HOKIES HOOPS CENTRAL: ACC Quarterfinals: NC STATE (22-9) vs VIRGINIA TECH HOKIES (19-13) 930PM ESPN2
Back at it tonight for round ✌️🆚 NC State📺 ESPN2🕤 9:30PM pic.twitter.com/mBPnv4CUlj— Virginia Tech Men's Basketball (@HokiesMBB) March 8, 2023
NC State (22-9, 12-8 ACC)
vs. Virginia Tech (19-13, 8-12 ACC)
March 8, 2023
Greensboro Coliseum
9:30 p.m. ET
ESPN2
Virginia Tech Sports Network
TV Broadcast
ESPN2
Play-by-Play: Dave O'Brien
Analyst: Jay Bilas
Reporter: Holly Rowe
Local Radio
Virginia Tech Sports Network
Play-by-Play: Zach Mackey
Analyst: Mike Burnop
Current Spread: Hokies +2.5
Over/Under: -146
Injuries/Absence:
NC State: Dusan Mahorcic (Forward) Knee - 3/3/23 Out Mahorcic is idle due to a dislocated kneecap, and he is not expected to return until the middle of March.
LJ Thomas (Guard) Illness - 3/5/23 Questionable Thomas is ailing from an illness, leaving his status for the first round of the ACC tournament up in the air.
Virginia Tech: Darius Maddox (Forward) Personal - 2/27/23 Out Maddox is idle with a personal issue, and he is expected to remain sidelined for the rest of the season.
Stay together. Stay connected. Makes all the difference.🦃 @JM_Squarepants pic.twitter.com/eqoMeD2Bhc— Virginia Tech Men's Basketball (@HokiesMBB) March 8, 2023
Survive, Repeat....
The Hokies look to avenge a loss in early January by taking down the Wolfpack and possibly pop the Pack's chances on the bubble. N.C. State won the first contest primarily due to their dynamic duo guard play of Terquavion Smith and Jarkel Joiner,nthat finished with 43 of the 73 points in a 73-69 win. Keep in mind neither Hunter Cattoor or Rodney Rice played in that game. N.C. State lost three of their last five conference games so need at least one solid win to secure a spot in the NCAA Tournament.
The Wolfpack are coached by Brad Keatts. He began his college coaching career at Southwestern Michigan as an assistant coach in 1996. NC State is his second college head coaching job, taking over the job in 2017.
The Wolfpack are a team that heavily relies on its starting five, in a four guard single forward set. The regular rotation of seven players includes five transfers in Jarkel Joiner (Ole Miss), Casey Morsell (UVA), D.J. Burns (Winthrop), and Jack Clark (LaSalle).
Defensively, Keatts approaches the game with this statement "Don't let your opponent breathe". The Wolfpack utilize an aggressive man-to-man defense that attempts to protect the perimeter and force turnovers on the outside. Keatts has the Wolfpack using the entire floor to play defense, regularly employing a full court defensive scheme. They will switch to man to man in certain circumstances. Regardless of which style they are employing, NC State so far this season has done a very good job defensively. This was supposed to be a facet of the game where they might struggle, but it just hasn't been the case. They have been greatly improved defensively compared to last season. Keatts has the team buying in to executing the basics.
Offensively, Coach Keatts wants to go fast on both ends of the floor to keep opponents off balance. His teams utilize a 4 out 1 in approach, constantly looking for an open perimeter look. The perimeter shots represent 41% of the Wolfpack's total shots. NC State shoot 52% from inside the arc and also are shooting 35% from outside. Expect to see a ton of passes to a big at the top of the lane, who then reads and reacts to what the defense is doing in terms of finding a pass or developing a shot.
The Wolfpack Backcourt
Terquavion Smith
0 SO G 6-4 160
Greenville, NC Farmville Central (NC) 94 (2021)
17.3 Pts, 3.5 Reb, 4.4 Ast
Jarkel Joiner
1 SR G 6-1 180
Oxford, MS Oxford High School
17.3 Pts, 4.8 Reb, 3.5 Ast
Casey Morsell
14 SR G 6-3 196
Fort Washington, MD Saint John's College HS (DC) 58 (2019)
12.2 Pts, 4.4 Reb, 1.0 Ast
Jack Clark
5 SR G 6-8 182
Cheltenham, PA Cheltenham HS
9.2 Pts, 7.0 Reb, 1.6 Ast
LJ Thomas
4 FR G 6-2 205
Plant City, FL Columbia (GA); Camp Jewell (GA); Bull City Prep (NC)
2.6 Pts, 2.3 Reb, 0.6 Ast
Breon Pass
10 SO G 6-0 175
Reidsville, NC Reidsville (NC)
1.3 Pts, 0.9 Reb, 0.3 Ast
The Wolfpack Frontcourt
D.J. Burns
30 SR F 6-9 260
Rock Hill, SC York Preparatory Academy
13.1 Pts, 5.1 Reb, 1.5 Ast
Ernest Ross
24 SO F 6-9 190
Alachua, FL Santa Fe (FL) 69 (2021)
3.6 Pts, 2.5 Reb, 0.3 Ast
Greg Gantt
23 SR F 6-8 220
Fayetteville, NC Trinity Christian (NC) 61 (2019)
1.9 Pts, 4.6 Reb, 0.2 Ast
Ebenezer Dowuona
21 JR F 6-11 235
Accra, Ghana The Heritage School
1.4 Pts, 1.6 Reb, 0.0 Ast
Out
Dusan Mahorcic 11 SR F 6-10 230 8.7 Pts, 6.6 Reb, 1.2 Ast
What to expect from NC State?
In recent weeks N.C State has struggled to shoot the ball and also defending. Opponents in four out of five shot better than 40% from outside. Last time against the Hokies, both teams struggled from the perimeter, with neither team finishing above 28%.
N.C. State wants a fast paced contest and bring an in your face defensive approach. NC State makes you earn every foot of the floor and shortens the time to run a set offense if you manage to get the ball across mid-court. This is especially troublesome for the Hokies as they have struggled with set play execution and having less time to do so likely leads to quite a few lost possessions or last second heaves.
NC State struggles with bigger rosters that can employ two forwards underneath that match up against a smaller guard. One change since the Hokies played the WolfPack last is Keatts going deeper into his bench for minutes to reduce fatigue. They now have nine guys regularly playing 10 minutes or more.
Perimeter shooting is a major part of the Wolfpack strategy. It is better to risk a forward having a good day inside than to play off the perimeter. Regardless, as the Hokies saw last time when they allowed Terquavion Smith and Jarkel Joiner to combine for 43 points, you also cant let these two blow by you. 16 of their 43 points came via the free throw line.
The Hokies
Rice and Cattoor both missed the last game so defensively they are a much different team going into this matchup. Considering how close the last game was, this may make all the difference in the final result tonight.
This game should focus on finding the open man down low as the Hokies should have a significant size advantage underneath regardless of which rotation of players is on the floor. Kidd had fourteen last time against the Pack but got no help from his other Forward brethren. This is the perfect opportunity to get Poteat scoring and utilize the High-Low game of Mutts and Basile.
This is the type of team that really makes you wish the Hokies would play zone defense. Several of the WolfPack's worst outings this season came against teams that employ heavy zone sets. Clemson employed a heavy dose of zone defense in two wins over N.C. State. The Pack also lost to Virginia and Syracuse as well.
🔨💥💥💥 @JM_Squarepants pic.twitter.com/Ky6QwKcioH— Virginia Tech Men's Basketball (@HokiesMBB) March 8, 2023
In Closing
They must find a way to score inside. Last time out the forwards combined for a mind boggling low 28 points and was only that high because Kidd had a dominant 14-point performance.
Don't let the pace lead to mistakes, better to be slow and methodical than taking unnecessary risks forcing the ball. This is especially true of Pedulla and Mutts. They need to slow down and play their normal style rather than get caught up in a run-n-gun type game. Basile post-game last night said Coach Young stressed limiting Notre Dame in the 60's and they need that again tonight.
🦃⏩️#StoneByStone pic.twitter.com/DdTPhRxBbb— Virginia Tech Men's Basketball (@HokiesMBB) March 8, 2023
Comments
LET'S GO...
HOKIES!
well I am nervous
Here is hoping for at least fair officiating. That is the best we can hope for.
why do we come out so flat all the time
Because the other teams guy that "hasn't made a 3 pointer in 20 games" always comes out shooting the lights out from 3 and we panic and rush passes and shots
Failed to try to rebound and leads straight to a three to kick it off. Just drives me bonkers.
Getting away with so many physical moving screens. It's been almost every possession.
Used up all our tight defense last game 😂
Burns bulldozing everyone and never getting called for fouls
Rice got clobbered which is why he couldn't get possession Jay.
Who freaking cares about the officials. We absolutely suck on the defensive end tonight and NCSU might double us up on rebounds.
100% this. It's a physical game. Answer the damn call and play harder tougher. We are being bullied and back on our heels, can't win anything playing weak
We can't hang with physical teams. It's been this way all season.
^^This^^... CMY has this squad playing finesse mid-major basketball this season and it simply isn't cutting it.
This year's squad has been so tough to watch. It has me missing the fast and strong Buzz small-ball teams. Those guys put on a show, win or lose.
Our defense blooowwwsssss
Our offense doesn't want to be left out either
Aside from Smith's 30 foot threes, defense has been terrible.
Pedulla still trying to play hero ball way too early on the shot clock too.
Our defense is outside of the top 100 on Kenpom... which is pretty unacceptable for a team with our ambitions.
Seems like our defense has never recovered since losing Chester Frazier (former assistant coach) and Tyrece Radford
Yall still gonna downvote me for wanting Kidd on the bench?
Stating an opinion and degrading a player aren't the same. Tonight was the former.
Saying he's a liability was my opinion and I hold to it
Make a f*ckin layup and a State 3 won't hurt as bad
We miss open threes and aren't even putting our hands up on defense (basile).
They hit every three they take and play good defense
Games over
Basile ducked away to avoid taking a charge.
Need to recruit someone like Terquavion Smith...
Dynamic, athletic, scoring guards are invaluable, in March especially
Is hand checking not a thing any more?
Jesus christ. These guys raining 3s from 6feet outside the arc and we can't make a fucking layup. I can't stay up till midnight for this shit.
We only lost by 4 to these guys, right? Not 40?
Yes but they shot 23% from outside in that one.
They are playing beyond physical and aren't getting called for it.
We are playing stupid and lazy. Our offense isn't doing anything. Our defense is watching the game with us. They've got 8 points down low with our bigs out of position on top of the Pack hitting 3's using their off hands and not missing
This has been a thing all season long. We are softer than a wet paper bag, so we will never answer that bell.
We sure could use a Jeff Allen clone
Not mentally. He gave away 2-3 possessions a game with stupid mistakes and technicals.
Any team that has played us physical has waxed our ass. Texas wrote the blueprint during the tourney last year.
NCSU shooting +60% from the field and 3. That's insane.
Basile just standing around watching all game 😂
Probably afraid they're going to call a foul on him for looking at the ball.
Also true; we get obliterated in the lane and it's play on. On the other end a hand check is getting shots
Too soft and too unathletic. Mike needs to stop building a Wofford and start building an ACC team. We would be great in a mid-major conference, but we can't beat a lot of these ACC teams without perfect execution, which doesn't happen most games.
Edit: it's like watching NBA athletes vs. a high school, this is almost comedy at this point
We are definitely soft. No noticeable uptick in intensity even for the last chance at making the tourney.
This is the post of the season right here. CMY is a mid-major coach who has put together a quality mid-major team. He caught lightning in a bottle after an average season last year. His teams aren't athletic, physical or disciplined (particularly on the defensive end). Would love to see him make some serious adjustments to his philosophy next season.
Love CMY offensively. Not sold on our philosophy defensively although it was much better in past seasons. I can't stand the fact that we don't even attempt offensive rebounds. Soo many time the ball is bouncing towards our guys and we are backpeddling away from it.
Losing our defensive focused coach last year really hurt. But without that we don't get Rice or the new blue chip (or even on the radar of our top prospects).
Change what? His whole philosophy? Want him to install Boeheim's system? You might as well fore the reigning ACC Champion coach (good luck getting anyone to take that job).
Lightning in a bottle? We hammered UNC and Duke and won four games in a row. Something that had never been done before in the ACCT. Even Buzz or Greenberg which much more talented teams didn't even sniff a championship.
Agreed. Recruiting can improve but he's already achieved things Seth Greenberg never came close to.
Looks at his recruits and tell me he's building Wofford. He would never get that talent level.
You want him to build a strong, fast, deep, three pointing, tough, finesse team. Basically a top 3 team. That's not going to happen. He's trying to build the best roster with players that fit his system. If he loads up on physical players, then he loses three point offense (which is the bedrock of his system).
I disagree with this take. He has talent, but his talent seriously lacks physicality and athleticism. Additionally, he clearly has no one on the roster who can coach defense.
Could the same be said of UVA regarding talent? I guess coaching does make a difference.
The comment was made he was trying to build Wofford. You don't build Wofford with this talent level.
This team is way more talented than they've played, and yes that's coaching. Something just didn't sync after the first BC loss (bigger than losing Hunter).
Cattoor was a Wofford recruit. Pedulla is the type of point guard he would get there, maybe a slight upgrade from Storm. Basile and Poteat came from mid-majors. MJ Collins had few P5 offers, not a top 150 recruit. Camden is mid-major talent at best. Kidd was a decently rated recruit, but has never shown that he's a P5 starter in 3 years.
Rodney Rice, however, is an example of a player he could never get at Wofford (thanks Mike Jones). We'll see how he pans out next year.
I'd be happy if he built an NC State (#6 team, not top 3). They have great athletes and shot creators, which are what we need
Without shot creators and good athletes to get us out of slumps (I miss you, Tyrece Radford), we rely on his system executing perfectly to beat most ACC teams. It feels like we're a mid-major underdog almost every game. Obviously we can play great when the players execute perfectly (see last year's ACCT) but it's just not sustainable at all.
Your recruiting comments prove my point. Hunter is the only player that would have been recruited to Wofford.
Top 3 in the nation team (Kansas, Gonzaga, Baylor)...not top 3 ACCT. NCSU is basically us last year. We're not getting 5 unicon recruits to play whatever system we want.
Your last point...yes, when the system works and the players buy in it works. Just like Syracuse, UVA, etc.
You said that a strong, tough, athletic, etc. team is top 3 in the nation.... I'm telling you there are plenty of those in the top 40. See NC State
As far as Syracuse and UVA, their systems tended to "work" when they had NBA talent. But yes they have schemes that are difficult to play against.
All I'm saying is look at the types of teams from the ACC who get at large bids year in and year out. They have more athleticism and talent than our team.
I'm just asking for Mike Young & co. to build a team of that profile, not a team that looks and plays like his Wofford teams. Because that's not good enough for the ACC.
...except it was good enough to win the ACC last year...with 3 Wofford players.
As I said in another comment, that's not a sustainable model for success. This team is near the bottom in the ACC in athleticism and individual shot creation. But we can still win with perfect execution. However, the only ways to get into the tournament with this type of team is (a) execute perfectly in 2/3 of your conference games, which is near impossible and (b) execute perfectly 4-5 nights in a row in March, which is near impossible but we somehow did it last year. We executed perfectly 3 nights in a row after the Maddox miracle bailed us out. We were awful for most of the conference season last year.
Reminder that Georgia Tech won the ACC the year before we did. They have still been a terrible team in recent years. One flukey run doesn't change that.
Yea - not unlike football, having a few great athletes really helps increase margin for error. This is why this would be a different team if Catoor and Rice are healthy most/all of the season.
I agree with you both. It's not sustainable. But it can win. I'd like to see more consistency. That should make winning those 50/50 games easier (or at least happen a bit more).
They aren't going to miss from three this is insane
Ok- goodnight ladies and gents.
This matchup maybe more than any other team in the conference exposes VT's complete lack of athleticism on the perimeter. State is too long and quick at the guard positions for VT to get a shot off or make clean passes within the motion offense we run. And when State makes shots from the outside, it's lights out. This game is playing out just like the one in Blacksburg. State was hot early and we were sloppy on offense. They built a big lead. When they came back to earth shooting from the outside, we made a run and closed the gap. Then they pressed us and we couldn't overcome it. Tonight is playing out the same way.
I also think this game is a microcosm of the major issue with this program. I don't think I'm going out on a limb by saying we are the least athletic team in the ACC.
Hokies looking like State fans standing around watching.
won't have to stay up to watch the end of this one
Come play Virginia Tech and score career highs in everything
-every season
Doesn't help that we don't rebound either and they have made so many second chafe shots cause noones boxing out
Think I am passing on the 2nd half.
Basile not remotely interested in anything related to boxing out.
Or physical play in general
This is embarrassing. We don't even belong on the court with this NC State team
Is this a game or a Wolfpack layup drill?
This has to be one of the worst halves of basketball we've ever played.
Don't make me dig out that old game against NC State
Dang I had forgotten about that one. Thanks for bringing back that suppressed painful memory 😂
Well that went poorly.
ties an ACc record for biggest deficit at half
Getting run out of gym in the ACC tourney is chef's kiss on this season.
Guess I'll just be satisfied that Boeheim is gone.
The league feels cleaner
Playing our way to being in the bottom half of the NIT seeding. Oh boy
I would be ok on passing on the NIT if this is the effort we can expect.
I was going to laugh at you for thinking we were NIT quality, but apparently the bracketologists actually do have us in the NIT
So there might actually be more misery after tonight
Hey guys. Didn't get to watch the first half. Did I miss anything?
Yes. NCSU is playing the best half of basketball in the ACC this season. It's breathtaking.
Mike Young debunking the theory that Mike Young is an offensive genius
Well ladies and gentlemen, that's pretty much a wrap on the 2022-2023 season. It will go down as one of the most disappointing when you consider the expectations coming in (at least our expectations). This is a pretty talented roster (though lacking athleticism). I think I'll remember this team as the softest, and possibly least disciplined, team in recent memory. We do one thing well (shoot 3's) and when that isn't working CMY has no answers.
We were picked 7th in the ACC.
We finished 11th and were very fortunate to be there. Beyond that I said "at least our expectations"... I think we all knew this roster had some serious potential.
I agree. I thought it was a sucker bet for us to finish 7th. After the OOC games and UNC win, I thought we had a legit shot at winning this thing. Something just broke after that and we never seemed to okay "together". Word is there were some chemistry issues. Plus, Maddox loss caused MJ to play more than he was ready (at the time), Rice wasn't able to take minutes, Catoor was out spreading the losses even more. But that didn't gel these guys. Just seemed to pull them apart.
We got answers on the burning questions: Can Maddox replace Alleyne as a full time starter? Can Pedulla keep the same production playing 30+ min instead of 15? Will Mutts be able to limit turnovers? Will Basile be able to replace Aluma? Will Poteat's product replace N'Guessan? Was last year an outlier or was Chester Frazier the only reason we played decent defense early in MY's tenure? And finally with a "more talented" roster will Mike Young speed up play or remain one of the slowest paced teams in NCAA basketball?
Smith had 22 in the last game and has 19 in the first half tonight. Joiner had 21 and already at 14 tonight. Just zero effort in the paint so far. Outscored 24-12 in the paint, and already given up 10 points off turnovers.
NCSU shot 63.6/53.8% to our 32.0/12.5%
You can't shoot that in an empty gym.
Plus we had 7 TOs to their 3 and never had the lead.
Picked the wrong game to be flat and lead footed.
I still have hope and whiskey.
Side note, tomorrow mornings blood test might be interesting
Edit:
First Half: Oof...
Second Half: Better showing, but dug much much too deep a hole in the first though. Whew. Onward and upward I suppose.
Even the announcers are making fun of the refs. NC state are taking 3 and 4 steps going to the basket with no calls.
And the fouls are ridiculous. They're trying to let them play, so we get mauled on rebounds or driving to the basket. Then we try to get physical and get called for a foul.
The moving screens, with the knee extended trying to trip us getting impossible to watch (every olay).
Rebounds? What are rebounds??
This game ain't about the refs lol
When even the Ladie Hokies are calling you out for your poor defense...
I'd put Kitley in
Sadly, she's probably more physical than Basile
So do we have a shot at the NIT or are we pretty much done after this game?
I haven't looked at the data, but I can't imagine we will even be in that conversation.
Multiple sites showing us as a 4 or 5 seed
https://www.dratings.com/predictor/bracketology/
So Liberty is listed as a #3 seed above us. The way this season has gone it would just be fitting of the basketball gods to make us travel and play at Liberty. Didn't think there was a way for things to get worse...
I haven't followed the national basketball scene much this year but a surprising number of basketball "powers" in the NIT field: UNC, Michigan, Florida, Wisconsin
I think we're good for the NIT. 81st in KenPom. Good team for numbers and travel. Talented team that underachieved. Might not be a high seed, but should be in.
Games so far gone wolfpack is getting 4 steps in on drives now. Peak late night officiating
NCSU can't miss (64/50%) and we can't make a lob pass.
I still don't understand why we don't press once the other team gets a lead (or we do)...just to break the momentum.
#21 has committed 35 fouls and the finally called him for his third.
And they just hit him with another one.
Turn out the lights... the party's over.
Rice has turned it up. Kid can ball when you turn him loose. Hopefully he sticks around and gets serious minutes.
First thing Ive liked is letting next years team get on the court together... rice and collins together will be good
I'm less optimistic on Collins. I like that they've given him good minutes but what exactly is his offensive skillset
He definitely needs to learn to at least be a spot-up shooter or create off the dribble, but he is only a freshman and got a lot of playing time this year so I think he'll improve greatly.
I agree. Next year likely looks like Rice as the point and Pedulla at the 2. Collins will likely come off the bench for 15 min a game to rest the starters, shift to a small ball lineup, or cover any foul trouble situations. I am not as concerned with the guard play next year as I am with the wings and bigs. One of Kidd and Camden needs to take a leap forward. Basile needs to focus on defensive fundamentals as he looked raw at times with his positioning and movements. Does Maddox come back at the 3? Can Buchannon fill that role? As I Iook to next year, Collins feels like a nice security blanket and one of the few points of comfort on this roster.
Rechsteiner will factor in for sure. We need Hunter back and two good additions from the portal for me to be feeling good about next year
Stoked to see Little Pump on the court next season.
Based on what I've seen, he should. However, from what I've seen of CMY, he's slow to bring freshman along. With guards already ahead of him, I can see Little Poppa Pump getting very limited minutes,especially for the first couple of months and I wouldn't totally be surprised if he redshirted. I don't agree with it, I'm a big "the best guys should always play regardless of class" type of guy, but I'm just saying CMY tends to give experienced players more run.
I've been told (by smarter people which is basically everyone) that CMY's offensive system is very tough to pick up. It usually takes a season or two to learn and be fluid in (see Pedulla last year taking 2/3 of the season to hit his stride). It's kinda like a QB learning RPO for the first time taking a while to get the feel for the plays, blocking concepts and read/react. L
Well, that was ugly.....
Well I don't have to worry about missing the game while at a work meeting tomorrow night.
Just. Win. On. The. Gridiron.
That's all I ask for as a 2010 Hokie, from a long line of Keydets and Wahoos. That's one of the major reasons I defied family tradition, and went to Blacksburg.
Ultimately, all sports are just bread and circuses. They're entertainment. But no other spectator sport will grab me, like FBS/D-1 Football. My Hokie gear always sparks great convos around Texas.
Can we please start being north of .500 on the W/L Column, once again? @whitbabcock
I can offer you 5-7 and the 90th ranked offense
Joyner and smith (two guards) almost out-rebounded our entire team. It's almost like even if the shooters follow their own shot and attempt to rebound they will get second chance points or a rebound and kick
Crazy concept to follow your shot...or offensive rebounding in general. Just not important at all to do those things.
/s
Admittedly I did not follow the mens team very closely but in the games I have watched, this year and all of MY's teams, this has been a trait. Is this coaching that is the reason why nobody every follows their damn shot? Or is it player ego? Lack of effort? Lack of awareness? Or something else altogether?
Rob's been saying all year that it appears they are being coached to turn and run away to get back on defense after shots and not even attempt a rebound if they are not already under the basket. Seems silly but when you watch for it every game it's apparent and illogical
One of the trends in basketball over the last decade or so, especially in the pro game but its seeping into college, is to basically cede offensive rebounds. There's all kinds of Sloan conference type papers and analytics about it but the tldr version is unless you have elite offensive rebounders across multiple positions, you're better off on a per possession basis getting back on defense, especially guards because you can get burned in transition for an easy bucket going the other way. There are a handful of teams that'll work the margins, exploit the trend, whatever you want to call it by taking advantage of offensive rebounding with some success, but by and large its not a priority.
Thanks for this!
56 in the first half? Put a fork in it.
At least the Hokies earned is free Bojangles sausage biscuits by scoring 77 points. Might only be good in the Greensboro area, not sure. Must order online today and use promo code "ACC". Good today only and only on sausage biscuit.
Looks like nc state saved their best night shooting of the year for us; only to go out and score 18 in the second half vs Clemson 🤪 and 25% from 3
The super-fortunate part about last year's run in the ACCT was that we never ran into a team that was just shooting lights out, especially from 3. Sure, we played good defense, but we never ran into a team that was just running up court and making 28-footers before even getting into their offense. This year, it looks like we just played the wrong team on the wrong night. NC ST was the only ACC team that had a bye week before the tournament, and shot 62%/46% against us, then shot 35%/25% the very next night.
Not making excuses for anyone - we didn't play a good game and NC State's speed and athleticism looked like a bad matchup for us.... but just goes to show you how during tourney time, luck of the draw is such a huge factor.
My thoughts exactly!
Absolutely. Wolfpack were arguably more open against Clemson offensively than against us the night before but just couldn't make shots. It was actually more glaring inside although Clemson used alot of switching on defense to cut down on the blow by drives to the basket and didn't allow very many easy put backs on offensive rebounds that we did. Clemson actually had more turnovers than we did.
The biggest difference was Smith. He was 11 of 13 against us but 5 of 18 against Clemson. He had open looks but was missing badly. Joiner was no better. He was 8 of 15 against us but 3 of 12 against Clemson. Their whole team was gassed by the second half. They had no legs left and their shooting showed it.
It is hard to win a game when the opponent breaks all their own records in a game against you. We were trying for defense but they couldn't miss.
Blazing hot shooting nights by literaly every opponent of VT aren't coincidence at this point.
Absolutely....barring a change in our overall athleticism and toughness, this group needs to play a zone style of defense. Too many times the Hokies got beat with perimeter screening and leaving someone wide open or with a clear lane to the basket. Hokies finish the season allowing conference opponents to shoot better than 50% (52.5%) which was 11th in the ACC and 220th Nationally. Perimeter defense was better but not by much at 34.5% which was 8th in ACC and 199th Nationally. Opponents overall shooting percentage was 233rd Nationally at 44.6%.
Pretty glaring deficiency when 2/3rds of college basketball does it better than you. Keep in mind this was a really down year for the ACC overall which makes the numbers that much worse.
The personnel challenges played a role but would not have changed things much. Sad part is the Hokies finished with eight losses by six or fewer points. Two or three baskets prevented in even half those games its an entirely different conversation about this season.
Young needs to find someone that is able to develop a defensive posture utilizing the talent available. The game by game planning needs some real improvement to counter strengths and attack opponent weaknesses.
^^So much this^^
If CMY has another year like this one I think his seat will be pretty damn warm. Offensively, his style is rigid and doesn't allow for players to utilize all their gifts (at least that's my view). But it is efficient at least. The defensive end, however, is an absolute train wreck. MAJOR attention needs to be given to that side of the ball since we don't possess P5 athleticism. I hope he can figure it out because he's an awesome dude to have in Blacksburg!
I use The Score app which shows match-up stats before each game. We were around 95th second week of January in defensive efficiency. We finished well past 200. That's hard to do and points to how bad we were defensively. I think Mike really likes coaching Virginia tech. With that I think he will do some soul searching and make some changes. His job probably depends on it
That's the thing... NCSU has the players to make a run, but the style of play the team utilizes will not allow them to make it through an entire weekend IMO. It's fun to watch, but not sustainable in a tournament situation.