GETTING INSIDE
Getting defensive is not always a good thing in personal relationships, but it’s not a bad thing for basketball teams.
That’s what Virginia Tech did in its last game before an eight-day break over Christmas, and the result was a record-setting 71-34 victory over UMBC. It was the fewest points the Hokies have allowed on their home floor since Cassell Coliseum opened in 1961.
Of course, the quality of the opposition did temper enthusiasm just a bit.
“I don’t want to take anything away from UMBC,” coach Seth Greenberg said. “They’ve scored points on other people. But they’re not Duke. They’re not North Carolina or N.C. State or Wake.
“But to give up 34 points, that’s good.”
The victory was the seventh consecutive for the Hokies, their longest winning streak since the 1995-96 team also won seven in a row.
It gave the Hokies a 10-1 that record that includes road wins over Big Ten opponents Iowa and Penn State.
The only loss was at Temple back in late November.
The Hokies now have two more nonconference games before getting into ACC play at North Carolina on Jan. 10. Longwood visits on Dec. 30, and the Hokies go to Cancun to play Seton Hall on Jan. 2.
NOTES, QUOTES
• Junior G Malcolm Delaney was leading the ACC in scoring through games of Dec. 26 with his 21.5-point average. He was shooting 42.4 percent overall and 38.0 percent from behind the 3-point arc, and he also led the team with 42 assists.
• The 34 points UMBC scored were the fewest by a Virginia Tech opponent in a home game since 1959, when Tech whipped Washington & Lee 105-24. That was two years before Cassell Coliseum opened. It’s the fewest the Hokies have given up in any game since a 50-32 road win over Fordham in the 1996-97 season.
January At A Glance: The Hokies will have eight days between games after playing Seton Hall in Cancun to get ready for their ACC opener at North Carolina on Jan. 10. Three days later, they have their home conference opener against Miami. The Hokies get Boston College at home and also have a nonconference home game against North Carolina Central in January. They are at Boston College, Virginia and Miami for the return match against the Hurricanes. That’s only two home games among their first six ACC outings.
Quote To Note: “I challenged our team before the game to carry themselves like a very good basketball team, and good basketball teams go out and win these games. Good teams impose their will on games, and I thought we did that right from the start defensively. We were active and we were alert. Our approach was outstanding.”—Coach Seth Greenberg, after the 71-34 rout of UMBC.
STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL
Season Recap: The Hokies have put themselves in a solid position heading into conference play with a loss to Temple in the Philly Hoop Group Classic their only setback. They don’t have any “signature” wins, with Penn State and Iowa their most significant victims (both on the road), but they have avoided the kind of embarrassing defeat that would work against them come tournament-selection time.
Player Rotation: Usual Starters—F Terrell Bell, F J.T. Thompson, F Victor Davila, G Malcolm Delaney, G Dorenzo Hudson. Key Subs—F Jeff Allen, G Ben Boggs, G Erick Green.
Game Review:
Virginia Tech 66, Penn State 64
Virginia Tech 73, Charleston Southern 50
Virginia Tech 71, UMBC 34
Game Preview:
vs. Longwood, Wednesday, Dec. 30
vs. Seton Hall (at Cancun, Mexico), Saturday, Jan. 2
at North Carolina, Sunday, Jan. 10
vs. Miami, Wednesday, Jan. 13
at Florida State, Saturday, Jan. 16
In Focus: Seton Hall recently lost to Temple and to West Virginia in overtime after opening with eight consecutive wins, but it still offers Tech the opportunity for a “quality” victory.
Roster Report:
• F Jeff Allen was only 1-for-6 from the field against UMBC but was 22-for-38 over his previous four games. He recorded back-to-back double-doubles with 24 points and 13 rebounds—both season highs—against VMI and then 12 points and 10 rebounds against Penn State.
• Freshman F Cadarian Raines, who has played only four games while nursing a foot injury, scored his first college baskets with two field goals in the rout of UMBC. He had hit a free throw earlier this season against Penn State. The Roanoke Times reported that Raines, who also had knee surgery that cost him the first five games of the season, has not ruled out sitting the final months of the season and applying for a medical redshirt because the foot injury that caused him to miss the game against Charleston Southern was still bothering him.
