#4 R.P.I. virginia @ #142 R.P.I. Virginia Tech:

 Oui-oui.

After the last 2.5 Vee.Tee basketball  games?

Kan’t say I’m looking forward to this one; and then there was a Jalen Hudson sighting –of all things?!?

As Frank Beamer may have indeed owned uva in men’s football; however that very same uva has courted no less than a hooping lease with an option to buy on Virginia Tech. As coach Tony Bennett -to his credit- is no doubt the Bud Foster of men’s D-1 hoops.

This is one tough pack-line nut to crack folks. And the Forum Guide per wvu predicts that Virginia Tech will get done out by a backbreaking 41 points in this one!

Ouch.

And ouch some mo’, as #5 nationally ranked uva is the real deal. 11 up 1 down thanks to a second-game hiccup @George Washington by two shots, says so. uva is good, uva is dead to rights solid and uva don’t make many -if any- mistakes. You want this one you had better go on and take it. Carpe le` hoo.

As Christmas is over and Tony Bennett teams are typically NOT in a giving mood.

virginia at a glance:

• #1 fewest turnovers per game (8.5 tpg)
• 6th in Assist:Turnover ratio (+1.77)
• 8th in scoring defense (59.6 ppg allowed)
• 13th in FG percentage (41.1% makes)
• 15th in FT percentage (75.8%)
• 252nd in blocks (2.8 swats)
• 297th in Defensive Rebounding (23.38 drpg)
• no injuries listed (thank God)

cavalier Returning Starters=3

uva Strengths:

• #15 Malcolm Brogdon: 6’5” 215 lb. r-senior lead-G and no doubt the alpha-hoo. 1st team all-A.c.c. last year. This year Malc’ is netting you a team leading 16.2 ppg on 41.3% shooting from downtown. Now mix in 4.4 rpg and 3.2 assists and you have a complete baller on your hands. Did have left or push-off foot surgery back in 2012 (hence the r-shirt) although he has started every game ever since so that puts the kibosh on any lingering podiatry concern(s). Put up some really big scholastic numbers down in Georgia, which makes you wonder if he could not be doing more work on the stat-sheet in a more open-ended system? Know for his versatility on O, and is listed by a couple of pre-season magazines as a sleeper Player of the Year pick for the whole entire A.c.c. Defends well, has an inside and outside game; might just be a really solid overseas Pro’, with a mild to medium Association shot.

  

• Anthony Gill: 6’8” 230 lb. r-senior year P/F transfer from South Carolina, who has slowly yet surely gotten better each and every year. Second best in scoring (14.3 ppg) and first best in rebounding (6.3 rpg) is prolly good enough for third team all-A.c.c. honors. A 58% shooter who makes his offensive mark near the basket; could add some range to his J if he wants to keep playing on some level or another after this campaign. Not a dazzling athlete, a strong willed finisher who goes to the hoop, and strong, and therefore gets a lotta FTA’s (team leading 53 FTA’s on 79%). Needed to take a contributory step forward (pardon the pun) for coach Bennett this year; and Gill has done just that.
• London Perrantes: 6’2” 192 lb. third year Pt.Guard from La-La-Land out in the Lakers backyard of L.a. The book here says that London could stand to be more aggressive on offense (for himself) although he sets the table and smartly for others. Has a history of concussions and broken-noses which may have hamstrung some of that aforementioned aggression. Strong personal defender, was said to need some shooting work; however, a team leading 57% from beyond the arc and 51.4% overall reads like he sure improved his stroke to me. Second in steals (1.1 spg) and first in assists (4.6 dimes) does not suck. Neither does his 11 ppg and 3 rpg to go with his 82% free-throwing. Pretty solid high school Qb to boot. And IF, London’s shooting acumen really has increased, this is now suddenly a very well rounded hoopster with no want(s) left in his game.
• Mike Tobey: the signature much vaunted Pack-Line D’s anchoring Center. 7′, 26o lb. senior who protects the rim well enough, despite NOT being a natural 6’12” shot blocker (o.3 bpg). Mike does net you 7.8 ppg and pull down 4.o boards on a team leading 59.4% shooting. Stiff looking big who has found almost precisely 37 lbs. since he arrived and added a good 10-15 since last year. 6th Man of the Year for the A.c.c. last year, knows his job, does the same, and does it well enough. Already runs his very own summer basketball camp! (now just imagine the Pack-Line if coach Bennett ever finds a true studly ***** chip Center?!?)

uva Weaknesses:

• always seems like uva could use just about 1 more scorer, just in case they get behind in Tourney time play and need an outburst to win.
• IF, Justin Anderson had stuck around, you might have a legit M.N.C. pick on your hands. As is you have a #5 possible Final-4 pick right now.
• see: the 1st bullet, although the (new) 25 second clock gives the Pack Line 5 seconds of rest, that makes the hoo D even nastier.
• not much else! This is a very very very solid hoops club. V-e-r-y.

hoo’s Bench: (depth=3 to 5 deep, depending upon the situational match-ups)

Illation, conclusion (s) and OPT digits:

the takeaway:
The takeaway here is… Virginia Tech needed that Nc.State comeback overtime win like a dead man needs a coffin. St.Joe’s and hateful wvu had (appeared) to leave a mental mark upside Coach Buzz’s bunch sporting cognitive head. There were ESPN3 broadcast reports on just how down the team looked at the shoot-a-round prior to State in point of fact. Although Seth Allen to his credit did try to do something about that; and then Jalen Hudson happened.

Hud’ is almost our very own Mothman.  Don’t see him for a while; then when you do see him, he raises total hell and there is nothing you can do to stop it; either.  However, when will we see him again? I, don’t, know? Do you? Does he? Does Buzz?

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See what I mean? As this is a knife-edge different team when Jalen brings his best cutthroat game to the O&M table. And we will need all the Jalen we can get vs. 12-1 arch rival uva on Monday nite at 9pm.

Make no mistake on that men, uva is the better team, the better basketball program, and by far; at this moment at least.

The so unexpected as to be outright bizarre thing is… coach Buzz has our beloved Hokies playing the better D of late. 4.6% better in terms of shooting percentage allowed over each teams’ last 5 games. Raise your hand if you saw that one coming? Me neither.

The other thing is, uva is much more proficient on offense of late… 7.1% from the floor, 14.9% from distance and 11.9% better from the charity-stripe. That’s a lot and a lot will add up in a game that I foresee Virginia Tech hanging around until intermission, maybe even for 25 minutes give/take. Then the superior efficacious of the booHoo’s will take affect and they will win by double-digits in a game that seemed closer than it really was.

 

(69% confidence interval)
Virginia Tech=59, uva=75

“LETS GO!”

“Hokies!”

 bourbonstreet**