The #9 Hokies play #7 LSU at 9 PM on ESPN tonight in a rematch of their final four game last year. Angel Reese will play tonight. LSU started the season ranked #1 until they lost to #20 Colorado in their first game of the season, 78-92. They won their next 3 games with Angel Reese playing, against Queens, Mississippi Valley State and Kent State. Reese stopped dressing and traveling with the team after Kent State; but the Tigers continued to win against Southeastern Louisiana and Texas Southern; and they won against Niagara and LOLUVA in the Caymans at the same tournament the Hokies were playing, The game against UVA was surprisingly close at 76-73.
This will be a slugfest with SEC refs on the Tigers' court. LSU plays a style that the Hokies struggle to match. They are very physical and we are not. Unless the SEC refs call a closer game than I expect, the Ladies are going to get beat up all night long.
The two teams match up fairly well in size. Kitley at 6'6 will be the tallest player on the court by about 3" most of the night. 6' 6" Freshman Del Rosario does play about 10 mpg. It will be interesting to see if Reese is game-ready after her time off. The Hokies can hope that she is a little out of sync tonight.
STATS:
LSU has seven players averaging 20+ mpg with Del Rosario averaging 12. They have 6 players averaging double digit scoring, led by Reese averaging 17 points and 10 rebounds per game. They shoot the three well with Williams averaging 56% on 34 attempts; and Van Lith and Johnson average 30% and 37.5%. The team as a whole shoots nearly 51% overall. LSU scores 95.3 ppg; the Hokies allow 58.3. VT averages 80.3 ppg; LSU allows 63.5.
I'm not a gambler; so I don't know what the line is for this game. But I have to guess LSU is favored. They are higher ranked and playing in their own arena.
The Hokies are going to need good games from several players to stay with the Tigers in this one.
LET'S GO HOKIES!
Comments
We just have to hope they have better referees than last night otherwise the girls will be black and blue on the plane home.
LET'S GO!!!!!
HOKIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!
If the SEC ladies refs are anything like the SEC Men's refs, they will make sure the SEC wins. I expect Reese to get the Clark treatment all night. If they call it fair but physical I expect a close game. If they call fouls when Kitley gets a two hand shove in the back and on offensive push offs and lowered shoulders in the lane we have a real chance.
Our women's team is very good/very legit and our coach is legit. We aren't beating LSU down there. Van Lith is a 7th year senior that will look like Marivich and Reese will look like Rodman with an offensive game.
Unfortunately no way the Hokies get a fair treatment. If they couple that with how they played in the islands the game will be a blowout.
Ladies were extremely lucky to get out of there with two wins. Summiel saved them against Tulane considering Ekh and Micheaux combined for a Long/Beran type game of 7 combined points.
Kansas game came down to who scored last. Both teams went into a complete drought after Amoore hit a three with2.57 remaining. It was the last points scored. Kansas missed three layups and both free throws in that time. Kitley and Amoore scored 45 of their 59 points.
Reese looks more the painted clown than even her coach tonight
I'm out at the bar watching the Cowboys game and the ladies are on one of the other TV's....I was thinking the same thing.......is she trying to play bball or do a fashion show?
She gets paid for both, really.
She looked like she did the walk of shame directly to their coliseum for the game.
Refs not fully in the L$U bag so far
Let's hope they get frustrated
This aged poorly...
You spoke way too soon. They must take Venmo.
Is it just me or is Kitley trying to rebound too much with just her hands/flat-footed? That is really tough to do when you are getting shoved/elbowed by the other team.
I was also wondering if we ever jump for a rebound.
EKH!!
How was that a shooting foul? Reese lost the ball on the floor
7 point lead after 1
Reese with two fouls already.
Now, after three quarters, only three.
We have the lead, but I don't trust these refs
Here come the refs.
Wenzel needs to shoot the ball more
Wenzel telegraphed that one
Fouls are now 9 against us to 4 against them.
Fouls at 9-4 in favor of the Hokies is so not surprising, some pretty soft calls on the Hokies so far
King has to call timeout there
She did, the ref preferred to wait for the jump ball to be called.
Wenzels third turnover
Apparently every 50/50 ball is a foul on us.
Refs earning their second check now in full effect
can we not block out anybody?
Pretty sure Kenny left Strack out there to eat fouls because he knew we were gonna get fucked by the refs
That kick ball crossed the sideline which should have been a foul for being inside the restricted space.
Kim Mulkey is a gremlin
13-6 fouls
And already an 11 FTA advantage
Fuck LSU. What a bunch of ass clowns. Gotta hit some shots in second half. Cmon girls.
We are getting good looks, just not knocking them down. Keep playing hard ladies, LET'S GO!!
Meanwhile Liz already almost has a double double
Liz is playing maybe the hardest/toughest I've ever seen
The block on Reese was very satisfying
Can't win 8-on-1 games
I think Brooks has realized the refs are going to bend us over sideways. Our rotation is screwed.
The media gush over Reese is unwatchable. Spent more time talking about how she supports her team from the bench than what is happening in the game. The doll baby/trans make up to ape her coach does not help. Would so like to kick their ass, but SEC refs never gonna let that happen. Calls will get worse if we start making shots.
For whatever reason he is doing it, I like CKB getting the youngsters time in this game. I am confident we will make the tourney, and getting the fresh/red fresh experience in big road games with poor officiating should pay off when it counts.
Also - is this an SEC network game? Literally covering LSU like Bill Roth does the Hokies, so much homerism
Did Strack have as many fouls called on her ass the entire lsu team when she went out?
Yes
We are just playing flat footed.
Announcers stanning Morrow while the replay shows her grabbing Ekhs arm to get around her
Keep doing that Amoore
Hard to come back if they shoot like that.......
This broadcast is.....something else
It's a good thing I watch games at home. I've yelled cunt at the TV so many times that Guy Ritchie wants to cast me as the lead in his next movie.
Wife is trying to sleep at the other end of the house, I am muffling the screaming with bourbon.
That is not working for me..........
Wouldn't be a VT basketball game if someone wasn't having a record day from 3 point range.
The commercial just now with "That's Our Move" for women's basketball had at least three offensive fouls as the highlights.
These whistles are softer than a marzipan dildo
This game is stupid
Broad side of barn marked safe from any Hokie shooting not named Amoore.
Ladies look like MJ Collins out there
I would love for ACC refs to give us this treatment at home. Never seen it happen.
Shooting 17% from 3 is also a killer right now.
Just not our night
Refs can kill the momentum in a game. We were up early and refs immediately stole 3 or 4 possessions in a row from us.
Can't have a non-darling upset the narrative. Only reason Iowa lost was because Clark went 1 for 3456533356 and the zeebs couldn't bail them out
Especially when the narrative included Reese returns and their coach getting her 700th victory on her home court.
We need to start building a narrative in the regular season so ESPN can run with it come March and influence the refs. I would love to hear some talk from the team about going after VTs first Natty.
This^^^
That's exactly how we can flip story
Even the announcers saying Kitley got hit on the hand while shooting for no whistle.
If just half of the good looks we've gotten off and completely bricked would have gone in, we'd be up by 20
How many steps does Lith get before they whistle?
Tristan Jarry shooting better than most of the Hokies.
Conspiracy theory: Haley Van Lith is actually an AI designed to drive traffic to Jessie Rogers videos
VT still not hitting the threes.
SEC got so much ESPN $$$$ they throwing it at WBB refs.
Someone is certainly throwing $$$ at Angel Reece, who isn't very good at free throws.
Time to bring in Poteat and tell him to make few foul calls count......
Or maybe the wrestling team.....
These refs are a fucking joke
That was so bad lol
I honestly don't know what is a foul in women's basketball. LSU was playing rugby and we were getting soccer calls. LSU is hooking elbows and we got called with flat feet and hands straight up. This is the second straight game against them that looked like two different sets of standards being applied.
How ....$$$$$$$$$$
At least the announcer finally said it......
Because it's freaking obvious.
Kitley gets fouled, Reece gets free throws.
What a joke.
Kenny needs to get the starters out. Not worth getting hurt when it's this blatant
He should have a talk with the refs.
Yes, it's THAT bad.
Only problem is they fouled out everybody else.
we go zone and still can't rebound
You know I actually remember a UNC point guard jumping twice with his shoulder into Jeff Allen's chest and Allen getting called for the foul just like Reese did with Kitley. The reason I still remember it is that it's like the most egregious home cooking foul that I've ever seen in my life.
Fuck lsu
That one was terrible as well as Kitley's 5th. Reese wraps an arm around to get to the basket and Kitley gets called. Horrible.
Even as bad as the fouls have been I still don't think we win this game. Hokies have not defended anything of note.
Yeah they flat out outplayed us but we still got done dirty
Georgia has hounded the heck out of Hailey but otherwise yeah it's been rough on defense.
I just love watching her play basketball
Reese hooked Kitley and once again foul on Kitley
Announcers making the case against officials by citing stats
Micheaux has to take her head off there. Mulkey set that up just to embarrass us. Reese should never have gotten a shot up there.
Hokie women have a lot of work to do if they want back into the Final Four.
Better to know it now.
Flop city in the 1st half to get them back in the game...
Reese's mouth gets the coverage, but Morrow is the best player on that team.
Pretty similar game plan to the final 4 game from Mulkey. Foul/hook/bump Kitley and if the refs swallow their whistles a portion of the time it's a winning strategy
Now that's worked twice, so Brooks needs a better plan if he wants to win those games.
21-13 foul differential with a 26-11 FTA differential.
18 point loss with 15 extra freebie tries. Still think LSU wins but if it's remotely close in line opportunities than its at least a boxers chance at the end.
It says Strack played 5 minutes with 5 fouls, 0 points and 1 rebound.
Kenny has got to figure out a way to even the playing field. Probably should start with being more aggressive, we're gonna get called for the fouls anyway so might as well make it worth it
She needs to study LSU, as somehow their fouls weren't getting called.
Maybe a different color jersey.
That was painful to watch.
I thought the mens game in Auburn was one of the most poorly officiated games I had ever seen. Then came last night. Those refs should be written up and fired by any competent overseeing agency. Even by the end of the game the announcers that had been sucking up to LSU were wondering what game the Ref's were watching.
So far we aren't even close to replacing the production of Traylor, Soule, and Gregg. Traylor and Soule's ability to drive to the basket opened up shots for our shooters. Soule was a force on the boards. We are way to reliant on Georgia with the ball in her hands. She's going to wear down over the season with this usage rate.
Carleigh is impressing me in her limited minutes. Defense is a little rough but she has a nice shot.
She does and its unfair to expect her to come in and be at the level of a 5th year senior like Traylor. She needs minutes to grow and gain confidence. Micheaux looks lost out there. I've been disappointed with her so far. I was hoping she would set the tone for physicality with this team. Ehk has not shot the ball as advertised.
For the most part I agree on Micheaux, she looked good in her last game at Cassell but otherwise Meh. Ehk has been decent and plays good defense from my eyeballs view. I am not sure how much her lack of scoring has been from not being the star.
Its not just the production, I feel like it's the grit too. They all had that dawg and toughness in them, and we haven't really seen that in Wenzel, Micheaux, etc.
Maybe it's all the new faces trying to gel still, but I miss Soule's toughness, Traylor's slashes, and Gregg's ability to be consistent
Micheaux was very much a strong slasher at Minnesota.
Taylor Soule didn't really turn it on until January last year, pretty sure her and Kenny have publicly said they had a come to Jesus moment at some point in the season and then the light came on.
If we have these issues in January, I'll be worried. Right now? Georgia is better than last season I think, Kitley has a big more dog in her I feel like (she didn't shoot well but I felt like she banged pretty hard in the post with Reese last night) than prior years, just need the talent around them to grow into system.
Good observations. Also, at LSU and South Carolina, playing physical is a big part of the game plan, so if the refs aren't calling fouls on them, there is going to be some hard contact.
Kitley definitely knows that. I saw her get punched in the face by Morrow and Reese at least three times last night. Of course there were no calls other than Kitley was in the wrong.
Last night showed you what it takes to win a national championship. And UCONN and USCe weren't even there. It takes a proven championship coach- who likely is a total scum cheater- that gets the calls from the refs. It takes a huge bag of money, it takes big physical athletes that grow on trees in the south. It takes poaching Louisvilles and Maryland- two top 15 programs- players, etc. Hard, cold, reality. IF you catch a miracle and a fairly officiated game involving Mulkey- lol- You have to then likely contend with Dawn Staley or the best coach ever in the sport. In a sport with zero parity the past 25 years, at least the Hokies have entered Tennessee, Maryland, UNC territory- which is a testament to Brooks. I'd like to credit Whit, but I won't since it's 50/50 whether he would allow Brooks to hire another analyst.
Agreed with everything but the last sentence. Whit extended Brooks and gave him a nice raise.
As I stated- Whit will pay the head coach. In everything but football and mens BB- that is where it has usually stopped.
Historically that was the case, but Pry got a huge pool for assistants and staff. I think if Brooks wants somebody Whit will find the money.
Perhaps, I have just been trying to wrap my head around the fact that VT has never stumbled upon a national title in any sport. and before the "ya know its hard to win a championship" - Stanford wins national titles every year. Maryland has 20 of them. UVA has over 20. Coastal Carolina won the college world series- so did Rice. Every other ACC school has multiple titles. By definition- its not hard. So my working theory is the AD. JMU's AD rolls aces with every football coach and has his hoops team in the top 25. We have had a hall of fame football coach and a top 10ish hoops coach currently- Buzz. Common denominator is the AD.
The majority of those schools titles are in non-revenue sports which until Whit got here, Virginia Tech rarely invested in. I don't like some of the decisions Whit has made in the revenue sports but he has made strides in the other sports.
Wrestling is now yearly a top ten program. Women's basketball has seen significant investment. Track and Field are one of the top programs in the ACC. Our athletic facilities have seen massive improvements under Whit. The under-construction student-athlete performance center will impact all the sports. The baseball stadium renovation and sponsorship. The Rector Field House complete overhaul.
He hasn't been perfect but we have seen much worse as an overall athletic program before him.
JMU was also massively outspending their peers in FCS to the extent that their FCS football spend was more than every sunbelt team. Of course a coach with that resource disparity at that level will excel. This is why their coaches tend to do poorly at their next stop, in my opinion.
This right here is why Liberty went 12-0. They are in CUSA, but spending like they are in a P5 conference.
Watched the post game press conference with Coach Brooks and Amore. Brooks was seething and doing his best not to show how angry he was. He made one comment about how "confusing" the officiating was and the rest of his answers were basically that the team still needed to figure itself out.
He and Amore also referenced that the game turned in the second quarter when LSU figured out that they could out physical us and that weren't going to be aggressive. When asked about Angel Reese his comment was that we're not good enough to worry about the other team, we need to focus on ourselves.
I know the out was bad, but if we can take the experience and learn from it, it will help us in March. Last year we weren't a great team in November or December either.
Exactly. The refs did us no favors, but Brooks still has some things to figure out.