Blacksburg, VA – Virginia Tech lost a double overtime heartbreaker 104-100 to Maryland on Saturday night in Cassell Coliseum. The Hokies dropped to 21-7 with the loss, and 8-6 in the ACC. It was their third consecutive loss. Maryland improved to 21-7 overall and 11-3 in conference play.
Virginia Tech did a lot of things right in this game, but they still lost. They scored 100 points. They had five players score in double figures. Jeff Allen stayed out of foul trouble and had a huge game. Malcolm Delaney had a good shooting game, as did Dorenzo Hudson. They outrebounded the Terps 52-43. They only had 15 turnovers in 50 minutes of basketball. However, they still lost.
Malcolm Delaney paced the Hokies with 27 points on 9-of-17 shooting. He also had five assists, played all 50 minutes and was 8-of-10 from the free throw line. However, both of his free throw misses came on one trip to the line in the second overtime, and they could have tied the game.
Jeff Allen stayed out of foul trouble and played 44 minutes, finishing with 25 points and 15 rebounds. This was easily Allen’s best game of the season. He was aggressive on the offensive end and finished on some tough shots on the inside.
Dorenzo Hudson added 21 points on 8-of-16 shooting, while J.T. Thompson had 15 points and nine rebounds. Thompson hit a three-pointer very late in regulation to help the Hokies force overtime, and it was only his second three-pointer of the season and the second of his career.
Terrell Bell finished with 10 points and nine rebounds. He fouled out with under a minute remaining in overtime, and his absence hurt the Hokies over the final five minutes of the game.
Unfortunately for the Hokies, Maryland’s Greivis Vasquez was the best player on the court on Saturday night. Vasquez scored a career high 41 points, 33 of which came after halftime. He dished out six assists, had just two turnovers and was a perfect 10-of-10 from the free throw line. He kept coming up with clutch shots throughout the game for the Terps, particularly during the late stages of regulation.
It was just the ninth time in ACC basketball history that a player scored 40 or more points in a conference road game.
Vasquez tied the game at 73 with 3:28 remaining on a layup, and later hit a big three-pointer to put the Terps up 78-77 at the 1:29 mark. Two more free throws from the senior point guard made the score 80-77 with 34 seconds remaining.
Virginia Tech made some great plays down the stretch of regulation to force the first overtime. After a missed layup by Jeff Allen, the Terps inbounded underneath Tech’s basket, but Terrell Bell jumped high in the air to steal the inbounds pass. The Hokies called a timeout, and Dorenzo Hudson threw a cross-court pass on the inbounds to an open J.T. Thompson, who drained his second three-pointer of the season to tie the game at 80 with 15.1 seconds left.
It was an amazing play for the Hokies, but Maryland rallied with an Eric Hayes jumper to take an 82-80 lead with 5.2 seconds remaining. Tech came right back, with Malcolm Delaney taking it coast to coast for a running layup, tying the game at 82 with 0.9 seconds remaining. Maryland’s desperation three-pointer missed, and the game went to overtime.
Greivis Vasquez hit a big three-pointer in overtime, giving Maryland an 87-84 lead with 2:43 left. The Hokies had no quit in them, and after two free throws from J.T. Thompson made the score 87-86, Terrell Bell nailed a three-pointer from the left corner to give the Hokies an 89-87 lead with just 56 seconds remaining.
Bell fouled out on Maryland’s next possession, and Eric Hayes hit two free throws to tie the game at 89 with 41 seconds left. Both teams missed their next shot, and the Hokies had the ball for the last shot on a fastbreak. J.T. Thompson elected to drive to the basket and attempt a last second layup, but he didn’t get it off in time. Thompson had the time and the space to pull up for an open 10-15 foot jump shot, but he elected to go for the layup. Unfortunately for Tech, it wasn’t successful, and the game went to a second overtime.
The Hokies never led over the final five minutes, but they still had their chances. Jeff Allen missed two free throws with 1:54 remaining and Tech trailing 97-93. Malcolm Delaney had a chance to tie the game at 97 with 39 seconds left, but he also missed both of his free throw attempts. They were his only missed free throws of the night.
Despite the missed free throws, Tech still had a chance. They got the ball with 15 seconds remaining, trailing 102-100. They had plenty of time to get one of their best shooters a good shot, but Malcolm Delaney drove to the middle and dished to freshman guard Erick Green in the left corner. Considering the game Delaney had, and the fact the Hokies only needed two points to tie, it was a questionable decision. Green had a decent look, but his three-point attempt was a little long and bounced off the back of the rim. Maryland rebounded, Sean Mosley was fouled, and he hit two free throws to ice the game.
Virginia Tech returns to action on Wednesday night when they host NC State at 7pm. No television coverage is scheduled.
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