Virginia Tech dressed just eight scholarship players on Thursday night, but managed to defeat St. Bonaventure 76-68 in overtime in Rochester, NY. It was announced before the game that senior guard Dorenzo Hudson and sophomore forward Cadarian Raines will take medical redshirts this season, so the Hokies went into this game extremely short-handed. Tech is now 7-4 on the season, while the Bonnies dropped to 6-4.
Erick Green got his third consecutive start at point guard and played very well again. The sophomore finished with 15 points on 5-of-11 shooting, and made all four of his free throw attempts. He also had five steals and two assists in 42 minutes of action, and did not commit a turnover. Green still has zero turnovers in the month of December. He has not turned the ball over since the November 22 game against UNC Greensboro.
Malcolm Delaney paced the Hokies with 19 points in 43 minutes. He also had five assists. Jeff Allen finished with 18 points and nine rebounds in 30 minutes before fouling out. The Hokies had to play the overtime period without Allen, but managed to get it done.
Victor Davila finished with nine points for Tech, while Jarell Eddie and Manny Atkins came off the bench to score five points apiece. All of Atkins’ points came on two critical shots in overtime.
The Hokies shot 27-of-55 (49.1%) from the field, and had 15 assists on their 27 made field goals. Tech was forced to play 2-3 and 1-3-1 zones for most of the game thanks to their lack of depth, and they held St. Bonaventure to 41.5% from the field.
The Bonnies were led by likely future NBA draft pick Andrew Nicholson, who had 21 points and eight rebounds. Nicholson missed a critical stretch in the late second half with cramps, and was noticeably limping during overtime before he was finally forced to leave the game for good.
Like their last two wins against Penn State and Mississippi State, the Hokies got off to a hot start. They shot 51.9% in the first half and raced out to a 41-28 halftime lead. It was their third straight game of scoring over 40 points in the first 20 minutes, following a four-game stretch of scoring less than 60 points for the entire game.
The second half was a different story, as St. Bonaventure began hitting outside jumpers against Tech’s zone defense. The Bonnies gradually fought their way back in the game after starting the second half on a 13-4 run.
For most of the second half, the Hokies answered each big St. Bonaventure shot with a big shot of their own, and the two teams battled down to the wire. Tech had a chance to put the game away with 25 seconds left, up by two, but Malcolm Delaney made just one of two free throw attempts, and the Bonnies got the ball back with a chance to tie the game.
That’s exactly what they did, with Ogo Adegboye nailing a deep NBA range three-pointer from directly in front of the basket. That made the score 65-65, and Malcolm Delaney’s 18-footer at the buzzer missed.
Tech took control in overtime, with Manny Atkins coming into the game and nailing a quick three-pointer to put his team up 68-65. With 2:09 remaining, it was still a 70-68 game, but Victor Davila tipped a shot in to put the Hokies up 72-68, and Atkins followed that up with a layup in the paint.
After Malcolm Delaney knocked down a pair of free throws, Davila scored once more over an injured Andrew Nicholson to make the score 76-68 with just 38 seconds remaining, and the Hokies were able to go home for Christmas with an important win.
Tech returns to action next Thursday, December 30 when they host South Carolina Upstate. Tip-off is scheduled for 2pm, and the game will not be televised.
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