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#ThisIsHome pic.twitter.com/59WI877e51— VT Men's Basketball (@VT_MBBall) January 27, 2016
Radio
Virginia Tech IMG Sports Network
Jon Laaser & Mike Burnop
Also available on:
Satellite: Sirius: 108 XM: 194
Digital: Hokies Xtra & TuneIn
Television/Internet
The ACC Network
Tom Werme & Dan Bonner
Also available on ESPN3
For a better idea on where to find this game on TV, check out this post.
Where can you watch tonight's #Hokies - Louisville game? Check out a new #HokieHuddle https://t.co/nmCTrXi2Ra— VT Men's Basketball (@VT_MBBall) January 27, 2016
Hokies fans, let's not lose sight of the fact that had anyone suggested seven games into conference play at the beginning of the year, no one would have thought the Hokies would have a winning record. Sitting at 4-3, coming off a closely contested loss to the now #1 team in the country is nothing to shake our heads at. Last year that loss would have been by 30 going away from us. We have another really tough game ahead of us, against a team with a quasi-dominant big man in Louisville, who comes in riding a three game win streak with its only losses to #3 Michigan State, #12 Kentucky, and Clemson. It's undeniable that the Hokies will have to play hard to have a chance at knocking this team off, but also keep in mind the recent trend of ranked teams pulling out amazing comebacks in the final seconds of their games. UVA shocked Wake Forest by hitting three three's in the last 17 seconds. Georgetown mounted a 12 point comeback with less than two minutes to go. Doing the little things right ALL night will be crucial in this game.
The biggest concern for the Hokies in this game will be the size/skill of Chinanu Onuaku (#32) 6'10, 230 Lbs Sophomore Center. He comes in averaging 10.6 PPG, 9.2 RPG and 1.1 APG. He has a double-double in every ACC contest so far for the Cardinals. He also is getting better on defense with 2 BPG and multiple altered shots each contest. This could be another night like the Hokies had when they faced Duke and allowed Plumlee to go on a rampage. Our bigs, especially Blackshear cannot take bad fouls 20 feet away from the basket in this game. No moving screens, no ticky tack reaches after an opposing screen, NO, NO, NO. If it happens and they are in foul trouble early this game could get away from Tech quickly. If the bigs manage to keep their head in the game than this should be a closely contested matchup right to the final buzzer.
One thing bound to catch everyone in Cassell's attention tonight is how Onuaku shoots free throws. He is using the old school "granny basket" shot this season and it's greatly improved his shooting at the line. He still shoots an awful 58% but that's much better than the 46% he shot last season. That's two or three points a game sometimes and everyone in the ACC knows how important two or three points are at this juncture. Difference between winning and losing most conference contests.
The Cardinals have three others scoring in double digits this season, starting with ACC POY candidate Damion Lee (#0) 6'6, 200 Lbs Senior Guard, who is averaging 16.6 PPG, 3.8 RPG and 1.7 APG. Lee is seen as their elder statesmen, definitely a shoot first type guard, with a knack for getting to the line where he hits 86% of his attempts. Lee will be a constant headache driving into the lane creating space for teammates.
After Lee, its Senior Guard Trey Lewis (#3) 6'2, 190 Lbs, who comes in putting up 12.2 PPG, 3.6 RPG, and 2.6 APG. One thing the Hokies will need to careful about tonight is having a hand in the face of Lewis and Lee on the perimeter. They shoot only about a combined 35% from outside but attempt almost 10 shots per game. If either are allowed to get in a rhythm from outside its not good news. This is a critical area the Hokies have struggled with all season.
Last of the double digit contributors is Quentin Spider (#2) 6'2, 180 Lbs Sophomore Guard. Spider is the primary ball handler coming up the court for this team. He also leads them in assists at 3.6 APG, while also contributing 10.1 PPG and 2.3 RPG. Spider while with quite a few less attempts from outside is much like "LeTrey" in that he makes his at a 43% clip so three guards to spread the Hokies out around the perimeter. He also brings an attitude to the court much like Chris Clarke or TYRONE.
Donovan Mitchell (#45) 6'3, 210 Lbs Freshman Guard is the last of the Cardinal starters. He brings 8 PPG, 4 RPG, and 1.8 APG. With a larger frame, he is able to help down low in the event the Cardinals are dealing with wingers like the Hokies employ in Bibbs and Hudson.
Louisville comes into this game playing only about a seven man roster most games, sometimes stretched to nine when foul trouble creeps in. Coming off the bench for the Cardinals primarily will be Jaylen Johnson, (#10) 6'9, 215 Lbs Sophomore Forward and Raymond Spalding (#13) 6'10, 210 Lbs Freshman Forward. Both players average 5.5 PPG and around 4 RPG getting just over 16 minutes each. The Cardinals have a really deep front court for years to come if they can keep Onuaku from going pro. The scary part is that they would be even deeper in the front court for this game if it wasn't for the injury to Mangok Mathiang, a 6'10 Junior Center who broke a bone in his foot and has missed the Cardinals last ten games.
Tech is going to have their hands full. It's not that hard to match up size wise with this team but experience and doing the little things right all lean in the Cardinals favor. It is a home game, and hopefully after the way the UNC game went the Cassell will be buzzing, Tech is going to need the atmosphere to be electric to keep their heads in this game. Leday needs to come out with his hair on fire for this contest. His tweener size might be an advantage for the first time in ACC play as he should be able to create fouls on the Louisville bigs by getting into their bodies in the lane.
Bibbs will need to be ready to shoot in order to force at least one of the Louisville guards out to the perimeter, which should open up space for Allen and Hudson to drive into the lane. . Blackshear staying out of foul trouble to guard Onuaku likely will be the turning point in this game, if he is unable this might be a good time to see Hamilton out on the floor for the first time in a while. The Louisville center doesn't seem to do as well when someone is able to stand in front of him and alter his shooting ability from close range. Will it happen? Who knows with how Buzz manages this roster but Pierce is big enough too to keep Onuaku at least honest in the lane.
Now onto the really bad news. Why have the Cardinals been so successful this season? It's primarily due to the press defense that Pitino teams are notorious for. They run many different variations of full and half court zone press defenses, which if you remember the WVU game, was not something the Hokies fared well against. The Hokies will have to find a way to consistently break the Cardinals pressure defense or we will all be deep in our cups tonight. I would hope that this is something that Buzz and the staff have been working hard on to improve since its not the last of this style we will see this season.
Pitino expects his teams to create a high number of turnovers with their defense and turn that into quick transition buckets. If they pull back, Louisville then works hard at creating open looks from the perimeter. Not many teams will admit to looking for the three but the Cardinals are one of them. As a team they are averaging about 17 attempts from beyond the arc each game.
Tech will need to be perfect in this game. All phases. No exceptions. And that's to give itself a chance to win. Unfortunately I don't think it will be enough tonight. Tech loses but keeping it close which is something to be said considering the Cardinals average point differential is over 20 per game right now. 72-66 but still with a .500 record in ACC play eight games in. Wish I thought we had the answer here but I think the Cardinals defensive style will be the telling factor. Hopefully these young Hokies prove me wrong.
Comments
Glad to have you back, ltrepeter2000. We missed your Hoops Wiz insight during the UNC game.
Thanks for the link to find the game, I never would have looked on my local weather channel.
In Cville, its on NBC, but the guide says its "The Mysteries of Laura"
Arrow on the CW in Richmond. Stupid Comcast
Fios actually got it right!
Allen, please stop shooting 3s.
Is that Seth Greenberg refereeing? Uh oh...
Buzz's gameplan looking great so far!
Teams always seem to have trouble dealing with us in the first half.
Glad to see Hamilton in and absolutely loving the pace of our offense. I've always thought that we would be a great running team if we can limit the transition turnovers.
I love that we've only used about 15 seconds of the shot clock so far on all of our possessions. #tyronelife
lol@ Mitchell's dunk fail
Game blacked out on espn3, not on DTV anywhere.
ACC network doesn't stream?
check your local nbc channel. it says "mysteries of laura" is on, but it's actually the game.
Well, I will let you know when I figure out Laura's mystery.
clever guise from nbc to make it look like someone is actually watching that show.
Try the CW? My guide says Aarow and Supernatural are on there but it's actually the game
I'm still bothered that Louisville stole Montrezl Harrell away from us with hookers and stripper parties.
Are those the kind of reasons we want a player to be motivated by?
Well, yeah. He was an 18 year old male.
I meant do we want tech to operate like that? haha I don't expect players to not like strippers
I like to have something in common with the athletes once in a while
Louisville down to their 3rd center who only has 10 minutes in ACC play so far?
Blood in the water.
Glad to see Tyrone back on the floor
Well, the replay clearly showed Hudson was fouled on that missed dunk. ACC refs still suck!
Is Jalen the guy who left Benedictine to play at Lebron's old school.
That's right
Like what I see so far. The #16 team does not look better. Crowd looking good for TV. Fun game to watch. Go Hokies!
We're getting absolutely killed by the three. Thankfully our FTs are money tonight, only missed one.
Our shooting is terrible other than the line though. 36% so far.
A lot of those were either blocks or getting into somebody to get a foul to throw it it up. Not saying we can't shoot better, but feel like it's better than the stats show.
Blackshear has to stop with the bad fouls. Tired of writing about it. Laughed when Hamilton hit the floor, that may have been my magic trick for the night. That or Buzz and I mind melded for a second in the ether
Hope VT has enough gas in the tank to keep running off of every missed shot. You know L-Ville is gonna want to pound it inside. Time to see if pushing the truck is going to pay off
Damn Lee, bombing it out like he's shooting into a damn hula hoop
I am so glad the ACC Digital network is showing this game /s
Broken record, just frustrating.
It's about damn time Lee missed a 3
I swear every foul we have commited has been away from the ball so far, we really need to clean that up
21/22 from the free throw line. That's unreal
only thing keeping us in the game besides Hudson dialing up his performance from the ACC tourney last year
That dunk attempt
Off ball fouls are Terrible. That Cardinal should have gotten a technical for dunking that ball
That's not three or four missed dunks this game it seems
layups count the same, someone should tell VT
Dunk practice not something I thought players would need.
Maybe I shouldn't have laughed so hard when Mitchell missed his dunk early in the game. We've missed three since then
Need Bibbs to start shooting
Somebody down there heard you
Could use a Bibbs 3 to cut into this lead
No perimeter defense is our ultimate Achilles heel
3's killing us tonight
10/14. They're shooting 3s better than we're shooting free throws
check your math there bud....
Impossible to stay in games allowing a three every time down
Every time it seems we are about to close the gap and get close to tying it back up Louisville drains another three. Really need to tighten up
I have to think the fouls are keeping Louisville from pressing more.
Cardinals now 10-14 from outside
11-15
A fair amount of those have been contested, Lee is just feeling it tonight. He was the 4th leading scorer in the country last year, not exactly a light weight
Finally get a stop and give it right back...grrr
Glad to see Leday got my message
VT defender WAS in the restricted area there, got lucky
Henry no jumpers. Allen no threes damnit
I can hardly fault him for taking that wide open look, but the points per possession when he takes the shot has to be significantly better when he just drives it.
That was a great look setup by that drive. That is a 3 I can live with
Yeah he had to take it. I just wish he could make it.
Until he can make it I want him to not take anything outside. It's three lost possessions per every four shots out there.
GREAT D! LETS GO BOYS!
Man what a fun game to watch, just back and forth
I wish Allen could score in ways other than free throws and layups
I wish Hudson could play like this more often
Does anybody else scream "NOOOO" almost everytime that Allen shoots the ball?
I can't believe them and the damn 3's. They are killing us.
Reminds me a lot of watching Malcomn Delaney
OFF BALL FOULS AHHHHHHH
lol@ the students to the left of the basket with the giant arrow pointing at some dude's ass.
Just turrible
Where has been this free throw shooting in all our lost games by 2-3 points?
Seth Allen drives me crazy. Who would've thought I'd prefer LeDay taking 3s over Allen. Shit, I'd prefer Blackshear at this point.
We are launching bad shots when we have all of their bigs in foul trouble
By "we" do you mean Seth
Majority rule
Left wide open again....
Once again get within 6 and they hit another huge three to spread it back out
Allen is 0-5 from outside tonight. Five chances to drive. Probably 6-7 points lost. We are down 9.
Allen 0/5. Louisville 12/17. Difference in the game.
At some point we will start winning these games. Whether it's in the ACC tournament or next year, it's gonna happen. And we can also count on the fact that not every team will shoot this well from 3.
The problem is that the three has been Louisville game all year and yet we still failed to play adequate perimeter defense
I'm starting to think that last-second 3 against Notre Dame was one of Seth Allen's better shots because it almost went in. Most of his shots are clearly off the second it leaves his hand
The crazy part is Buzz keeps leaving Allen in. Is everybody else that much worse than Allen?
I'd take my chances with Devin Wilson shooting 3s at this point
Allen is one of our best players. He can drive the lane, shoot free throws and take control. Just is terrible at threes
How many teams have fucking record 3pt shooting?
ugh, wide open dunk.
How did Lee not get T'ed up there?
Letrey and I agree with you.
Piss poor
If you're going to foul there you have to make damn sure he won't make that shot.
I have no grief with the officials. Does that mean it was good, or that we got the calls ?
How have only 4 players for us scored this point?
Where has that been from Bibbs allike night so frustrating he doesn't shoot more
The announcers jinxing the crap out of him.
Why were the students chanting
Footsteps when an opposing player fouls out as he walks to the bench
When an opposing player fouls out you chant left-right for the steps they're taking, and then "sit down" when their butt meets the pine.
Our student section takes some liberties with the "sit down" part though.
When an opposing player fouls out, they chant left right left right as the guy is walking to his bench.
As he takes his seat they yell, "sit down, you suck"
Leg for both of you.
Down 9 with 35 seconds left and now Seth Allen wants to take it to the rack? We actually need 3s now. You can jack them up if you want to...
Bibbs should be bringing ball up when we need three point attempts to get back in game. They can't find him on pass.
Well that backfired.
Spalding, you'll get nothing and you'll like it
Lvlle looked really good tonight. Not sure if they were freaky lucky or freaky good, but still like what we are about.
Free throw attempts going to look a lot more balanced after the 30 or so Louisville took in the last minute
Well we scored 23 more points than they usually allow, but we couldn't keep the from pouring them in from outside. We had nearly their entire front court in foul trouble early, which was our best case scenario. Cold shooting kept us from building the lead we needed with their bigs on the bench.
We're not there yet but we'll get there. Now, I'm going to sit here with my Buffalo Trace and watch Planet Earth on Netflix and try to relax.
Let's beat Pitt on Sunday.
If you can't relax to Buffalo Trace you should drink something else. Good stuff. Have one for me.
The "try" was directed at Planet Earth. I'll have a couple for you
Seth Allen 3-17 from 3 in his last 3 games. Yikes. Probably the biggest hole on this team is the lack of a pure shooter on the outside.
Bibbs is as pure a shooter as you will find. We just struggle finding him shots. He's not confident getting his own looks.
Not going to win very often when only four people score. It was a pretty good effort but just confirmed several of our weaknesses as we continue to build. We can't guard or shoot the three. We still continue to struggle with bad fouls amongst our bigs.
For some reason buzz backs off the push when the other team gets in foul trouble. I really have no idea why he doesn't push more paint to try and thin the other teams talent down. Very perplexing
Drives me crazy. We get them to four with over ten minutes to play, they come back in at the eight minute mark but we stop driving on them until the game is decided. Both those bigs should have been out probably by the six minute mark. Probably wouldnt have mattered considering how we were letting them shoot from outside but it has happened in at least five games that I can think of and definitely makes a difference down the stretch be it a loss or an unnecessarily close win.
The hardest one to swallow was the Alabama State game, where they finished with four players with four fouls each. Two of those players got their fourth fouls with about seven minutes left, yet were able to rotate back and forth the rest of the game. Two of UNC's bigs got four fouls with time left and made a big impact on the final score in the last couple minutes of the game. Notre Dame game was another but officiating also changed in that game so it might not have done us any good to press in that game anyway.
Off topic here but is anyone watching the MD Iowa game? Good game right now. But holy cow MD fans... Seriously.
MD fans class of the
ACCB1G