Virginia Tech avoided a letdown loss at Pitt following its double overtime win over Virginia. There was a 7-point Hokies' possession, six Hokies accounting for 191 for the 200 minutes of court time, Ahmed Hill's 17 points, three missed Pitt three-pointers in the waning seconds, but most of all Chris Clarke dancing, torn ACL and all.
Related.
Bad news, Chris Clarke out for a while. Good news, Chris Clarke bench moves. https://t.co/ZDi3zhamGg— THE KEY PLAY (@thekeyplay) February 14, 2017
Finally, Tech's creeping closer to earning an elusive March Madness bid.
Virginia Tech with a TOUGHNESS win at Pitt. Reminded me of Buzz Williams' teams at Marquette. Now 7-6 in ACC. Need two more wins to get bid.— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) February 15, 2017
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FAM!
FAM! Did we push off Pat!!!
[ mod edit: FYI you can't embed a webpage as an image; FTFY ]
I missed the game, how did we have a 7 point possession?
Hit a fast-break layup while drawing the flagrant foul, hit both those free throws, kept possession due to the foul, and Bibbs drained a corner 3. Touchdown Tech!
Thanks. We should run that play every game!
So I'll ask this again here-
Med makes the basket, which normally constitutes an and 1. The fouls is determined to be a flagrant 1, which is 2 shots and the ball.
So shouldn't have Med shot 3 FTs? Possibly an 8 point play?
Flagrant is the foul, there is no additional foul on the bucket. Only time there would be three is if the flagrant took place after the play.
Thanks - I looked through the NCAA rule book but couldn't find the enforcement for that exact play.
Amazing sequence- so from time Hill takes the shot to when Bibbs hits the in-bounds 3 we scored 7 points in 5 seconds.
Actually, according to the Play-By-Play on ESPN.com, the first shot was made at 9:10 and the second at 9:09. 7 points in 1 second.
Yup, spot up catch and shoot from the corner from the inbounds after both FTs were made. 7 point swing in the blink of an eye
Wins like this set Buzz's program apart from the Greenberg years.
Hope this isn't a case of speaking too soon. We were in this position with Greenberg before and stumbled down the stretch to the wrong side of the bubble. We still need more wins.
I could be wrong but I don't think we were ever in this situation with seth before. We had an extremely good OOC record and a high RPI coming into the stretch.
Seth had 4 seasons of winning records in conference and took a team to the 2nd round of the NCAAs. He typically had a few wins / season over top 5 teams but had 1-2 let down "bad loss" game.
Overall, four 20+ win seasons over 9 year spread.
It's a little sad for our program when a round 1 win in the tournament is a high point. I hope this is where we set the bar in the future instead.
our knock was normally our RPI from what I remember during the NIT years, which I don't think will be an issue this year. The ACC was also not considered as strong in most of those years as to how it's looked at this year IMO.
We were in the same position two days ago. Signature win at home with follow-up road test against a lower-tier ACC team. Greenberg's team routinely flopped on those.
I'm not saying we're in either, but we're winning the games we used to lose.
It's not a perfect comparison obviously but the 2010-11 season shows how quickly a bubble team's status can change at the end of a season. We have 5 games to go and probably need to win 2 to get in and 3 to feel extremely confident.
If we can win out at home, and then steal a road win at BC (there's no reason we shouldn't), that's an 11-7 ACC record.
This team is night and day when they're at home compared to on the road. I don't care how many players we may or may not have, I honestly think we have a shot at 4 out of our last 5.
And just for good measure, UVA has a chance at finishing 3-3 (they have to play Duke tonight and UNC twice), which would put us both at 11-7.
Please let this happen...
While our only home loss so far is to Notre Dame, I'd be surprised if we win all of our last 4 games. Losing Clarke is likely to hurt a bit, and we've been living on the edge in all of our wins since the Syracuse game, 5 games decided by a total of 13 points. And that includes a 6-point win over BC at home, so we also have no reason to expect an easy win in Chestnut Hill, down a major contributor.
So in the eyes of the wise Narduzzi, who boxed out better, our basketball team or football team?
Neither, "both f-bomb pushed off and the refs had it in for Pitt"
It looked like we actually did get called for a foul for boxing out. Don't think I've ever seen that in a basketball game.
VT had every reason to go through the motions for this game but didn't and got rewarded for it by the Basketball Gods.
Does Buzz do a postgame for away games? Checked VT Athletics youtube page and there was nothing.
It was really late- did Buzz interview and went off the air. Clarke stopped by radio table and said 'get it together guys cause the plane is leaving' according to Laazer.
I have to give the Pitt coaches credit, they really coached their players to push off well on their shots
That's how you do that, right?
But Pitt wasn't pushi-ooooooooh
Very proud of this team today. Just came off an emotional double OT win against your biggest rival. One of your best players blows out his ACL. You have only seven scholarship players in your rotation. You have one day off and then have to travel from Blacksburg to Pittsburgh. You're playing in a half empty gym against a team that is physically much bigger than you that's hungry for a win so they can scrap back into the NCAA tourney picture.
This team could have easily just said fuck it.
Buzz Williams has been a godsend to Virginia Tech basketball because of the type of players he's bringing into this program. Every player on this team has so much goddamn heart.
Awesome win FAM!!! Also if you all want a little chuckle, head over to le Sabre, all of them are worried about VT's potential in basketball enough to create several threads about us today: http://chat.virginia.sportswar.com/message_board/basketball/
they're all like
Lol at the guy that said we're losing our best players, 2018 = NIT. Clearly he hasn't heard of Alexander-Walker and Bede either, plus getting Blackshear back can't be emphasized enough. Add that to the fact Fullard (6'10) will most likely be in the mix for some minutes, and you can't look at that roster next year and say we're absolutely done for going forward. Love what Allen and LeDay bring to this program and I am going to miss their leadership dearly, but VT basketball is here to stay for a while IMO.
If Clarke is out next year I would say we are losing our best players. Doesn't mean we can't have new players come in and be productive right away. Allen, Clarke and leday are our 3 best players currently IMO.
We shouldn't have to play small ball at all times next year, which will be nice.
I tried to look up any information on Fullard, but I can't find much. How has he been practicing? What do coaches think of him?
Are there any TKPers who are around the basketball team to give any insight?
Just saw that... The general cluelessness about our team is humorous as they try to make grand predictions and conclusions while being ignorant to what is actually going on here. The amount of people who claim this was"VTs year" and Buzz should leave because we failed and it won't get better is just eye rollingly sad.
Oh and then there is the thinly veiled racism over LeDay.... TJ would be so proud.
LOLUVa fans being douches?
Wow. Saaaaaalty.
It really speaks to their jack assedness how many comments are derogatory toward VT and VT people. We poke fun of their teams play and call them Lol UVA but I don't see us being nearly as derogatory to their athletes, Alumn or fans.
What speaks more to it is the fact that no one steps up and says, maybe that isn't the best thing to say.
Thesabre was full of uneducated, farm, tractor*, and animal jokes on Sunday night, some even talking about telling their small kids the jokes. I hope we all strive to be better when it comes to things like that.
*Who the hell wouldn't want a tractor???
This behavior comes straight from the top. Mike Ingalls, their Boardhost, is an enormous twat when it comes to talking about VT. He led the charge on criticizing their athletic department for showing sympathies towards us in the 2007 football game because of what happened earlier in the year. Of course, he has also made it known he never attended UVa, sooooo...
I've never desired one, but I guess I've never been exposed to the wide world of tractors.
Only people who've never been around a farmer would think they're dumb. Uneducated perhaps, but you don't survive as a farmer if you aren't intelligent. That business is as much about managing cash flow as any business there is. And if you aren't quick with math you'll lose your shirt at the market.
And you're right, who doesn't want a tractor?
Every time I go to Le Sabre I do two things...
1. I go to Chick-Fil-A to get some fries because I love my fries EXTRA salty and Le Sabre provides just that.
2. I reach for a knife to gouge my eyes out with from looking at their bumblefuck site set-up...
Tonight, we are all dookies...
But do I have to root for Grayson?
I'll be rooting for him to trip London Perrantes and start a brawl
That would truly be a fight no one would win
Well I guess if 2016 taught us anything, it's that you can oppose one side without necessarily supporting the other. May the right team lose...
I honestly believe that's the most impressive win of Buzz's tenure so far. Fighting for a tournament berth, you go into a game on the road in ACC, on a short turn around, when you just lost arguably your best player, you basically play only 6 guys, and you win? That's incredibly difficult to pull off yet Buzz's bunch found a way to do it.
Impressive win, but don't let that distract you from the fact that Arkansas blew such a huge lead at halftime.
Don't let that distract you from the fact that Matt Ryan blew a 25 point 2nd half lead in the Super Bowl
Don't let either of these beautiful factual statements distract you from the fact that loluva lost to Richmond.
Don't let that distract you from the fact that loluva blew a 16 point lead with 5 minutes to go last year in the Elite 8
Don't let that distract you from the fact that loluva just blew a 14 point halftime lead against an undermanned buzzketball squad.
Don't let that distract you from the fact that loluva choked away a go-ahead TD with just under 2 minutes to play against Louisville in football this year when the Cardinals scored their own TD with 13 seconds left
Don't let that distract you from the fact that VT blew a 21-3 halftime lead to UGA in......no no no that's not how this works. Memories die hard.I didn't catch this while watching the game (because I turned my back to the tv yelling "let's go!" while dapping up my roommate who was watching Family Guy), but Jamel Artis accidentally ran into Chris Clarke amidst the bench's celebration. Scary moment, but Artis made sure Clarke was okay, and Clarke just began dancing again.
There is no doubt in my mind Clarke will rehab as hard as anyone to tear an ACL and will come back just as strong. I said previously on the actual game forum that his range of motion and overall mobility seem to be in good shape for someone who tore their ACL two days ago. That means swelling is minimal and other structural damage (bones, ligaments, cartilage) is unlikely. While it sucks he is gone for the rest of this season, I'm not too worried about him being one of those guys who are never the same after their injury.
OK, shameless plug here for Clarke's doc. Chris Catterson - the team's ortho surgeon from Carilion Sports Medicine - did a lot of work on my knee back in May. He's top-notch IMHO. I'm a ref, not a player, but he has me rehabbed and ready to hit the floor again next year. So between the doc and Clarke's obvious work ethic, I am filled with optimism.
A good surgeon makes all the difference in the world. Dr. Siegel from the football team reconstructed my ACL a little over a year and a half ago, and I came back the same as before. I'm glad our athletics are in good hands when it comes to doctors.
I'll never doubt you again, Buzz
Unless it means you'll win
So...we're undefeated in Pittsburgh this year?
First time we've won at Petersen Events Center and first time we've won at Heinz Field all in the same sports year. Not bad.
Two things about this game, with so few players getting minutes, what is keeping Devin Wilson off the floor? We have a huge need for minutes off the bench, he has some size to help crash the boards from getting in the football weight room, and was always a tenacious player on defense. He played last year so he has familiarity with Buzz's system.
Second, I have the feeling the team can't wait to get Chris Clarke back on the floor as he looks to be driving the team nuts on the bench. Reminds me off all the stories I hear of spouses after they retire and all of a sudden there is too much of each other. At one point Clarke and Sy looked like two kids stuck in the back seat of the family van on a road trip. Hilarious.
The plan this season has always been to redshirt Wilson, and Buzz isn't going to do it for a run of possibly 10 games.
Buzz talks a lot about doing right by players and not just the program, and all of Buzz's comments indicate he has no interest in burning Wilson's redshirt.
well we have 5 regular season left, plus 3 in the ACC tourney, then 6 in the NCAA tourney so it's closer to 14 but your point stands
And I love Buzz all the more for it. I think the players might love him for that reason as well. It is more important for their love of the game, potential careers, etc for them to come first before the team. Even if we lose the rest of the games this year, I would still happy that he didn't burn a redshirt with 5 games remaining.
The chatter is that Wilson might be leaving after this year to pursue a law degree. With Buzz redshirting him after he came back from bowl season, it means that Wilson has a full year of eligibility left. If Wilson does leave, he's getting that first year of law school paid for by some other school while he plays basketball as a grad transfer. If he doesn't get into a law school he wants, DW will just come back for a full year of Buzzketball next year.. Everybody wins! And another case of Buzz doing what's right for his player.
Seems like he'd be a great fit at U of R if that's the case. Good for him
Wilson could take a lower tier mid-major without a point guard pretty far in one season.
Could see him parlaying a year as a grad transfer into two more years as a graduate assistant and getting the entire law degree paid for just about. Might give him a track into coaching if he doesnt intend to play ball in Europe or immediately pursue the Bar exam to use the law degree
As a law student, I don't see any feasible way a first year law student could take on a full-time extracurricular like basketball.
Most law schools would forbid such commitments. In fact, I don't think the ABA allows any full-time student to participate in such activity at an ABA accredited school.
Oh hey guys. (I'm at least assuming Chatman is a full time student. He left BYU because they wouldn't let him play there.)
Found a NY Times article about Braeden Anderson, a graduate transfer from Fresno State to Seton Hall who paid for his first year of law school by playing basketball.
I didn't realize there was a redshirt plan in place. Him playing football makes even more sense now and makes me think it may be a one season deal.
I laughed at Clarke irritating the piss out of Dream.
Agreed! It reminded me of (Orioles) Adam Jones when he is forced to ride the pine, he is a terror in the dugout.
The position players report to spring training tomorrow... Let's go O's!
Painkillers, they'll get after ya. (h/t to GuitarMan's gif)
FAM
my guess is Wilson is back next year but big Jonnie is gone havent seen him on the bench or anywhere near cassell in a while now.
Unless Hamilton applies for a medical hardship waiver his career is over as he is a senior this season.
So basketball is a thing now at VT.../s