#21 Virginia Tech defeated Campbell 70-60 on Friday night, opening their highly anticipated 2010-11 campaign with a victory. Tech is now 1-0 on the season, as they head into a big matchup at #3 Kansas State.
The Hokies controlled the first half of the game, leading by as much as 15 points. They took a 41-26 lead into the halftime intermission following a fastbreak dunk by sophomore point guard Erick Green. However, Tech wasn’t as sharp in the second half, though they did coast to the relatively easy 10-point win.
Malcolm Delaney led the Hokies with 20 points, all on three-pointers and free throws. He was 3-of-8 from three-point range, and a perfect 11-of-11 from the charity stripe. Campbell played a zone defense for most of the night, and the Hokies attempted 19 three-pointers, knocking down five of them.
Senior small forward Terrell Bell had an excellent all-around game, finishing with 17 points, eight rebounds, two assists, two blocks and a steal. He was 2-of-5 from three-point range in 36 minutes of action, and was probably the Hokies’ best player on Friday night.
Senior power forward Jeff Allen played very well, finishing with 11 points, 14 rebounds, five assists, four blocks and two steals. Reports indicated that Allen had an excellent preseason, and that carried over to the regular season against Campbell.
Dorenzo Hudson finished with nine points on 4-of-9 shooting, while Erick Green added six points. Freshman forward Jarell Eddie had a solid debut, finishing with six points, three rebounds and two assists in 15 minutes. Eddie was very active, played calm and collected, and hit both of his free throw attempts.
It was a sloppy game for the Hokies offensively, as they finished with 19 turnovers. However, they forced 17 Campbell turnovers and outrebounded the Fighting Camels by a whopping 41-24 margin, mostly thanks to Jeff Allen and Terrell Bell.
Campbell is a solid basketball team that finished 19-11 overall last season, and won the regular season Atlantic Sun championship. Head coach Robbie Laing won Coach of the Year honors, and the Camels returned two preseason All-Conference selections. Tech struggled with Campbell last season, pulling away late to win 70-61 on the road.
The Hokies will take a major step up in competition next week when they travel to #3 Kansas State on Tuesday. The Wildcats defeated James Madison 75-61 on Friday night. KSU allowed the Dukes to shoot nearly 50% from the field overall, as well as from three-point range. However, they forced 26 James Madison turnovers, and that was the difference in the game. Tip-off is scheduled for 4pm, and the game will be televised by ESPN.
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