Your FREE-view Klempson hoops preveiw!

1, 4, 2, 1, 4, 1, 2.

That would be seven different games that we have dropped by an average of  2.14 points.

So close but yet so Dire Straights … “…you’re so far away from me. So far I just can’t see.”

That is a lot of pain folks, and that much pain is gutting. You saw it gut our early intensity vs. FSU at home of all places last time out. But the real bugbear emotion is frustration. Frustration on very possibly missing the NC2A’s. Maybe even seeing an N.I.T. bid experience some Alex Trebek jeopardy. So while it is true that we are very close to being a 20 win team, it is also equally legit that we are also very close to being a C.B.I. Tourney team as well. But what will the Klempson game do for our chances? (16-10)  #66 R.P.I. Virginia Tech @ (22-4) #9 R.P.I. Klempson:
TV coverage: ESPN2 7:30pm
Vegas Line: VT+10.5

Klempson at a glance:

1. 11. As in Klempson is the 11th best Offensive Rebounding team in all of D-1.
2. 12. These Tigers are 12th best in Scoring Margin at +13 per game. When Klemspon wins they tend to win big.
3. 37. The Tigers are 37th best from beyond the arc on the 3-ball in college basketball.
4. 47. Klempson is 47th best from the floor overall. i.e. these Tigers can shoot the rock.
5. 105. As in the Tigers are 105th best in Defensive FG % allowed.
6. 6. As in Klempson is the 6th best team in Steals in all of D-1; ergo, Hokie basketball integrity is a must! Klempson is also 10th in Blocks in college basketball too boot.

Klempson is ranked 12th in the latest Associated Press poll for good reason folks; as this may be a very high seeded NC2A Tourney team and something of a possible spoiler for the ACC big-2 (as someone will have to play Klempson then either Duke or UNC) come ACC Tourney time.

Klempson is lead by #35 (pic on the right)  6`7“ 245 lb. Power-Forward Trevor Booker. All Trevor does is lead Klempson in points (15), boards (9) and blocks (2). Not much to see here folks, unless you like to see all-conference quality 4’s who are second on their team in steals and who can bomb away from beyond the arc at 43% do battle. This is a very good power-forward folks, and one of the more versatile ones you will see.

Pitching in would be 6`5“ 215 lb. ‘tweener K.C. Rivers who swings between the 2 and the 3-spots. K.C. is second in both points (14) and in boards (6).  The third of the Klempson mini-me big-3 is 6`2“ 190 lb. Terrence Oglesby who nets 13 points on 39% 3-point shooting while finishing second in assists for the Tigers.

Chipping in would be Demontez Stitt a 6`2“ point-guard with 8 points and 6`9“ Center Ray Skykes with his 8 points and 5 boards. The Tiger bench is very steady and good sized. Well, except for diminutive 5`8“ point-guard ‘Dre Smith (pic below). The Klempson bench accounts for 17 points and 8 boards on average. Not stellar numbers; sans a true 6th-man star-power guy, but productive numbers none the less. The Tigers stick to a tried and true 9 man rotation that divides minutes rather fairly as no Tiger logs more than 30 minutes of P.T. and none less than 14 minutes. And that does not even include 7`3“ Center Catalin Baciu of Cluj-Napoca (a Romanian city if you are keeping score at home).

Former localize coach (Radford) and Milwaukee Buck Oliver Purnell anointed Klempson’s hoops program goal as that of winning a national championship.  Everyone laughed last year to start the season, no one is laughing now and they likley won’t be laughing for a while with 12 back for next year and 3 VHT blue-chippers coming in.

Of late Klempson has gone 6 up and 4 down in their last 10 taking a couple of big-name ACC shots right on the chin. But Klempson is a program moving in the right direction. How many other programs have improved their FT Shooting by 5% last year and now by another 6% this year? That’s coaching fundamentals folks and fundamentals take care of a whole board-room full of business.  The other thing of note is thus……Klempson does not improve on offense at home; which is extremely rare. In fact the Tigers drop in Points, FT’s and 3-point shooting all at home. But their defense really amps up inside Littlejohn Coliseum. As the Tigers FG% allowed free-falls by 5%, 3-pointers allowed by 4% and rebounding improves by about 2 boards.

Revised A.c.c. predictions please: where do you now say VT finishes in the A.c.c.? 1st to 4th. 5th to 8th. 9th to 12th. View Results  Loading ...

So………to return to the Dire Straights, I now just can not see us winning another regular season game. Klempson is too tough on defense at home and has too many frontcourt advantages for our discomfited hoops team to over come. Virginia Tech=70 Klempson=78
“LETS GO!”

“HOKIES!”

b’street.