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Quick, what's something the Tech women's basketball team has done that the men's team has never done? Go to a Sweet 16? Wrong, the men's team did that in 1966-67, getting to the Elite 8 and finishing one game short of the Final Four, losing an agonizing 71-66 overtime game to Dayton. (As an aside, there were only 23 teams in the 1967 NCAA tournament. Another aside: the NIT had 12 teams that year. When Tech won the NIT in 1973, there were 16 invitees. In 1995, there were 32 invitees. But I digress.) Okay, there are a lot of things Tech's women's team has done that the men's team has not. But the answer we're looking for is: win an ACC tournament game. The 7th-seeded Hokies pulled it off again Thursday night, downing #10 seed Boston College, 60-54 in overtime. That marked Tech's second straight year winning their opening-round ACC tourney game. The parallels between the end of last season and the end of this season are eerie. The Hokies were a #7seed in last year's tournament, just like this season. Last year, they defeated Wake Forest in the last game of the regular season, then drew the Demon Deacs in the first round of the ACC tournament. This season, they beat Boston College in the last regular-season game, then turned around and played them in the ACC tournament. But there's one big difference between this year and last year: last year's team went to the NCAA tournament, and this year's team, barring something spectacular, won't.
The next 13 days were rough, though, as the Hokies dropped four in a row and fell out of NCAA consideration. The first loss was an acceptable road loss to Maryland, but then the Hokies dropped a road game to Clemson 73-69 and a home game to Virginia, 79-76. The streak was capped by a 68-63 home defeat at the hands of suddenly red-hot NC State. The Hokies were 16-13, and that was that. VT eventually finished 6-8 in the ACC and entered the ACC tourney as the #7 seed. Two straight wins over BC put Tech at 18-13, but their RPI has plummeted to 78 (according to RealTimeRPI), and the NCAA tournament won't come calling, unless the Hokies beat powerful UNC, then (probably) Maryland, and (probably) #1-ranked, undefeated Duke. That would be a run to rival the one by the 7th-seeded Virginia Cavalier men's team in 1976, when the Hoos shocked the ACC by winning the tournament. Actually, it would be more impressive, because the gap between the haves and the have-nots in women's basketball is enormous. That leaves the Women's NIT, and the Hokies are a good bet to make the WNIT (though not a lock -- keep reading). The WNIT is expanding to 48 teams this year, meaning over 110 teams will participate in women's postseason play, between the NCAA tournament and the WNIT. Tech hasn't been to the WNIT since 2002, when the Ieva Kublina-led Hokies made it all the way to the semifinals before falling to Houston in overtime, 77-72. Houston closed regulation with a 16-4 run behind some talented guard play, then took the win in overtime.
The WNIT is played exclusively on the home floors of participants, not at any neutral sites. Participating teams bid to host games on a round-by-round basis. In 2002, the Hokies played four WNIT games in Cassell, beating UNC-Greensboro (51-45), George Washington (68-52), and Vermont (76-48) before losing in a thriller against Houston, 77-72 in overtime. The Hokies aren't a lock to make the WNIT, though. The tournament has a somewhat complex selection method that ensures that a team from each of 31 conferences will be selected for the tournament. That only leaves 17 true at-large spots, which isn't a lot. It's hard to imagine the Hokies with no postseason destination at all -- that hasn't happened since Carol Alfano's last season as Tech's coach, in 1996-97 -- but it could happen. WNIT bids are extended March 12th, so we'll find out then.
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UVA
used a very good defensive performance and a hot-shooting outside game to
down Virginia Tech 69-56 in Charlottesville on Thursday night. The
in-state rivals split the season series, and UVA momentarily moves into
first place in the ACC with the win. Tech drops to 20-9 overall and 10-5
in ACC play. UVA improves to 20-8 and 11-4 in the ACC.
Virginia
Tech started March off in style, landing its second commitment for the
class of 2008. The commitment comes from a talented in-state athlete who
helped his team to a Group AA, Division 4 state championship this past
season.
It's
crunch time. We are now entering the final weekend of ACC regular season
play, and there is still a lot to be decided. First and foremost is the
ACC Regular Season Championship. UNC, Virginia Tech and Virginia all find
themselves tied at the top of the conference standings, and tonight's huge
matchup in Charlottesville will help determine who gets the #1 seed in the
ACC Tournament.
Twenty
wins. An NCAA Tournament bid. An All-ACC First Team candidate and Coach of
the Year candidate. A top four finish in the ACC. These are all great
accomplishments, and if the season ended today, Hokie fans should be
proud. But as the team embarks for a critical road game in Charlottesville
Thursday night, it's becoming clearer that success breeds many things.
Among them: an appetite for more success.
What
were you doing on January 6, 1968? Many of you probably don't remember.
Some of you weren't alive. I sure wasn't. Will Stewart was a toddler. LBJ
was in the Whitehouse, we hadn't landed on the moon yet, and Lane Stadium
and Cassell Coliseum were in their first few years of existence. That's
also the last time Virginia Tech won a men's basketball game in
Charlottesville.
The
Hokies only signed nine defensive players in the class of 2007, with four
of those coming at the linebacker position. Given that, you can't expect
Tech's defensive recruiting grades to be very high, but the Hokies still
got some excellent defensive players and filled some needs. In the second
part of this two part series, we give our defensive recruiting grades.
6-2,
190-pound Smithfield star running back Dyrell Roberts has the
potential to burst onto the recruiting scene. He already holds scholarship
offers from the University of Virginia and Virginia Tech and has received
very serious interest from a number of others, including Florida. Roberts,
who is excited about his offers and the interest from other programs, took
some time to talk recruiting.
After
two big victories in the ACC in the past week, Virginia Tech has climbed
their way back into the top 25. The Hokies are ranked #21 in both the A.P.
Poll and the ESPN/USA Today Coaches' Poll, and they are one of five ACC
teams to be ranked in at least one poll.
Ever
since a 248-yard, 2-touchdown performance his freshman season against a
good Louisa squad, Goochland (VA) running back D.J. Coles felt he
"had something special." This past season as a junior, the
standout prospect used his talents to help Goochland capture its first
ever Division 2 Single A state championship in football.
The
Miami Hurricanes venture to Cassell Coliseum on Saturday afternoon fresh
off a win over Virginia, and they'll be looking to turn that into a
winning streak. Virginia Tech will be looking for their 20th win overall
and 10th in the ACC, and if they get it, they'll lock up their first NCAA
tournament appearance since 1996.