Hokie Basketball Recap and Look Ahead

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First off, I'd like to apologize for the lack of basketball postings over the past couple weeks. It's been a hectic end to the semester, but basketball is back and so are the previews and recaps!

The Hokies currently sit at 6-3 on the season after a 78-67 win at Rhode Island on Wednesday. That win came after back-to-back tough losses at Minnesota and at home against Kansas State. In the Minnesota game, the Hokies once again fell victim to a slow start, falling behind 8-0 against a Golden Gopher squad that was missing its top two big men. However, Tech rallied back to take a three-point lead at the break. The game came down to the final minute and Tech had a 55-54 lead after an Erick Green layup with 23 seconds left. However, on the ensuing possession, Jarell Eddie committed a foul as Green slid off the elevated floor, banging his right shoulder on the concrete slab. Minnesota made the two free throws and Green made a miraculous comeback into the game with 9 seconds to go. After a Tech timeout, Robert Brown deflected the ball into the backcourt and was called for a backcourt violation (later ruled to be the wrong call). The Gophers made two free throws and Green's heroic heave at the buzzer clanked off the rim to give Minnesota a 58-55 victory.

Tech returned home on Sunday to face a young, but talented Kansas State team that hadn't played a road game all year. Tech played a tremendous defensive first half and seemed in control leading 28-22 at intermission. However, the Wildcats came out on fire in the second half with a 12-2 run that included four layups and a dunk to seize command of the game. The Hokies worked their way back into the game, eventually drawing even at 43 halfway through the second half. But K-State went on a 10-0 run to send the crowd, which seemed more focused upon rumors of a Sugar Bowl bid than the actual game, home early. Tech fell for the second straight game, this time by the score of 69-61.

Desperate for some positive vibes, the Hokies traveled to Rhode Island this past Wednesday to battle the 1-7 Rams out of the Atlantic 10. Another slow start plagued Tech, as they fell behind 7-0 before waking up. Amazingly, the slow start didn't faze the Hokies as Tech used a 7-0 run of their own to draw even. The Hokies couldn't pull away from the Rams, though, battling to a 28-27 halftime advantage. In the second half, Tech's offense heated up and we got to see what this team finally possesses offensively. The Hokies shot 65 percent from the field in the second 20 minutes, scoring 50 points and pulling away down the stretch for a 78-67 victory.

The Rhode Island game provided a different look than what we've seen out of Seth Greenberg's squad this year. Erick Green didn't start due to a coach's decision, but came off the bench to drop 24 on 10-of-14 shooting. Victor Davila wasn't in foul trouble, but still only played 13 minutes and finished with no points and one rebound. Instead, Cadarian Raines got a majority of the playing time scoring 12 points in 25 minutes of action. C.J. Barksdale also played extensive minutes and scored six points.

It will be interesting to see where this team goes in the coming weeks. With freshman Marquis Rankin now healthy, it appears as though he is the backup point guard instead of Ty Garland (Rankin started in place of Green at URI). In addition, the Hokies need more from their seniors Dorenzo Hudson and Victor Davila. As shown in the Rhode Island game, it appears as though Greenberg has started to have enough of Davila and is instead playing Raines, who's playing with a fire we haven't seen from him before, mainly because he's been injured too many times to become an effective player.

As for Zo, it's obvious he's not 100 percent. Greenberg said so during his segment on Tech Talk Live Monday and his play has reflected it. In the last five games, Hudson is shooting 24 percent from the field and has failed to reach double digits in each of the five games, including going scoreless at Minnesota. For this team to be effective, Hudson needs to get going and supplement Green as a secondary scorer.

In better news, Robert Brown and Dorian Finney-Smith continue to impress. Brown is third on the team in scoring, averaging a little under nine points per game, but needs to be more consistent on a per game basis. DFS won't exactly light up the scoreboard with 20 points a game, but he makes up for it in other ways. The one thing that worries me is his habitual foul trouble. He's had at least 3 fouls in all but one game so far, which has limited his effectiveness.

After a grueling stretch of quality opponents, the Hokies enter a soft spot in their schedule. Tech has four games over a 12-day stretch starting Sunday against Norfolk State. The Hokies will follow with home games against Campbell (Dec. 17), North Florida (Dec. 19), and Eastern Michigan (Dec. 22) before earning a nine-day break from Christmas.

The Spartans, out of the MEAC, enter Sunday's contest with a 6-3 record. NSU made it to the Championship Game of the Paradise Jam by knocking off Drexel and TCU (who beat UVA) before falling by 2 to a Marquette team that had beaten them by 31 just a week earlier. Kyle O'Quinn is the Spartans' best player, averaging a double-double with 14.4 ppg and 10.8 rpg. Chris McEachin (12.2) and Pendarvis Williams (10.6) also average in double figures for Norfolk State. Tip-off is set for 4pm as part of a doubleheader with the women's team on Sunday. A ticket to the women's game gets you in the men's game for free and a ticket for the men's game gets you into the women's game (1:30 vs NC Central) for free.