Buzzketball Falls Short Against Notre Dame 76-71

Things often looked bleak during the Virginia Tech men's basketball team's contest against Notre Dame. The Hokies came out flat, saw the Irish sprint out to a nearly 20 point lead, and seemed destined for a drubbing.

But good basketball teams don't get blown out at home. And with Tech holding a 15 game win streak in Cassell Coliseum, they weren't going to go quietly.

And as if on cue in the depth's of the Hokies' despair, Seth Allen and Chris Clarke took charge. The two playmakers lead a furious comeback, as Notre Dame watched their lead dissolve. The effort crested with Tech taking a 67-66 lead with 1:52 remaining, and another big ACC win within reach.

But unfortunately for Buzz Williams and company, home teams aren't invincible, and win streaks aren't safe. Not in the best basketball conference in the country.

In a matter of moments, the Irish came back and took control. Down one, Allen committed a costly turnover in the lane which lead to an opposing bucket. And immediately after, Notre Dame point guard Matt Farrell dove at halfcourt to take a rolling inbounds pass away from Justin Robinson. He lead a fast break, and promptly increased the lead to five.

It was an undisputably great play, and it sealed Tech's fate.

The Hokies lost 76-71.

"Gritty, tough, winning play by (Farrell)," Williams said. "You can point to all of those little things in the last two minutes and 41 seconds, and those are winning plays by Notre Dame and losing plays by Virginia Tech."

Losing plays and mistakes were a theme of Buzz's press conference. His group shot 10-18 from the free throw line and 5-18 from three. They occasionally lost shooters on defense, and had trouble keeping Farrell out of the lane.

But despite all of the mental lapses and brutally slow start, the game was there to be won. The crowd gave Tech juice at the first whiff of a comeback (Allen scoring eight points in the span of just over a minute halfway through the first half), and the squad responded.

"The first thing I said to them (in the locker room) was that 'you had every reason to stop, and you didn't,'" Williams said. "'And you had every reason to win, and you didn't.'

"I hope that we grow. From how hard it is to win a game, and how hard it is to execute and play to the scouting report every single possession."

This one will sting the Hokies, who have now lost three of four and head into a Wednesday night home matchup against Georgia Tech. But there's still plenty of time to get things back on track, and a loss to the only undefeated team in the conference is nothing to panic over.

But if anything, the defeat proves how tight the ACC is from top to bottom. And the path to tournament time this year will be especially long and painful. Tech still has the talent to fulfill their postseason dreams, but letting games like this slip through their fingers won't make the journey any easier.

A Few Quick Thoughts:

It's tough to pin the loss on any one thing, and the mistakes certainly come to mind when thinking of a culprit. But when Mike Brey was asked about how Tech chipped away at the lead, he hit on something interesting:

"Seth Allen really got going from the three point line in the first half. And that gave them some life to believe," Brey said. "And we had a hard time keeping them out of the paint, their drives. The thing about it is though, we're really good offensively, and those only count two.

"And our offense can maybe absorb twos. We just couldn't absorb them making double-digit threes, which they've done in this building a bunch. So to chase them off the line, and have them only make five, I think was a key."

Outside of two spurts from Allen and Robinson, the Hokies failed to make a single triple. The looks where there, Justin Bibbs and Ahmed Hill both had great opportunities and just didn't see them fall. In a matchup that came down to a final few possessions, the difference between dumping the ball inside and having a three splash down was huge.

This was a great reminder about how nice a basketball venue Cassell can be. Is it out of date? Sure, in many different ways. Could it be renovated in a way to give the athletic department more revenue (better chairs for high paying donors, possibly a suite or too, etc.)? Absolutely.

But when it's close to full, as it was on Saturday afternoon, there are few better places to watch the sport. The sightlines are great, and the way it's built echoes sound from every corner of the arena.

Even in its current state, I'd much rather have a Cassell Coliseum than a monstrosity like what NC State has in Raleigh. Same for many of the other soulless arenas in the conference. As long as people come, the place will always have life.

Clarke is an amazing player, the most talented we've seen in Blacksburg since Dell Curry. He's the lynchpin of Tech's offensive movement, and is responsible for a countless number of open shots for his teammates. But his efficiency down the stretch in close games falters, due to his lack of shooting.

We haven't seen the Hokies trail in many close ones this season, but Clarke's iffy jumper could potentially force him off the floor in spots. He does enough in every other place to make up for it most times, but if Tech's in a position where they need a three, can they afford to play both Clarke and Zach LeDay?

Buzz pulled him with 20 seconds to go, when they were down five and things were all but over. But it'll be an interesting development to watch, as the Hokies find themselves in closer games throughout conference play.