Things to know for Monday's @HokiesMBB game...✅ Big Monday✅ Maroon Out✅ Senior Day. We honor Bibbs, Devin & two @VTMBBManagers (Coco & The General)✅ Hokie Lights during pregame (download the app!)✅ Red Panda✅ LOTS of $10,000 half-court shots. Big Money on the line. pic.twitter.com/Kh6GTh7nfM— VT Marketing & Promotions (@HokiesMKTG) February 25, 2018
GAME INFORMATION
Date/Time: Feb. 26, 2018 / 7 p.m.
Opponent: Duke University
Site: Blacksburg, Virginia (Carilion Clinic Court at Cassell Coliseum)
Radio: Virginia Tech IMG Sports Network
Talent: Jon Laaser & Mike Burnop
Internet: ESPN
Talent: Sean McDonough, Dan Dakich & Allison Williams
Live Stats: HokieSports.com
Game Notes: Virginia Tech
SIRI 81 (Internet 81)
Looking up at the Double Bye
Buzzketball gets a second chance at Duke, who this time will come in with all their starters, since Bagley returned in their last game against Syracuse. The Hokies face a monumental task with how well the Blue Devils have been playing since the last time these two teams met. In addition to that, the Hokies find themselves looking up the standings in the ACC at not only Clemson but NC State as well after they thrashed Florida State by 20 on Sunday night. The Hokies have to come out steady offensively against the Blue Devils, definitely avoiding Duke jumping out to a big early lead as we know how that goes with this opponent.
This game is a Maroon Effect sellout at Cassell. It will also be Senior Night for Devin Wilson and Justin Bibbs. The Hokies will also honor two of their senior managers, Jason Swartz and Michael Reutt.
Amongst the crowd will be the writer for the first time in over a decade. Hoops Wiz will be in section 6DD, so hopefully these Hokies have something good in store. No doubt there will be a rowdy crowd, especially with Wendell Carter being named in the recent FBI stuff. It doesn't matter if it is a threat to his eligibility, its open source for chants. Duke comes in having won the three contests since the Hokies went to Cameron, with wins over Clemson, Louisville and Syracuse. Bagley returned against the Orange and helped the Blue Devils win 60-44. The recent defensive improvement didn't seem to have Duke miss a beat with Bagley back.
This will be the fifty fifth meeting between the Hokies and Blue Devils. Duke leads the all-time series 46-9, starting all the way back in 1912. The Hokies last victory against the Blue Devils came last season as the Hokies throttled the #5 Blue Devils 89-75 in Blacksburg. Tech could really use some of that magic to reappear in the form of Robinson leading a barrage from all corners.
The Blue Devils are coached by Mike Krzyzewski, who has coached Duke to a 1021-276 career record, an almost 79% winning percentage. In the 37 years that Coach K has been at the helm, Duke has only managed to not make the NCAA tournament four times, and barring the year he had surgery, and relinquished the helm in 1995, it was only his first three years as head coach that they didn't make it.
One thing to keep in mind when facing Duke is a Coach K mantra, "A winning basketball team makes the opponent react to them, whether they are on offense or defense"
This team is full of stars, stars that have recently learned to play well together and now have to see how Bagley impacts that. At first glance, he fit like a glove. Bagley scored 19 of the Blue Devils 60 points. He also added seven rebounds and an assist. There are four freshmen in the starting lineup alongside Grayson Allen. All five starters average in double figure scoring, with two at or close to a double-double a night in Bagley and Carter.
Defensively, the Blue Devils employ a high pressure attacking defense that varies its form and style based on opponents. This season it seems a two three zone with three guards harassing the perimeter ball handler by shifting into passing lanes and making it difficult to get a clean shot or pass the ball. A couple other tenets of a Coach K defense are that his defenses involve getting all five players to play together: talking on defense, seeing the ball, and moving as the ball moves. He expects all five guys to play for the charge as a standard. He also coaches his team that defense continues until the ball is in Duke hands.
Offensively, Duke usually runs a three out, two in Motion offense, which involves the perimeter players looking for bigs at the free throw line to create space, open up driving lanes, or allowing for kickout shots from the corner. The Blue Devils excel at moving without the ball so they are in the right spot to take advantage of a defensive miscue. Duke isn't exactly the fastest paced offense so the Hokies should look to speed them up if they can.
What does that mean for the Hokies?
The Hokies advantage of playing team basketball seems to have evaporated over the last few games, as the Blue Devils improved dramatically. That said, when these stars align, the Blue Devils are ACC basketball at its best so Tech needs to be prepared to force the pace of this game. The Hokies have to find a balance in protecting the paint but preventing Allen from torching them from the perimeter.
This still needs to be a high paced game if the Hokies want to have a chance to win. They need to run the legs off the Duke bigs. They cannot afford a letdown like they had against Louisville either. The Hokies have to hit free throws and finish in the paint. Avoid the awkward floaters and force the Duke bigs to the bench.
The Blue Devils unlike most other seasons have relied on the perimeter shot much more this season. They are averaging over 22 attempts from outside a contest. That said, Bagley and Carter combined for 35 of Duke's 60 points against Syracuse. The two keys for Tech here is that Blackshear, Horne and Clarke have to stay out of foul trouble and Tech needs to have hands up in a more collapsing style defense today.
The Blue Devils heavily rely on their starting five, three of whom play thirty three or more minutes per contest, two others that are at or above 27 minutes per contest. Tech must find a way to get to the line early and often, hitting their free throws while also getting their opponent in early foul trouble so they are forced to dig into their less prepared bench. If the officials swallow their whistles the entire first half, like they did against Louisville, this game could turn into an early bloodbath.
Blue Devils Backcourt
Grayson Allen, (#3) 6'4, 195 Lbs, moved up to second leading scorer for the Blue Devils with Bagley absent. He is averaging 15.3 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 4.6 APG, all while shooting 86% so far from the line. He is shooting 37% from outside and 52% from inside this season. Allen will look to dribble penetrate much like Justin Robinson to do much of his scoring. All that said, with Bagley's return against the Orange, Allen only managed six points.
Freshmen Gary Trent Jr, (#2) 6'6, 209 Lbs, Guard, comes in second on the Blue Devils in scoring, putting up 14.7 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 1.5 APG and 1.2 SPG. He is the one of two of Dukes top five scorers that is averaging over 40% from outside at 44%, he also is shooting 41% from the field and is shooting 88% from the line. This is the shooter that could turn the game inside out for the Blue Devils.
Freshman Trevon Duvall, (#1) 6'3, 186 Lbs is averaging 10.6 PPG, 2.2 RPG, and 5.4 APG. Duvall comes in shooting 49% from the inside, 27% from behind the line and 61% from the line. He has successfully run the point for the Blue Devils most of the season, which will be much easier with both Carter and Bagley to lob passes into the lane to.
Alex O'Connell, (#15) 6'6, 171 Lbs is the next freshmen up in this rotation and is averaging 4 PPG and 1.5 RPG. He has been averaging 12 minutes per contest but ended up playing 22 against Georgia Tech with Bagley sitting out. His minutes will recede back to the 12 average now.
Blue Devils Frontcourt
Freshman Forward Marvin Bagley III, #35, 6'11, 234 lbs is the leading scorer for Duke. Bagley is putting up 21.1 PPG, 11.2 RPG, 1.6 APG, 1 SPG and 1.1 BPG. He is shooting 65% inside, 35% outside and 62% from the free throw line. His return will dramatically change the style and rotation that the Hokies saw the last time against Duke.
Freshman Wendell Carter Jr, #34, 6'10, 259 lbs this season is averaging almost a double-double with 14.6 PPG, 9.6 RPG, 2.1 APG, and 2.2 BPG while shooting 59% from the inside and a scary 50% from outside while also hitting 73% of his free throws. Hard to say that someone has had a bigger impact than Bagley but Carter definitely can make the argument, especially on the defensive end of the floor.
With Bagley back, expect to see less of Sophomores Marques Bolden (#20) and Javin Delaurier (#12). Bolden is 6'11, 245 Lbs and DeLaurier is 6' 10, 220 Lbs. They had been combining for 7.6 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 1.2 APG, 1.1 SPG, and 1.6 BPG over about 23 mpg.
What to expect from Duke?
The Blue Devils play predominantly a half court high pressure defense in either man to man or zone geared towards making opponents make mistakes. Their goal is to take the ball away any way possible, limiting the number of shots that an opponent takes to instantly give them an advantage on the other end. Relentless attack on the ballhandlers so that they move from defense to offense.
Expect to see a team that is just now touching all of its potential. This is an opponent with a possible #1 Seed in the NCAA Tournament at stake over these last few games. Bagley's return may be a blessing as he is known for being a freewheeling component of this team which has been a point of emphasis in several of their losses.
The Blue Devils are the number five scoring offense in the country, averaging 86.2 PPG and only allowing opponents 69.8 PPG. That's a 16 point average margin of victory so far this season. The last few games the defensive end has been even more dramatically improved. In the last five games the Blue Devils have only given up 55.6 PPG. They have held opponents perimeter shooting to a scary 26.2% in those five games. This could break the Hokies if that trend continues.
One thing Duke struggles with is close contests so if the Hokies can keep it close their chance of winning goes up dramatically. Duke has been less than double digits in a win five times this season, a seven point win over Michigan State, a seven point win over Texas, a three point win over Florida, a seven point win over Florida State, an eight point win over Miami and a nine point win over Clemson. In their five losses, only one was double digits. That means that in games decided by ten points or less, Duke is 6-4 this season.
Rebounding wise, the Blue Devils may be a nightmare scenario for Tech but so far this season they only average the eighth most rebounds in the country at 41.9 rebounds per night. Part of the explanation though is that they don't miss as often as other teams so there are not rebounds to be had. Duke comes in as a team shooting 56% from inside the arc.
Duke is fairly average when it comes to fouling opponents, giving up about 16.76 personal fouls per game with only Carter and Duvall consistently in foul trouble at 2.9 and 2.8 per game respectively. Hopefully the Hokies ability to speed up the game and stretch the opponent will lead to a few more opportunities as they force defenders to reach.
The Hokies
Tech needs a high paced tempo the entire game without letting up if they want to win this matchup. They have to be able to get a high number of transition baskets while forcing Duke out of its comfort zone in methodically attacking the ball. Essentially force Duke to deal with their own medicine when they are on offense.
Tech will have a tough time winning the lane so it has to be able to hit its jumpers, especially critical is hitting its perimeter shots. Tech likely needs to shoot better than 50% from outside to be a factor in this game. We already discussed the 26.2% Duke has held opponents to over the last five games. Whichever of these two numbers end up closest is likely the winner of this contest.
This may seem counterintuitive but they still need to Pound the Paint, as both Robinson and Blackshear need to play a major role in this game. Getting the ball inside and forcing Duke's bigs to adjust to the Hokies challenging them inside. Clarke should also play a major factor in possibly getting the Blue Devils in some foul trouble. One thing to remember though is that Duke is averaging 5.48 blocks per game as a team so the Hokies need to make sure that they get quality looks at the basket.
Highlight of the Louisville Game
Congratulations to @MED_XIII for joining the 1,000 point club last night 👊 pic.twitter.com/xhL268mhjQ— VT Men's Basketball (@HokiesMBB) February 25, 2018
Outside of Ahmed Hill joining the 1000 Point Club there wasn't much to Highlight.
Our complete inability to guard the perimeter, allowing the Cardinals to hit 44% of their 27 attempts. Giving up 36 points on the outside just cant happen while also making Deng Adel look like a future first round pick for the second time. Adel almost posted a triple double. That's right, that big on the blocks was able to rack up 10 points, 9 rebounds and 8 ASSISTS against the Hokies. Quentin Snyder only went 7-14 from outside to put up 22 points while also grabbing 6 rebounds and 6 assists. Not a good look when you completely disregard preventing their top two players from having big games.
In Closing
We need to see a game much like last season, where Duke didn't have a chance to catch their breath. All the arguments of talent and size go out the window when you are a step behind your opponent all night. The Hokies have speed and athleticism that Duke could only match and its been the quicker teams that have forced both Bagley and Carter to the bench. Force Duke down their bench.
The Hokies have to work the ball to the open man and hit those shots when they get them. Three point shooting for the Hokies will unfortunately decide this game. Its a tough matchup to have that be the case but unless the Hokies find a miracle down low it is the case for this opponent. One of the main reasons that Duke has won by such big margins this season is that they have kept opponents shooting percentage down to about 37% from the floor. That gives them almost a 10% edge compared to how Duke has done on the offensive end and that's barring making opponents make other mistakes with the ball before they even manage to get shots off.
I expect to see Buzz stretch the floor, especially on defense with Bagley returning. They will try to attack Duke before they even manage to get across half court so they are able to limit Duke's time to set up offensive plays or simply offensive lobs into the paint but also hope to create transition baskets or foul line opportunities.
As excited as I am to finally be back in Cassell after so long, I unfortunately do not see the Hokies slowing this well-oiled machine that might be on a path to another National Title with the defense they have discovered. Duke wins again 68-57. Hopefully these Hokies surprise me and we get a much needed W.
Be who you are, and be who you want to become!!— Buzz Williams (@TeamCoachBuzz) February 23, 2018
Comments
Duke is kind of a weird team in the sense that its loaded up and down with All Americans yet are pretty dependent on one guy, Grayson Allen. When he's playing well, they can win the National Championship. When he isn't, they can lose to just about anybody (Hi St. Johns!). This is a long winded way of saying if Allen starts out hot, expect a rough game. If not, we might stand a chance for the upset. *fingers crossed*
Hokies!
You need to edit your post.
Yeah, definitely. Last time we started off wrong was the loluva game, and we certainly remember what happened then!
Six minutes until game time. If we lose, we have a scapegoat.
Duke is kind of a weird team in the sense that its loaded up and down with All Americans yet are pretty dependent on one guy, Grayson Allen. When he's playing well, they can win the National Championship. When he isn't, they can lose to just about anybody (Hi St. Johns!). This is a long winded way of saying if Allen starts out hot, expect a rough game. If not, we might stand a chance for the upset. *fingers crossed*LETS GO /s
Well,
IT WORKED TONIGHT!
GO HOKIES!
Thanks guys. Now we're really fucked.
/s
This post aged quite nicely
/s
Anything that makes the Hokies win is good for me
This will be our new tradition!!!
Hokies! Let's Go! ???????
We were so excited about our Hokies we forgot to say Let's Go 🤷
In all fairness, nobody sees the initial "Let's Go" at Lane Stadium.
Think about this sequence for a second. Against Louisville, we had:
- 4:54: Bibbs dunk VT +2
- 4:33: Sutton hits 3 pointer LV +1 (Sutton avg's 3 ppg, 3rpg, he had 17/11)
- 3:21: Bibbs missed 3 pointer LV+1
- 2:51: Snider hits 3 pointer LV +4 (that's the one where he leaned under Clarke as the shot clock expired)
- 2:43: Bibbs missed 3 pointer LV +4
- 2:22: Perry hits 3 pointer LV +7
If that had gone the other way, if a poor shooter like Sutton doesn't make that shot and if Snider's 3 hits the front of the rim like it should have and Perry doesn't step into a 3.....but Bibbs hits hit two 3-pointers like he often does...That's VT+8. Even if you give them Perry's 3, that's still VT +5 with the ball with 2:22 left.
Now, if that had happened, what would you think about this Duke game? Instead of the Death March today feels like, we would go into this game with hope. Sure, it would help if the Duke game was the gravy on our resume instead of the the potatoes (Miami game is looking a lot like meat). But that sequence of a few shots could make a ton of difference in how each of us sees this game, this team, this season.
There is a fine line between success and failure. Let's get those three shots to go in our favor tonight.
Yea that is the stretch that put it away. I understand we don't close out well against shooters, but Sutton and Sniders shots were bad shots. Sniders was just a prayer at then end of the shot clock and Sutton is not a shooter who decides that with a hand in his face he is going to pull up anyway. If we wanted to categorize those shots as Buzz does, they would both be considered poor shots. There is nothing we can do about that except for answer which we failed to. There were a couple other threes they hit that were contested and while our D isn't great, it's not as if they were just shooting wide open threes all day. Snider was hot and he was going to make his threes one way or another.
I still feel good about tonight's game.
#beatbama
I think the toll of trying to lock down on defense AND playing fast break basketball is wearing these Hokies out. Having to play the dinnertime game on 48 hrs rest against this Duke squad is going to be a monumental task. The Hokies have to steal this game to have a chance, but it's late, late February.
Coach K and the Dookies do a good job of guarding the cookie jar in late, late February.
At any rate, I'm still hopeful that Devin Wilson goes off for 40 on his Senior Night, with Jay Bilas on the sidelines doing the call.
Sadly Bilas is not on the call tonight.. Sean McDonough, Dan Dakich, and Allison Williams will be on ESPN tonight.
McDonough on the call is a good sign.
The guy has made some of the best, big moment calls that VT has seen.
I think we pull it off tonight Hokies...
Edit: This aged well
I like your predictions
Is that you Nostradamus?
Let's win back our territory! Go Hokies!
On this date, exactly 7 years ago, we beat #1 Duke. Same day and lucky 7? I'd say a win is in our future - it's science.
As a scholar of all things science, I have to concur with this diagnosis.
Will we beat Duke tonight?
Good enough for me, calling up my bookie and putting down the 401K
edit: Damn, I wish I really had put down the 401K on it....I'd be in early retirement
The 8 ball knows all
Can confirm, was there. Looonnngggg day of drinking starting at 6am for Gameday line.
CALLED IT.
Need Blackshear to be aggressive early and draw some fouls. Also...Med is due for a big game. We keep them off balance (and avoid getting put off balance by Grayson's foot) and the good guys pull it out by 8.
The whole team invested in some of this stuff just in case
I'm hoping CC has a breakout game. Kid can out-athlete anyone on the floor. Think he could be the x-factor to making this a Hokie-W.
5 needs to play FAST
Med needs to get out hood his head and ball.
DW play tough and take 5 charges.
KJ stay on the court.
JB to hit his foul shots...and 7-10 threes ;)
And Buzz need to change his shirt at half
Kid can out-athlete anyone on the floor
Normally I would agree, but he's going up against Marvin Bagley III and Trevon Duval. If he can out-athlete those two I will be very impressed.
Im expecting Devin Wilson to out-athlete Bagley at worst... Have a few buzzer beating 3's, you know the usual. /s
It's possible. Wilson is a two-sport athlete after all. Did you know?
X-factor confirmed
What band should I listen to today before the game?
GWAR. Out for blood tonight.
I was thinking rchp but if were going for blood we're going raining blood
Alright I'm seeing red again
Hmmm
Not heavy enough?
Fine
How about some August Burns Red?
Only answer is Metallica. Just Seek and Destroy and Master of Puppets on loop.
Preemptive edit: No I didn't "forget" Sandman. That's a fucking football song and we all know it.
I will not DVR this game so that we win.
Disclaimer: My bad guys, I made a mistake and recorded the Louisville game on both occasions.
Now we know who to blame...
queue the shame gif.
You should go ahead and pour a Diet Coke onnthat DVR...just in case.
Will Sprite suffice?
No! Are you trying to mess this up??
/s
Feed it some Papa J...Oh wait, I'm late on both counts. Not a VCR.
You almost blew it. Nice recovery.
Fuck Duke.
via GIPHY CC: LOLUVA
Seniors numbers on the court is a nice touch.
Let's not motivate Grayson anymore then he needs to be.
Mofo definitely threw a kick at 5.
5 almost put him in a choke hold after
I will be on schadenfreude overload when Grayson tries that bullshit at the next level and gets ass beat.
Who got their dad's pic blown up in the student section. That's amazing.
Also, we just need to calm down. I love the energy in the building though. A couple good scoring runs could make this interesting
Glad to see we have no answer to them just standing there since we can beat a press
Why are we playing like there's 2 minutes left in the game so far? Seems like we have no control of the ball on offense
Duke feels comfortable that their athlete didn't do anything wrong.
You know, because the NCAA doesn't actually do anything.
Can't afford to lose Robinson. Hope it's nothing too serious.
Bagley is shockingly lazy on defense.
Well here goes nothing
Looks like Allen is going to light it up on us tonight. We've got to take that away.
You know what though... he is streaky. If he goes cold we have a chance. That being said, I'd rather him not make those shots. But he was 0-6 against syracuse
Fuck that leg kick. Hate that call
just dreadful closing out tonight, hyper focus on their two bigs
I'm going to have to turn this off. I can't stand to hear nothing but Duke, Duke, Duke from the announcers.
5 is back. Still time.
I'm not questioning our chances in the game. I just can't stand to listen to non-stop Duke nut hugging.
Doesn't look like it's getting much better any time soon.
Not happy about fouling jump shooters. I do love though that the announcers over the past few weeks have talked up how loud/tough Cassell is.
Overhelping possession after possession leading to uncontested threes. I'm so sick of hearing Buzz say that he is playing statistics when it comes to those threes but still watching those shots go in. I'd rather give up an open layup or floater than an open 3 every possession.
I can't wait until you take quintons statistics class if you are a business major and he's still there
If you're referring to Marshall, I just looked him up and couldn't find him. That's unfortunate because I have a major in economics and a minor in statistics, so I was bound to have him at some point.
Nottingham
Leaving grayson allen open on 3's and fouling two different 3 point shooters within the first 10 minutes. Pretty ballsy gameplan so far, don't see it working out too well
Paging Reggie Miller. Paging Reggie Miller.
too much blue in the building for my liking
That last 3 pt shot by Duval looked like he was on the line.
Lunardi finally admitting that VT will be in the tournament.
wow painful sequence of futility there
Watching Duke while lunardi is talking makes this even worse to watch
a banked 3 are you kidding
don't understand why we aren't extending our pressure. like they are
This is staring to look familiar. Ice cold from the field and not running the floor.
For everyone's sake just turn this game off. Fucking horrible
We are getting destroyed here. Need to get our heads out of our asses and play some better defense and move more on offense.
all the bounces going blues way
KJB needs to learn to finish. Too much double clutching and falling off. Instead of going up strong into the contact
Need a ten point Tech run before the half
How does 11 sound. Woooooo
right on!
This aged very well
Maybe we can get some good minutes for the young guys before we play @ Miami
Don't turn it back on if you really turned it off
Lol no didn't turn it off but i was getting very pissed off. Once Robinson went down, about the last thing I would've guessed would be us going on an 11-0 run. Pleasantly surprised to be back in it, hopefully we can keep it up
Haha just giving you a hard time. We were all close to that in our minds
My bad y'all. I didn't get the game on until the 10 minute mark.
amazing run there, especially defensively. And we did it all without 5
Defense brought it. Douchebag Allen on the bench though. I bet he will be back after this TO. Gotta keep it up
I turned it off and we go on a run. I'm about to head to the gym knowing that with me not watching it's in the bag.
You're welcome fam!!!
Is this the first all year we've played KJ and Horne together?
I think so. Just said the same thing to my wife.
Must Dook complain about every foul call
That commentator really just roasted the hell out of Bagley.
I enjoyed that.
Bagley just got roasted on national television.
Woof. Roasted.
I pictured curt schilling announcing the way he speaks and calls people out. Like... do you want your job? This is duke you are speaking I'll of
I'll sugar-coat this: I fucking hate Curt Schilling. BUT. He was a good sound bite.
(I say "was" because if he never gets another media gig it'll be too soon. As I mentioned earlier, I hate that guy.)
I'm watching on the Telly next to my girlfriend who wants to hear the great British baking show so the games on mute what did they say?
Basically just called him lazy and said he thinks it's all about him. No defense or effort plays for the sake of the team but he inevitably makes plays regardless of effort because he's so talented.
Thanks for that felt it was about his defending
Important: if you're watching in the UK, NO SPOILERS! We're 2 seasons behind over here.
/ssssseriouslythatshowisawesome
Were catching up on Netflix so no spoilers this show makes being healthy hard
(obligatory "Free Throws" comment)
Jrob is definitely not himself after going to the locker room.
Defense was perfect to end the half on that run. Need more points from Justin Robinson, more minutes from Nickeil Alexander-Walker, and a higher free throw percentage.
Buzz dropping serious coaching knowledge bombs right there at half.
My wife was quite impressed with his breakdown, but I'll bet the reporter had no clue what Buzz was talking about.
Buzz is objectively the best halftime interview in college sports.
Free throws is the difference, again.
Man, oh man - Buzz even treats the halftime interview like a coaching clinic.
He did everything but grab the reporter by the shoulders and go "Okay, now you stand here and you're the defender, and I'll be the offensive player..."
What is this lunardi last 4 bye line does that mean last 4 in or out?
Last four who don't have to do a play in game. So, in.
Neither - the last four in are the play in games and the last four out are out. We are one (the safest) of the last four byes (i.e. no play in game.)
Let's just say, you don't want to see how that line moves if we lose both tonight and at Miami. Must win one of those to feel good about a bid.
based on what?
His pessimistic opinion
Good run to end the half. -5 rebounding and only 7 second chance points. Given the size difference I'd say that's a win. 7-11 from the stripe. Strong start to the second half, build lead, hold lead, make Allen cry...win.
I don't know who the commentator is but he's hilarious!
Dan Dakich
Definitely going to stick with following the gamecast now. Can't stand listening to him.
Oh sooo pretty by NAW.
Looks like we forgot how to play defense at half time.
Twice tonight a Duke player has been running out of control and toppled over like my obese great aunt when she gets to walkin too fast and we get called for a foul just for being in the vicinity
Started perfectly then bleh gotta ride the runs and come out on top
Sloppy possessions after a huge 3 to start the half
Everytime I get a glimmer of hope it gets swept away before I can even enjoy it
Ugh. 3-15 from 3-point range ain't gonna cut it.
Can't stay cold forever...
Shooters shoot
Seriously? How do you lose Allen in transition
Coach K gets his way.
It was the right call, though.
No it wasn't. It was off Duke. But it doesn't matter we got it back right away.
Conspicuously little Clarke in this half.
no bede, no jackson, no hill either
He's been a turnover machine in this game....
The Suns are "America's Team". When did this happen?
Every time we have a chance to get momentum going it's dumb mistake after dumb mistake. Huge block by Blackshear & then miscommunication leads to him passing the ball out of bounds.. Come on guys can we just hold it together for like 5 minutes & get the lead. It's there for the taking
JRob is dripping with swagger lately
That shimmy was awesome
Shimmy.gif please.
Five
5's feeling it right now
Coach K. Maker of men.
And now the announcers are ripping the refs for talking to K
Is this real life
Love it. I always wonder if Coach K is like "You need to start making some calls in our favor or you're fired"
Love this announcer
The color guy is going to turn up dead the way he's going on about Duke.
All year they've tried to tip the ball in. Just rebound and go back up.
MOTHERFUCKING MOVING SCREEN
They've been doing that all night. It's infuriating when a post player just bulldozes up to the top of the key to clear space.
The offense has forgotten how to move the ball lately.
Anyone know what the "MR 10 11 JS" means at center court?
initials of senior managers and Bibbs and Wilson's numbers for senior night
For senior night. 10 is Bibbs, 11 is Wilson, and I assume the initials are team managers perhaps?
EDIT: Got beat to it!
Seniors. DW, JB and 2 student managers.
Senior manager initials, and Bibbs and Wilson's numbers.
Need a 12 point run here
Got it!
The announcer was right. Jacking up shots like that is a great way to go down by 15
The 10 and 11 refer to Bibbs and Wilson. I suspect the MR and JS are team managers that are seniors.
Thanks. Senior night
GOD FUCKING DAMNIT. Every fucking time we get it close we let them go on a run & start taking dumbass shots what the hell
Love the team. Overachieving all year and fun to watch. No chance in hell against Duke, way overmatched.
I mean we're right there
JRob gets hacked on his shot... no call
2 ticky tack calls on tech right afterwards
Not coincidentally, this all happens in the immediate aftermath of the refs coming over to talk with K on the timeout. The announcers were right that it would impact the game.
Wait, are you gonna allow this thread to devolve into a ref complaint forum!?!?!? /s
I'm all for a coach k complaint forum! /s
Actually, we've made more FTs than they've attempted. Can't blame this on the officials. In fact our team fouls are going to be problematic if we don't collect a few more before the 2 minute mark.
As far as I'm concerned if it's blatant enough for ESPN to call them out on it, it's fair game
Coach K has spent every timeout crying to the refs it's about time it starts to effect them
CC just plain reckless. How many more turnovers can this guy possibly make?
wow, another one right after a steal. Careless.
Live by CC, die by CC
Okay. Time to get Clarke out.
agreed, bench him already please.
And immediately the refs walk over to talk to K on this timeout
You can't tell me Duke doesn't get preferential treatment. It's blatantly obvious
Completely agree, feel like they've been getting the "home court" calls/benefit of the doubt all night even though they're in Cassell
Who are you?
Almost downvoted you because I'm so mad.
The data tonight doesn't support this (except the refs in Duke's huddle during every timeout.)
There's more to it than foul calls and free throws...
Here we go getting our hopes up again
Need to prevent the easy interior bucket here after the timeout.
Focus on cheering!
FUCK OFFFFFFF
Sorry buzz
Buzz down votes you
Buzz "Quit Cussin'" Williams
He also said "don't throw things on the floor or I'll throw it back!"
Sounds like my style of parenting.
LOLOLOL
What did Buzz say into the mic? I couldn't hear over my friends talking.
Quit cussing and don't throw anything on the floor regardless of what's going on.
Quit Cussing and don't throw anything on the floor.
God bless Buzz.
Funny though. I got some seats behind the bench in Buzz's first year, and he isn't exactly a choir boy down there either.
Probably no Greenberg though
How dare they call a foul on the prefect child Allen???
The sound of the rim clanking on open 3s is going to haunt my fucking dreams for weeks
Nevermind, fam. Gonna sleep like a baby tonight, fam
Cry out and wake everyone else up, every twenty minutes, without waking yourself up?
Buzz should've said "quit cussing, even if it is bullshit"
I mean... It's really not a good look that both Greenberg and Buzz have had to get on the mic to chastise our own fans on national TV. I know, maybe a decade apart, but still not a good look.
But it WAS bullshit.
It was a bullshit chant. That happens at every arena in the country with a pulse. Throwing things is a different story but nothing wrong with chanting bullshit
Calm down. This happens at every single D1 program. It happens at most high schools. Also we will be in the tournament. Relax.
Fuuuuuuuuuccccccccccckkkkkkk yeaaaaaaaaassaasss:
If you were waiting for the roof to blow off... It's gone
Time to finish this comeback
Allen blantantly tripped CC...no call. He's about to go into a crying fit. We need to annoy the shit out of him.
Nice trips douchebags.
Here we go!
LET'S GO!
The gameclock was running for a good 6 seconds after we scored and when they didn't inbound. Hello?
Yeah, I was ranting at the tv over the clock running with the ball out of bounds.
Oh Clarke you have to slow that down you didn't have numbers
What a mistake
It all comes down to this....
Goodness come onnnn
Leader of men...
YES YES YES
Fuck Grayson Allen on everything.
Holy fucking shit!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Shimmy.gif
Shimmy FAM!
We're DANCING!
Unless the committee is certifiably insane /s
Storm that damn court!
FAM
FAM!!!!!!!!!!
M O N U M E N T A L U P S E T
O
N
U
M
E
N
T
A
L
U
P
S
E
T
Can we storm now, you grumpy old fucks??? WOOOOO
FAM
Make babies everyone!
JUST DANCE!
OMFG
OH MY GOD I LOVE CHRIS CLARKE
Chris Clarke
via GIPHY
I'm glad Buzz didn't listen my dumb ass and pull Clarke.
FAM!!!
We've knocked off 3 top 10 team this year!
I love this guy. I mean I LOVE this guy.
It was a nice win and all, too bad that Louisville loss knocked us out of the tournament. /s
HOT DAMN!
Good Clarke...Bad Clarke...Good Clarke...Good/Bad Clarke on same play...GOOD CLARKE FOR THE WIN!!!
CRY ME A RIVER DUKE GOES DOWN AND ALL THE DUKIES WENT BOO HOO HOO IN DUKEVILLE
Soooo.... anyone know how we did that? I have no idea how we did that. Duke was up 12 and Allen was hot. Basketball gods smiled upon Buzz's display of sportsmanship?
This is my favorite VT/internet culture crossover ever.
You good sir win the night
Grayson Allen:
He gonna cry in the car.
Kicking and screaming
GIFTORY
Lunardi just dropped us to an 11 seed, fam
First four out
What a way to send out the seniors at home. I think the only reason we won that game is because Grayson is a twit and deserved to lose. I'll still take it.
Duke might move up in the polls following such a quality loss.
What's weird..if we lose to Miami it becomes a Q1 road loss...if we beat them, it becomes a Q2 win. We actually improve by losing (it's called the ND football rule).
Didn't watch the first half in either this or our win @UVA. Never watching 1st half Buzzketball ever again
Buzz with a shot at Berman in the post game😂😂😂
Probably went over his head
Berman deserves every shot Buzz dishes out at him. Dude's a joke. Could you give a summary for those of us that didn't see?
He was talking to Burnup about how Duke had 52% of shots from the 3 and maybe Berman could explain to us why that happened. Buzz, Burnup, and Laze started laughing after.
Well that's a good way to end my decade away from the inside of Cassell if ever there was one. Got to hand it to these guys, kept it within ten at the end and sent Duke to a 6-5 record in games decided by less than ten. Hour after the game and still shaking a bit. Have to thank the wife for a hell of a birthday gift
Celebrating at Macados with a Hindenberg, wings. and pitchers of Yuengling.
Macado's Monday, solid choice. It's a longstanding Virginia Tech Fencing Club tradition.
ESPN announcers have now joined us at Macado, Mcdonough and Dakich here at least not sure who everyone else is.
Tell Dakich he needs to be careful or he might get canned. Can't badmouth Duke and Coach K that much on national television.
I don't get on much - but damn am I jealous of you right now. Drink a Deutsches bier for us from Germany!
$0.40 wings, half price Hindenburg, $6.50 domestic pitchers, probably good I am not here much
wings are $0.40 now? That inflation'll get after ya
You have a paypal account? I'd gladly cover your Blacksburg bar tab.
I appreciate it and if you look over my twitter feed, all my ebay postings make having paypal a must but I also brought my brothers along to cover tabs and such. One hell of a night.
Enjoy man. You do enough around here.
Tell Dakich that Andrew Dice Clay fucking sucks then buy him a warm Busch Light
All we had at pk's was Bibbs and Wilson.... Damn!
But seriously, the place erupted when they came in.
Proud of the Hokies who never wilted. Proud of Buzz for doing his bit to lessen the coarsening of our culture ( Quit Cussing).
If we're not going dancing at least I'll have danced myself happily. Though really. I'll be mad if they Greenberg us.
It feels so good beating Duke. And I'm so glad the announcer called out Coach K for always talking to the refs. It's great to see him called out for his whining. The only thing that would've made it sweeter would have been for Devin to score the winning basket, but Clarke redeeming himself was pretty awesome too.
LET'S GO!!!!
The announcers were allowed to say bad stuff about Duke because Bilas wasn't there
Our new tradition now stands as
Hokies
Lets Go
/s