Virginia Tech Seeks Redemption As Syracuse Travels To Blacksburg

Hunter Cattoor and Virginia Tech host Syracuse on Saturday in a redemption game. (Kate Haas)

After a 78-75 win over Duke on Monday night, Virginia Tech men’s basketball (12-8, 2-7 ACC) returns to the hardwood on Saturday night vs. Syracuse (13-8, 6-4 ACC). Wes Durham and Dan Bonner have the call at 7 p.m. ET on the ACC Network.

The Orange thrashed the Hokies in their meeting on Jan. 11, winning 82-72 in the JMA Wireless Dome. Tech was without Hunter Cattoor, though, and the loss was its fifth in a row. The team is in a different spot just over two weeks later.

After dropping road games at No. 7 Virginia and No. 19 Clemson, Tech responded with a triumphant victory over the Blue Devils in front of a sold-out crowd. It snapped the seven-game losing streak and gave the program a quality win.

At the moment, the Hokies are in 11th place in the Atlantic Coast Conference with 11 games remaining. Below are the complete standings:

(ESPN)

What went wrong in the meeting in Upstate New York? Tech’s backcourt of Sean Pedulla, Darius Maddox, MJ Collins and Rodney Rice combined to shoot 4-of-30 (13%) from the floor. Justyn Mutts, Grant Basile and Lynn Kidd combined for 57 of Tech’s 72 points on 24-of-37 (68%) shooting.

The Hokies were an abysmal 3-of-19 from 3-point range, and 11 of the attempts came from Pedulla. The 2-3 zone was frustrating to play against, particularly down the stretch. After both team shot above 50% in the first half and Syracuse led by six at the break, 43-37, the Hokies struggled to generate offense. Basile (18 points) and Mutts (13) scored 31 of their 35 points in the second half while they turned the ball over nine times. They also made just one of their 10 3-pointers.

Syracuse used a 20-4 run to distance itself, and 15 of Joe Girard’s 24 points came in the second half. Though Tech cut a 20-point deficit to just 12 points with 8:15 to play, the Orange led by double figures the rest of the way.

This time around, Tech has Cattoor. He was lethal (5-of-10) from distance in the victory over Duke, finishing with 15 points, and he’ll be a huge boost on the defensive end. He’ll draw the challenge of containing Girard, lightening the load on Pedulla and the rest of the backcourt. His basketball IQ was on full display on the final play against the Blue Devils, which showed how much of a difference he makes on the floor.

Hunter Cattoor sealed a huge win for Virginia Tech on Monday, stealing the ball from Jeremy Roach. His presence is vital to Tech’s success. (Ivan Morozov)

The Hokies got a good shooting performance under their belt vs. Duke (57%). Cattoor, Pedulla (16 points) and Basile (24) each had big nights and the ball moved offensively. Tech was also solid on the glass against one of the best rebounding teams in the country. Syracuse will get its opportunities on Saturday, especially inside, but preventing 51% shooting is important.

Taking care of the ball is crucial, too, and shot selection will be a factor. Tech can’t afford to go 3-of-19 from deep again, but it did well to penetrate the zone in the first meeting, scoring 46 points in the paint. If the Hokies move the ball and the occasional outside shot falls, they’ll be in good shape. Stopping the No. 1 3-point attack in the ACC in the Orange is a tedious task, but Cattoor’s addition should even things out.

6 Responses You are logged in as Test

  1. I really wished the talk about playing Syracuse wasn’t about Cattoor being a better 3-pt shooter. It needs to be about how to attack zones, and the best way to attack it is not shooting over top of it. That is what zone defenses want you to do. Zones can be broken down. Syracuse plays its wings high and out. A 3-2 offense can beat that. Even a 2-2-1 offense can beat. A player running baseline and a play in the high post. Emphasize attacking the basket by getting the ball behind the zone.

  2. Tech needs to put a full game together,I hate losing to Cuse in BB as much as I hate losing to UNC in football!I hope we blow Cuse outta the gym onto the pavement!

  3. Lots of opportunities for “redemption” with the way the Hokies played the first half of the ACC schedule – lets see if they can start the pay-back tour tomorrow against a very mediocre Syracuse team.

  4. I want to see Boeheim and Company blown out of Cassell. Make him pay for refusing to play here up until recently (when I suppose he was given no choice).

    Louisville 2-18 (0-9). Made me smile.

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