and some questionable decisions (both with his shot and as a ballhandler), and the other seven ‘Hoos that saw the court combined to shoot just 12 times and score 14 points. The team turned the ball over 16 times (eight players had one), and the miscues and accompanying transition chances led to 26 Tech points.

After all of that, we had a chance to win or tie in the final seconds. Trailing 67-56 with just over two minutes to go, we got a London three, a three and a layup from AG, a jumper by Isaiah, and two free throws from Malcolm to rally to within 70-68 with the ball. London was a natural choice to take the last shot, and he drove to the basket and was walloped on a miss. There was no whistle, which, right or wrong, is what you expect when you’re trailing on the road. Ballgame.

Four of our last five opponents have scored more than a point per possession, and we’re now down to 30th in the country in defensive rating. Our season isn’t ruined, we still have a roster full of players good enough to contribute on a good team, and it’s way too early to hop off the bandwagon, but there are some things — especially on the defensive end of the court — that need to be addressed if we want to make a run this March. It might take some time, but I trust that CTB will get everything he can out of this group. Now that I’ve gotten the requisite affirmation of belief in our guys out of the way, I can add that this loss just feels gross. I can’t wait until we get a chance to restore order next month.

Georgia Tech is up next.

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