#97 R.P.I. V.M.I. @ #167 R.P.I. Virginia Tech:

Another potentially winnable out-of-conference (O.O.C.) basketball game is on the early 2013-2014 docket Monday night down in the Cassell Coliseum.

Virginia Military Institute is a lotta things and first and foremost they are a lotta fun to watch. If pinball is you favorite arcade game then you’ve come to the right place. As these Keydets will “tilt” any and every scoreboard that they can find. This basketball game should be Television friendly; it should be user-friendly, it should be a box score bonanza for everyone involved and that meas that this game should be easy on the eyes.

As Virginia Tech and V.M.I. could at least flirt with playing a game in the 90’s and they should indeed consummate a game in the 80’s. This one has point total eruption written all over it; as a scoring hook-up one-nite-stand barrage of points should come as no surprise when you bed V.M.I.

Today’s word is … uncertain

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V.M.I. Backcourt: (returning starters=2)
Q.J. Peterson is a 3o4 (Wv.) native, who merely leads V.M.I. with a sizzling 21.5 ppg just 4 games into his colligate career. That does not suck, and neither does his 4.5 rebounds and team leading 3.5 steals per contest as a pure scoring-Guard either. Nobody I read seemed to predict this awesome amount of offensive production out of Peterson right away. So it remains to be seen if this is just a hot-start or a true hot-shot of a lead-G for the Keydets. Though so far | so good indeed as this undersized looking Guard can light you up in a hurry; and could therefore co-op with BIC this summer. Rodney Glasgow was seemingly the one to take over the star G reins this campaign as his final season as a Keydet. Rodney knows how to push the pedal to the metal and his a very experience Pt.Guard for the Keydets. As Rodney is a 3-year starter who is known for his quicks and agility to go with his second best 15.3 ppg and a team best 46% from 3-point land. Now mix in almost 5 boards and a team leading 4.8 assists and suddenly you have nothing less than a potential team M.V.P. on your hands who will do no worse than flirt with all-conference honors this season.

V.M.I. Frontcourt: (starters back=1)
All-Big South Conference P/F Dee.Jay Covington leads the way upfront; and he will likely lead the Box Score for both teams down-low in this one. As he could very well be the best player on the court for either team; and he would indeed surely start at Virginia Tech. 14 and change to go with 6+ boards and a staggering 3.8 blocks per contest says so. As does his team leading 50% from the floor where he does yeoman’s work inside the paint; when his bad back allows; because if this kid –Coach God Bless- is beyond that; he is a Pro. At least at the overseas level. Craig Hinton stats upfront as a rookie and he is said to be the best dunker of the entire 2013 class and he has his very own mix tape out regarding such accordingly. Dood can dunk; I know; I watched; and it is reported that he has nice 3-point range as well. Although Hinton’s current 23% from the floor and 26% thus far from beyond the arc would seem to disagree with that. Presuming V.M.I. and coach Duggar Baucom employ their bigger line-up, Jarid Watson could start upfront as well thereby moving Covington over to the true-C spot. Jarid is mostly a utility player and by that I mean an athletic inside hustler who does what damage he can at the defensive end or on the glass.

V.M.I. Bench: (depth=2 maybe 3 in a close game pinch)

• Key (pardon the pun) reserve 2-Guard Brain Brown only led the Big South in 3-point percentage last year; so you know he can flat out shoot the rock. Even if his incoming .08% does not say so in this particular case; nevertheless, that does suggest a kid who is due to officially break-out and return to his subsequent marksman ways. Brown is also the Keydets backcourt defensive stopper and he leads the way in leadership via experience on top of that. Brown (same as Glasgow) is a mighty-mite at 5’10’’ in height that that should give Wilson and Virginia Tech’s bigger G’s something to consider; if not outright exploit.
• Trey Chapman: is a Swing who nets you 3.2 and grabs 3.5 boards on a pitiful 10% from the floor and an even 10% from 3-point land, and no I’m not guarding him either…
• Jordan Weethee: is back after missing last year with a blown A.c.l. God Bless on that. As Jordan is only contributing 10.8 ppg and 6.6 boards in relief on 38% from the outside. Which makes one wonder what this kid could do on two good wheels?

Forum Guide:
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Illation, conclusion(s) and OPT digits:
      Coach J’s and his boys will be +1 on rest in this one and V.M.I. will be the traveling squad here.  The rebounding margin is +9 in Virginia Tech’s favor, the  FG% margin is a staggering 15 percentage points in Tech’s favor, and the Hokies shoot the ball a staggering 13% better from beyond the arc. So this one should be a home-court rout; right?

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It really should, all things being equal. And yet there is something undefined about this 2013-2014 Virginia Tech men’s hoops team. See my poll up above. Who is our established lead over on offense –or are we offense via committee? Are these alleged defensive improvements for real? Whiskey Tango Helen is up with Rankin and Barksdale and when will all of that be resolved?

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Because as good as we’ve been for the last three halves of play; surely we are better with them. However, yet again, that leaves me in an undefined place as the other revenue sport team’s analysis goes. Just how good are we? Or have we actually been playing over our heads; or maybe more directly … through no fault of our own; have we just been playing bad teams?

I don’t know yet and that leaves me feeling uncertain. Though I’ma gonna pick us to do some damage to V.M.I., even though my confidence factor could use some further objectivity and a little mettle.

Virginia Tech=86 V.M.I.=69

“LETS GO!”

“Hokies!”

 bourbonstreet**