Back on the Bubble

 

Talk about a continually expressive face….

A familiar spot for Hokie basketball fans, it seems. After a big win against Maryland, Virginia Tech seemed to be a lock for this year’s tourney, but alas, mediocrity again reared its ugly head, and the Hokies lost a sure winner to none other than the Hoos. What is it about these seemingly easy wins that turns them into repetitive losses? The themes are the same: poor shooting, poor defense, and what can only be described as an “I give up” attitude when it counts.

And now, when I’m beginning to be interested (I can’t watch college basketball until February because it all seems so pointless up to then), the Bubble Balancing Act begins. Now I’ll be glued to my computer, radio, whatever, and experiencing that familiar feeling. The nervousness. The anxiety. The frustration. I’ll confess, I’m only just now getting over my Orange Bowl malaise. It’s truly taken this long.

And I’ll tell you this, while I’m complaining. I’m tired of the NIT. Virginia Tech has some talented players, like Malcolm Delaney and even Jeff Allen, who are probably tired of playing in the NIT. Let’s not do it this year. Win these last two, even though one is against Duke, who has somehow leaped all the way from #5 last week to numero Uno this one. Let’s take a trip to the Madness. The March Madness, that is.

Believe.

 

What happened this week in VT athletics

We are few weeks removed from the Spring Game and the NFL draft, and usually the headlines are pretty quiet abut this time.  However, this was a pretty interesting week in the Hokie Halls. 

1.  Jake Johnson decided to transfer (plus so did Patrick Terry, but I’ll be honest here and say I didn’t know anything about him, so I can’t get too worked up about it).  I was sorry to hear about Johnson, though.  He started last year with some promise, and some (albeit) raw talent.  However, the move from LB to defensive end apparently did him no favors.  It’s a shame that all this:

didn’t transfer to the field.  But, I wish him well and much success at whatever D2 school he chooses.

2.  Malcolm Delaney decides NOT to continue with the NBA draft process.  He announced it himself on Twitter and it was confirmed on ESPN.  This is good news for the Tech basketball team, and should hopefully be a step toward actually making the tourney next year. 

3.  Heather over at the ESPN ACC blog released her spring wrap-ups for all the teams.  She still gives Miami way too much preseason love, and even predicted the Canes upsetting the Hokies on November 20th, but at least had enough sense to rank the Hokies 1st in post spring power rankings.  Thanks, Heather.

And, completely unrelated, but something I can’t get out of my head because of the grossness of it, we found out this week that Jessica Simpson only brushes her teeth three times a week, because she doesn’t like them to feel “slippery”.  Um, yuck.

So, that’s it folks.  Just a little something to keep you going until Boise State, 121 days from now.

Well drat. Freaking Duke.

Missed it by that much. ~Maxwell Smart

VT turned in yet another low scoring percentage from the field (38%) and Jeff Allen found himself in foul trouble early yet again, as the Duke Blue Devils went on to win 67-55.  Duke didn’t shoot great from the field either (only 29% to be exact) but were much more proficient at 3 pointers, successfully shooting 10, as opposed to the Hokies 2.  Malcolm Delaney led with 19 points, but it wasn’t enough. 

A few times during this game, I thought we just might have it, but Duke was stronger where they needed to be, in offensive rebounding and at the line. 

I do this every year.  I try not to pay attention to Hokie basketball, then end up all wrapped up in it by February.  In some ways, basketball is even harder to watch than football.  All is not lost, though.  The Hokies play BC on Wednesday, then have an opportunity to go undefeated at home (yep, you read that right) by beating NC State and Maryland in the next two games.  Now wouldn’t that be cool? 

 

VT’s chances for making the tourney

As Will Stewart pointed out on Tech Sideline yesterday, the Hokies are an astounding 20-4 this year, and, wait for it cause it’s going to be all kinds of awesome……..7-3 in the ACC.  Yep.  Or as my seven year old son would say, “holy shoot”.  (We keep the curses to a minimum in the Football Girl household). 

Gobbler Country has a good article about the bracketologists and where VT falls thus far.  Wonder what you have to do to become a bracketologist?  Is there a degree for that?  A specialty?  Because I’d like to be one.  Not because I know crap about how the bracket system works.  I don’t.  I just think it’d be cool to have a job that ends in -ologist.  Makes me sound impressive.  But I’m getting off track, aren’t I?  Anyway, they also have this article on what the Hokies can do to ensure selection into the tournament. 

Here’s what we’ve got left:

Tue,2/16	Wake, 7:00, ESPN2
Sun,2/21	@Duke, 7:45, FSN
Wed,2/24	@BC, 7:00, ESPNU
Sat,2/27	Maryland, 4:00, Raycom
Wed,3/3	NCSU, 7:00
Sat,3/6	@GT, 4:00, Raycom
Thu,3/11- Sun, 3/14	ACC Tourney Greensboro

Winning some or most of these games is crucial.  If we fall off down the stretch, the only hope of getting into the tourney would be to actually WIN the ACC Tourney or else go awfully far.  I’d like to see some consistent play from boty Malcolm Delaney and Jeff Allen.  And, our shooting percentage the last several games has been just awful.  (Kind of like winning football games with the 100th ranked offense).  Although the Hokies have been winning ugly, at some point you have to be able to shoot.

What’s going to happen?  Time will tell, but I know I’m looking forward to the ride. 

Some Hokie football and basketball news

I was pleased to see that Jason Worilds has received an invitation to the NFL Combine next month.  A Combine invitation means that he is on the radar, so to speak, and thus has some draft potential.  As of now, Mel Kiper does not list him as one of the top 5 at his position, but does include Sergio Render as the number 5 OG.  I love the draft.  I think all professions should choose their employees this way. 

Tech Sideline has a great feature article right now about the top 10 VT stories of the decade.  It’s paid content, so I won’t link it, but if you get a chance, check it out.  Included are changes in football recruiting, the hiring of Seth Greenberg and resurgence of Hokie basketball, the Vick brothers (Sigh.  All that wasted potential..), Frank Beamer’s near move to UNC, and ACC expansion.  What do you think would be the biggest story of the decade?

And, what the heck, let’s talk a little basketball.  The Hokies came through big time last night with a sweet overtime performance against UVA, despite Jeff Allen’s ejection for elbowing some guy with 13:41 left in the game.  This is a team that is looking way better than I thought they would before the season started.  I fear I may be on the verge of beginning a basketball obsession as well.  Be on the lookout for my name to change to The Football/Basketball Girl.  (Or something more catchy, perhaps).  I am really digging Dorenzo Hudson right now.  He is playing at an amazing level. 

And finally, I wasted quite a bit of time here yesterday, listening to Bill Roth and Mike Burnop’s favorite plays.  Thanks to Virginiatechfan.com for finding this.  “From the blue waters of the Chesapeake Bay to the hills of Tennessee, the Virginia Tech Hokies are on the air!”  Some of these I could listen to over and over, particularly number 4, Shayne Graham’s field goal at Morgantown; number 14, Deron Washington’s layup OVER TOP OF Duke’s Greg Palus; and the last one, Tyrod’s touchdown to Dyrell Roberts during the Nebraska game.  “Tyrod did it Mikey,  Tyrod did it!”

I always did like Deron

Super good story today about Deron Washington, perhaps the most famous Hokie dunker (ha! may have made up a new word there) in history.  He is improving by leaps and bounds (another ha!) and is hopefully on his way to earning a guaranteed spot on the Pistons roster.  And to make it even better, there is the awesome You Tube video compilation of a bunch of cool dunks. 

There is also a good story on Gobbler Country about whether or not offensive lines still matter in college football.  I think the question may be a bit facetious, because even the tightest of passing teams still benefit from a solid line.  I do agree that they continue to be key in the ACC, which for the most part runs for a living.