Hokies Start Slow, Finish Fast in 113-71 Victory Over The Citadel

For nearly 20 minutes on Saturday afternoon in Cassell Coliseum, Virginia Tech appeared unwilling to "Embrace the Pace." Fresh off a resume-boosting win over Ole Miss, the Hokies couldn't have looked more tentative or turnover-prone early, clearly uncomfortable with the frenetic tempo of a Duggar Baucom-coached basketball team.

But after a presumably animated halftime discussion with Buzz Williams, the Hokies emerged from the locker room looking far more assertive, rattling off a 73-point second half en route to a convincing 113-71 victory over The Citadel.

Seven players scored in double digits for the Hokies, an encouraging level of offensive balance albeit aided by the run-and-gun style of Baucom's Bulldogs. Sophomore guard Ahmed Hill led the way with 22 points and 8 rebounds, an efficient offensive performance from the Georgia native powered by a game-high four three-pointers.

Chris Clarke posted his first career triple-double, a workmanlike 13 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists once again putting the striking versatility of the former top-100 recruit on full display. Clarke's tenth assist came in the waning seconds as freshman forward Khadim Sy drilled his first — and perhaps last — career three, putting an emphatic exclamation point on a clinical second-half performance from the Hokies. Sy appeared poised from the onset against a smaller Bulldogs team, turning in 14 points and 4 rebounds on a perfect 6 of 6 from the field.

But for as impressive as the final score may look at first glance, the Hokies couldn't have started worse against this unique Citadel basketball team. Mirroring the Baucom-led VMI offenses of old, the Bulldogs entered the afternoon leading the nation in scoring, ever eager to hoist up threes and force turnovers at an equally astonishing clip.

And for the first half, with Tech seemingly still working off an eventful Friday evening at TOTS, it worked. The Hokies turned the ball over 11 times through the first twenty minutes, a brutal display of basketball that had the Bulldogs clinging to a 44-40 lead heading into the break.

It didn't take long for the Hokies to right the ship. A far more aggressive Tech team reappeared for the second half, immediately blitzing the Bulldogs with a 22-4 run, putting to bed any thought of a resume-damaging letdown in Blacksburg. The Hokies cruised from there on out, remarkably tallying more points in the second half (73) than the Bulldogs managed for the game (71).

It's worth noting that this Citadel team, despite some admittedly gaudy offensive numbers, is no juggernaut. A 7-5 start to the season notwithstanding, the Bulldogs have struggled mightily against strong competition, and a consistently competitive Southern Conference could be problematic for a team with such glaring defensive concerns. But the Hokies can only play what's put in front of them, and despite a miserable first half performance, they won by 42 points today. And — regardless of opponent — there's something to be said for that.

A Few Other Thoughts

First Half Woes After watching the Hokies limp through an ugly first half, I channeled my frustration with this tweet.

Tech seems way too concerned with trying to limit tempo. Just play basketball, you're better at every position.— BUZZKETBALL (@BUZZKETBALL_) December 17, 2016

Postgame, Buzz relayed his multitude of thoughts to the ESPN3 crew covering the game.

"It's too frantic. It's too chaotic. And that's the way he (Baucom) wants you to play," said Williams. "I thought in the first half, we were kind of mirroring what they did. And you lose. That's why we were behind at halftime. Eleven turnovers, just not us at all. And the thing we've been emphasizing, it's not really their plays. It's not exclusively their players. It's how they play...And it's, 'Can you bend the opponent to your will? Like, no we're not participating in your style. You're gonna have to play the way we play.'"

And it's true: the Hokies looked like two different teams on Saturday afternoon. In the first half, they came out and it was clear from the opening tip that Buzz had drilled Citadel's unique style into them all week. They were apprehensive, careful to not get embroiled in a track meet with the Bulldogs. But when you focus on not making a mistake on the basketball court, it leads to mistakes. 11 first-half turnovers — most of which came in the first 10 minutes — isn't who the Hokies are on offense, but The Citadel sped them up just enough to wreak havoc on a good basketball team. Justin Robinson picked up three first half fouls, Seth Allen looked uninterested, it was just brutally bad basketball.

The second half was a drastically different story. It was almost as if Buzz said, "Screw this, go play your game," at halftime. The Hokies looked aggressive, confident, decisive; in short, they looked like they knew were the better team. They not only ran in transition effectively and attacked the basket with far more fervor, but also largely controlled the tempo and limited easy buckets for the Bulldogs. The moral, I suppose, is that sometimes basketball is as simple as settling down and doing what you do. The box score tells the story in this one — Tech outscored The Citadel 73-27 in the second half.

Career High for Ty Outlaw Outlaw had the best game of his young Virginia Tech career, knocking down four threes on his way to a 14 point and 7 rebound afternoon against the Bulldogs. It's encouraging to see Outlaw knock down shots — the good Lord knows that boy can shoot — but it's even more encouraging to see him get involved in other areas of the game. I'm still wary to count on Outlaw to consistently contribute in ACC play, but my hopes are higher after today.

Next Up With the student body headed home for winter break, just Charleston Southern and UMBC stand between the Hokies and their New Year's Eve tussle with No. 5 Duke (oh, good news, Harry Giles might be back!). Tech will need to be careful of overlooking two inferior opponents, but an intriguing holiday matchup with Coach K's star-studded squad promises to be a telling measuring stick for this resurgent program.