IT'S GAMEDAY! #BeatMiami Watsco Center 9 PM RSN pic.twitter.com/ff7x5LMfy6— VT Men's Basketball (@VT_MBBall) February 8, 2017
GAME INFORMATION
Date/Time: February 8, 2017 / 9 p.m.
Opponent: Miami
Site: Coral Gables, Florida (Watsco Center)
Radio: Virginia Tech IMG Sports Network
Talent: Jon Laaser & Mike Burnop
TV/Internet: Regional sports networks
Talent: Wes Durham & Cory Alexander
Live Stats: HokieSports.com
Game Notes: Virginia Tech
XM Radio: XM 81 (Internet 81)
TV Channels for RSN
Where can you watch the @VT_MBBall game at Miami tonight? Check out a new #HokieHuddle. https://t.co/nmCTrXi2Ra pic.twitter.com/i0y35C4XHk— VT Men's Basketball (@VT_MBBall) February 8, 2017
Don't tell UNC, but we are headed to the Hurricanes
Buzzketball struggled back on the road already, surviving a bus mishap on their way to Miami. Hopefully that's where their troubles end and we see an invigorated effort from the Hokies tonight.
Slow, but on our wayGrandmaused to always "We're in some mud right now, but we know how to get out!"Last broke was a good thing pic.twitter.com/JdgfJ5yoPf— Buzz Williams (@TeamCoachBuzz) February 7, 2017
The Hokies now face a Hurricanes squad that is also trying to keep its ACC season on track with a win. One team goes home with a winning record, the other on the opposite end tonight as both teams enter the game 5-5 in the ACC. Miami so far has one big win in ACC play over the Tar Heels 77-62. Otherwise, their wins are against Pitt, Boston College, and two over NC State. Miami was 2-2 in their OOC schedule, with wins over Stanford and Rutgers and losses to Iowa State and Florida. The Hurricanes ACC losses came at the hands of Syracuse, Notre Dame, Wake Forest, Duke, and Florida State.
This is the final away game in a five game stretch for the Hokies, most likely to less than stellar crowd even with only an 8,000 capacity at Watsco Center. The Hokies should get a similar dose of offense and defense, almost like looking in a mirror this evening as Miami plays a fast paced offense and a variety of defenses but at least they got to the arena safely.
Safely in Coral Gables. Getting up some shots at the Watsco Center. #Hokies pic.twitter.com/6Px0rRbatt— VT Men's Basketball (@VT_MBBall) February 8, 2017
This will be the thirty third meeting between the Hokies and Cavaliers. Miami leads the all-time series 19-13. Last year, in three games, each home team won and then Miami eliminated the Hokies from the ACC tournament.
The Hurricanes are coached by Jim Larranaga, who has been at Miami since 2011. Miami has won at least twenty games in four of his five seasons at the helm and have 15 wins so far this season. Larranaga has taken the Hurricanes to two NCAA tournament berths. He also guided them to an ACC Championship both in the regular season and tournament in 2012-2013.
Defensively, Miami runs three different defensive schemes, primarily playing a high pressure man to man which usually rotates into the Scramble defense which is essentially a man to man defense with some zone trapping techniques utilized and then rounding it out with a curveball they call a 3-2 Disrupting Camouflage Defense which is a high pressure, perimeter zone defense that sags to the middle of the court. The 3-2 Disrupting Camouflage is almost the reverse of the Scramble defense. This defense has players back off their offensive players as if they were going to trap but then they shift into passing lanes rather than close the trap.
Offensively, the Hurricanes switch between a four out, one in and a three out, two in Motion Offense, based on the personnel on the floor. When Miami is in with two bigs, those bigs typically rotate between the top and bottom of the lane to create gaps in the defensive coverage while also opening up opportunities for the guards to drive to the basket. The Hurricanes usually only attempt about 18 threes per game but this is a game against the Hokies, where everyone seems to add 5-10 attempts. They take fewer outside shots because they are one of the lower 3P% teams in the ACC.
What does that mean for the Hokies?
The Hokies are getting an opponent with a very similar offensive approach especially in terms of guard focused scoring. They need to be able to counter this by keeping Miami out of the lane. Paint Touches will likely win this contest and its what the Miami guards love to do to get most of their scoring done. Keeping them from easy drives to the basket but playing interior defense is what the Hokies do much better than playing perimeter defense. Maybe a recipe for disaster considering how teams end up shooting the three but I think it's an acceptable risk against this opponent.
This game could be a high scoring affair, with the fast paced offense that both these squads run, but so far this season Miami is only averaging 72.6 PPG. The Hokies, if they shoot the ball like they have so far in the majority of ACC play should have the advantage here if by a small margin. They need to get their swagger back, especially Hill and Bibbs from outside to get this critical road win.
The Hokies need to find that rhythm of turning energetic defense into a quick scoring offense tonight. They should be able to keep the Hurricanes a step behind if they force early turnovers, get out in transition and take confident shots. Miami once it sets up its defense though is a much harder opponent to face. They rank in the top five in the ACC in almost every defensive category. They are especially good at keeping opponents off the board and out of the paint, allowing the fewest interior shots of any ACC team so far.
Hurricanes Backcourt
Davon Reed (#5) 6'6, 220 Lbs Senior Guard is averaging 15.8 PPG, 4.3 RPG, 2.3 APG, and 1.2 SPG. He is shooting 41% from behind the arc and 45% overall. Also shoots 81% from the line. Reed is a bigger guard that likes to get into the lane to score but also leads the Hurricanes in every three point category. Reed is rarely in foul trouble and plays almost 35 minutes per contest so he will be a constant presence that the Tech guards will be dealing with all night.
Ja'Quan Newton, (#0) 6'2, 187 Junior Guard comes in averaging 15 PPG, 3.7 RPG, 3.8 APG and 1.1 SPG. He is shooting a miserable 25% from outside and at the free throw line, shooting 73%. He is better known for his quick first step and ability to drive inside. So far on the season he is shooting better than 47% inside the arc. Newton is the primary ball handler for the Hurricanes and is excellent at driving in and distributing to a perimeter shooter like Reed or Brown so the Hokies need to be prepared to cover down when he attempts to go inside
Bruce Brown, (#11) 6'5, 190 lbs Freshman Guard is averaging 12.1 PPG, 6.5 RPG, 3.3 APG, and 1.6 SPG. I would have loved to see the impact this kid could have had if he was in a situation like Dennis Smith Jr or Okogie from Georgia Tech with no real scorers ahead of him. Considering he is the third option on this team, he is having an incredible freshman campaign. His shot outside the arc is going in at about 40% while inside the arc it drops in at to 45%. He is still working on the free throws though, hitting about 70%. This guy dropped 30 points in their upset win over UNC so beware letting his get started. Scary to think he is about fifth in the ACC voting for Freshmen of the Year right now.
Dejan Vasiljevic, (#4) 6'3, 198 Lbs Freshman Guard is averaging 5.5 PPG and 1.1 RPG in a backup role across 16 minutes per game. So far this season he is shooting 35% from the field, 36% from behind the arc and 78% from the line. If the Hokies can force Miami to use him for a larger role tonight its in their best interest considering how much of a drop off he is compared to the other three guards in terms of shooting capability.
Hurricanes Frontcourt
Anthony Lawrence Jr., (#3), 6'7, 210 Lbs Sophomore Forward is averaging 7 PPG, 3.9 RPG, 1.4 APG and 1.3 SPG. Lawrence is shooting about 44% inside and 37% from beyond the arc. He is only a 68% free throw shooter as well. He has the tendency to totally disappear in ACC games, mainly because he is Zach Leday's height without the toughness down low or the savvy to create a better shot. He is however a particularly good defender, especially on the perimeter.
Kamari Murphy (#21) 6'8, 220 Lbs Senior Forward is averaging 6.1 PPG and 7.9 RPG. Murphy is more the starting center and plays the big man role even with Huell on the floor. He shoots about 47% from inside and never ventures a shot outside the arc. He does sometimes struggle with fouls though so getting him on the bench early would be a big benefit to the Hokies. Murphy is another in a long line of transfers playing for Larranaga at Miami, coming from Oklahoma State three seasons ago.
Ebuka Izundu, (#15) 6'10, 231 Lbs Sophomore Center is averaging 4.2 PPG, 3.2 RPG, and almost 1 BPG in about 11 minutes per game. He definitely struggles staying out of foul trouble, averaging 2.3 fouls per contest over those 11 MPG. He does shoot 60% from the floor and 75% from the line so keeping him out of the game considering our size disadvantage could be huge. As you can see from the photo though, he definitely has the ability to adjust shots down low.
Dewan Huell, (#20) 6'11, 220 Lbs Freshman Forward is averaging 6.5 PPG and 3.7 RPG as the primary backup to Lawrence. There will be some time that these two are both on the court together. This tandem is very much like Leday and Sy in how their coaches utilize them but Huell is seeing the floor a bit more than Sy has so far.
Names the Announcers will Butcher
Ebuka Izundu or Dejan Vasiljevic? Torn between the two but I lean toward Vasiljevic being harder to say three times fast.
What to expect from Miami?
The Hurricanes normally would rely mostly on their guards to do the majority of their scoring but considering the Hokies height deficiency, it is entirely possible that Larranaga goes with a bigger lineup than normal, possibly having Lawrence, Murphy and Izundu on the floor together with Lawrence stepping out to the wing role in this case. Whichever method Larranaga chooses to pursue it, the Hokies need to be prepared to defend inside the paint.
Rebounding should be closer to even in this contest even if the Hurricanes go with a big lineup. It is what is done once the ball is down that could be the difference in this game. The Hurricanes will look to get offensive rebounds whenever possible to give them an edge in possessions and easy put back buckets. The Hokies need to disrupt this either by having position to rebound or cleanly blocking the second attempt.
Three point shooting will be another interesting facet of this game to watch. Do the Hurricanes do like many of Tech's opponents and increase their perimeter shot quantity or do they stick to their normal game plan? If Miami is able to get hot from outside, expect them to remain out there shooting all night.
Davon Reed drives the train for these guys so taking him out of his game effects everyone else on the floor most nights. This is a Justin Bibbs assignment all night if Buzz wants to short circuit Reed.
The Hokies
Tech needs to go fast again in this game. There was better movement against Virginia, at least early on but they have to be able to continue that while actually hitting their shots. They also need to be flexible offensively as Miami will throw a ton of different looks at them throughout this game.
The Hokies need a three point revival for Hill and Bibbs in this contest. Having those guys hit their shots opens the floor so much more for Allen, Robinson, Clarke and Leday in terms of getting inside or having the space inside to create their shots.
Pound the ball inside to Leday. He needs a good bounce back game after a couple quasi duds the last three games. Leday also needs to find a way to pull down some rebounds tonight. He has not had a double-double yet in ACC play. The closest he came was 10 and 8 versus Notre Dame. If this team is going to make it to the tournament, they need Leday to close strong. Hopefully Leday can draw some inspiration from Bimbo Coles tonight.
2/6/88 - Bimbo Coles goes for 51 points against USM to set the Metro Conference single-game scoring record#HokieHistory pic.twitter.com/bWPZUbBCfv— VT Men's Basketball (@VT_MBBall) February 6, 2017
Highlight of the UVA Game
Glad to have the head Hokie on the bench tonight #getB3TTER pic.twitter.com/aNtKdDcuEz— VT Men's Basketball (@VT_MBBall) February 2, 2017
The class act that is Frank Beamer on the bench. Was great seeing him out there even if it didn't lead to a win.
In Closing
If the Hokies can get Leday and Hill or Bibbs going tonight than this game should take care of itself as the others typically deliver enough to get it done. This is a team that is very susceptible to the inside out game, so forcing Miami to react to both the perimeter and the lane is critical.
The Miami bigs have a huge tendency to get in foul trouble so providing Allen, Clarke and Robinson the space to drive inside along with Leday being able to draw contact down low could force Larranaga out of his game plan. The less of 6'10 and 6'11 that see the floor against Leday the better off we are in this contest.
This is not an absolute must win considering the Hokies are on the road and still control their fate in terms of conference record and overall record to lead them dancing. That though is predicated on them beating UVA at home this weekend and stealing another road game between the Pittsburgh and Boston College matchups. I don't see them beating Louisville on the road.
Hokies win 78-73 against my real though process of "until they prove they can play competitively on the road, they are getting their doors blown off". I just think Buzz has to get through to these guys at some point and why not tonight?
You're not training to be the best in the world...You're training to be the best in the world on your WORST day... — Buzz Williams (@TeamCoachBuzz) February 7, 2017
Comments
Hopefully we can come out focused from the jump and not be sitting down 10 at the under 12 timeout. Like you said, not a must win but certainly gives us more breathing room off the bubble. Lets Go Hokies!
Great write up, as per usual! Really hoping we get this W tonight.
This would be a YUGE win
Need a confidence building win to kick-start a strong finish to ACC play. Let's hope Leday has a man's night. Go Hokies!
Won't be able to watch this game, while on the campus of Virginia Tech.
Nice.
Blacked out by ESPN in Richmond--anyone know how to watch in the Richmond area?
It's on channel 856 (10 non-HD) which is TCN for Comcast
CSN
Gettin real tired of blackouts for games happening 5 states away.
Well, this is how I'm watching tonight.
Adblockers recommended, per the usual.
click click
Thanks dude. This shit is getting ridiculous.
That link just locked up chrome.
You're doing the lord's work here. Thanks a ton. My adblocker is bringing its A game tonight.
I ended up downloading a free trial of a VPN and am streaming the ESPN feed.
But yeah, ridiculous that I'm sitting in my Virginia Tech dorm and can't watch our basketball team play 900 miles away.
Just gonna listen to Laaser for this one. Those streaming sites are a nightmare on my phone...
Anybody got a cough cough livestream? Blackouts are dumb.
Right above ya.
*cough*
great write up as usual
Great write up and review. Why the hell is a game in Miami blocked out in Christiansburg!!!
I'm 24 years old and I'm too damn old for these 9:00 tip offs
One interesting note from the radio broadcast. Miami is sponsored by adidas so they play with an adidas basketball which has a different feel than the normal Nike balls
Anyone know if we practiced with Adidas balls this week?
win, lose, or draw... it ain't the ball, it's the hands the ball is in.
Chris Clarke holy damn.
Seen a lot of people on social media for weeks complaining about not being able to see Hokies Games in Blacksburg area, why?
For me SHentel is the cable carrier but they are not part of raycom.
I worry about the well-being of Buzz's vocal cords in the long run.
we're at about 4 turnovers. when we have over 10 for the game it usually doesn't bode well for the good guys
Living in D.C. sucks for tech games on TV. They got it advertised as on ESPN, then we get RSN which doesn't stream the games. GO HOkies
See the above comments for a link to livestream the game.
on DirecTV it's on Comcast SportsNet, channel 642-1
watchESPN working now for me in NJ. Originally I was getting an 'error loading event', not a blackout message....turned off my adblock on Mozilla and feed is working now.....
thanks though to Hokie20 for the link that carried me over for a while there....
Of course UM knocks down a couple of deep-ass threes before the half.
our 3 defense hasn't been as bad this game as in the past. but what do you do when they're making NBA 3's? or when five is defending a guy 7 or 8 inches taller than he?
There are a lot of ways to end a half, and that has to be one of the worst ones
9-0 run, I might need to puke.
Terrible way to end the half. Outplayed them for the majority of the first 20 minutes only to give up a 9-0 run and end the half down 6
Giving up a 9-0 run to go into half. Argh, these Hokies drive me insane sometimes. A couple bad passes and we let Miami back into the game. Based on the first 18 minutes of the game, Tech is the better team.
oof. I kept waiting for us to pull away that half but we kept coming up short. At least we were keeping even or better...until the last 60 seconds where we forgot how to make smart decisions.
I know we're not a good rebounding team. But damn! Call a friggin over then back! That one (mid way thru 1H) on Allen was insane. Not only did the Miami guy climb his back when he was in perfect block out position, but then he called Allen for a blocking fouls when the they shot the ball while in the air.
Besides that they (refs) are more interested in dancing and showing off the calls. I don't like that.
That said, damn our D is terrible! Why do we always give an under performing/role player a career night?
So the guys know a half is 20 minutes, right? Just checking.
Yup, lots of time to go, but we need to tighten up defense and block them out a little more.
19 is almost as good right?
Danger time right now for us. Need to stop the run and get some points up.
Not good if that was Bibbs' 3rd.
Also Ahmed Hill's struggles continue. Glad to see him try to get some confidence by going to the rim and earning FTs. He's been way off on threes.
Robinson just got tackled on a layup attempt. No whistle. Typical ACC
Well well, that was a nice 7-0 run.
Brand new ball game.
Guess the refs arent calling anything now, huh?
Love going on watchESPN, scrolling down to the ACC network and loading it up...
...to see it's on FOX sports west. Seriously, I found that entertaining. I know the 'why' has been discussed, but it makes me giggle.
Going way too slow to get Miami off their game especially when we are on offense
Where is the technical for the pull up on the dunk there? Hokies with their heads in the clouds right now. Just playing lackadaisical basketball
agreed... they T'ed up Clarke for that a couple of games ago
how may TO's have we had?
Would be nice to hang with even a middle-of-the-pack ACC team for once.
I remember us being better a few weeks ago...
We're in the bonus, yet make no attempt to be aggressive and go after them. They're thin like we are!!!
good point
It'd be nice if we could put together 40 minutes of focused basketball on the road just once this season
Tired of watching four guys float in place outside rather than have us crash the basket. Our guys are faster than their guards off the dribble but we just are content to throw things away outside.
/commence thread meltdown
Dagger
The way we are playing Miami doesn't have to score again to win this game
That's what you get for trying to make Sportscenter. The rim blocks you.
Ugly basketball on both ends.
it's a 15 point Miami lead with 6 minutes to go... WHAT HAPPENED!!!
Playing flat footed.
We need to push the pace of this game. Be aggressive on both sides...and for gods sake at least try to get an offensive rebound!
Just another embarrassing road effort, nothing to see here.
They can't win if they don't make threes. It's very mentally difficult to keep up the level of effort required to overcome 4 inches at every position on the floor while seeing shot after shot bounce off the rim. Not saying that they don't need to do that, but it just isn't as simple as "TRY HARDER!"
Except they try way too many threes when we have the athleticism to get to the rim on the dribble. Get to the line if they don't get the basket, foul out some of these bigs to level the playing field. They give up on going to the basket way to easily and too often
Corner 3 is the best shot in basketball. We scored ~40 in the paint today, more than usual and it was nowhere near enough. In my mind, this team barely shoots enough threes. The percentages and expected value of the shots, combined with how bad we are on offensive boards should drive us to shoot even more 3-pointers than we do right now. Driving to the basket, in my opinion, is a self-defeating effort with this team. The major focus, even when driving, should be to get a 3 point shooter open. Just doesn't play to our strengths when we try to win inside when we don't come up to our opponent's chin.
From watching the last couple of games, it appears the defense is covering our corner three. It has been the most open when we work from the inside out. But we aren't going inside enough.
If you add in the free throws we scored 54 in the paint and the other piece is if you continue to get to the line you also get their bigs either to the bench early or at the end of the game. We lost by two baskets, three if your going inside. It's not actually the three point attempts that bother me when they work the ball to an open man, it's the possessions that we throw away entirely because they float around the outside and never manage to get someone open. See Robinson throwing the ball out of bounds over Clarke's head. See the sloppy pass to Allen that gets stolen and taken in for an easy dunk. When they float and slow down their focus goes out the window. When they move and play fast they get to the rim over and over for quick baskets or trips to the line because the defense is reaching. Seven of our fifteen turnovers occurred outside the arc tonight.
Here here, the sloppy passes drove me to drink last night. They break momentum at the least and potentially are points for the other team.
I just see a complete lack of effort. We get out rebounded a lot because of our lack of size, but lately we're giving up offensive rebounds because we don't care enough to hustle after the ball. Frustrating to watch.
I think I just heard the announcer say we've had one offensive rebound tonight. that's sad
If you aren't going to press your speed and athleticism advantage than at least put Sy in with Leday. Also I think it's high time Buzz relooks his strategy of Allen and Leday sitting out the first six minutes of every game. It's too long a period to have your top two scorers out of the game.
They also sat for the first 5 or so minutes of the 2nd half
Engage #FakeRally
Houston, VT mens basketball has problems....
Shocker
AHC channel says that's the wrong quote! :-)
Another phantom technical not caught by the broadcast. So surprised #goacc
Seriously the ACC doesn't realize that they should be always filming the game.
Official pursues Robinson into the huddle and then Ts him up. Official wanting to be center of attention in this game again. Go figure
That was not a push!
Pat Narduzzi and the ACC say it was
There was unnecessary contact, so by rule a technical should be called. BUT HE PRACTICALLY WAS BAITING ROBINSON IN A TEAM HUDDLE.
These officials have been horrible, but that technical was the worst call of the night. I really want to hear this week that referee gets censured during the week. He pulls on a player and then calls a technical on him.
We were the better team for the first half, but not in the second half. We started driving the basket way too late.
If he had T'd Robinson up as soon as he made contact I actually don't have a big problem, even though it was a weak contact, but for him to pursue Robinson into the huddle and wait for Robinson to say something before calling the tech is just purely unprofessional
The official baited that T. Watch him follow the team into the huddle yelling something back at JRob. News flash: JRob had reason to complain; not only was he hit, but they were inconsistent the entire night with calls. Frustrating.
That was the point I made above. These refs were more interested in "the show" than the game. Good officials should be invisible.
Basketball referees are the worst of any major sport, full stop. Just call the game.
If they could find a way to play like they did for the last three minutes for three more minutes in this game the result likely goes the other way.
Le sigh. We need to be more consistent and rebound better. That was a match of two relatively even teams, and we lost on the road against bad officials =. That said, Buzz needs to adjust his offense. We try and keep the ball on the outside even against teams we should be driving against.
Our defense just isn't good enough to get stops. We go on a 9-0 run to tie it up and immediately give it all back and more. Our D is putting way too much pressure on our O to be perfect and requires us to make shots. The D is not capable of making up for poor shooting. It's going to be a long rest of the season.
I get that we are worlds better than a couple years ago, but a few more games like the last couple and we don't go dancing. We have consistently been blown out on the road, and only beaten one team we weren't supposed to (Duke). Even in the games we have won, it just doesn't feel like these guys are bringing the same fire that we closed the season out with last year.
Haven't seen it posted in the discussion yet but here is the video of the JRob Tech. I still don't understand why the ref is still talking to him as he is walking away from the play to the huddle. I'd be shocked if this warrants a further suspension which would absolutely cripple us versus UVA.
[ mod edit: embed for convenience ]
There is nothing in that video that warranties a foul, let alone a technical. A suspension would be complete crap.
Are we even sure he touches the ref? Looks to me like he is touching the assistant coach...reaching out like get this ref off me
No discipline anticipated from VT.
The problem here is that the reputation is going to be that JRob hit the ref in the ACC ref community, and he's going to be fucked by the officials from here on out in his career. And before you say that's just conspiracy theorizing, we've already seen this firsthand with Jeff Allen.
and it haunted Allen. The officials never let up on him for the rest of his time at Tech.
Only piece that makes me think there was any merit was how McNielly reacted. He was obviously pissed off with Robinson, never even looking back at the official. That has to be the most animate I have ever seen McNielly on the sideline. Still should have never reached that point if the official isnt pursuing Robinson into a team huddle.