Virginia Tech lost a close game to Boston College 62-59 in Cassell Coliseum on Saturday afternoon. The Hokies dropped to 8-7 on the year, and 1-2 in the ACC. BC improved to 5-11, and they also have a 1-2 mark in league play.
The game was close the entire way, but the Hokies lost it in the final moments on a few plays.
1: C.J. Barksdale, who played a good game otherwise, missed a dunk in traffic with 3:49 remaining that would have put the Hokies up three.
2: Up by 1 with 3:10 left, Ben Emelogu saw a chance to throw a hail mary to C.J. Barksdale after a defensive rebound. Unfortunately the pass sailed high, and instead of having a possession up by a point, Tech turned it over. BC promptly nailed a 3-pointer to take the lead.
3: Leading 59-58 with 33.1 seconds left, BC inbounded the ball and got Lonnie Jackson open off a screen for a 3-pointer. It was good, and it put BC up 61-59.
4: Tech didn’t get a great final possession. Adam Smith was forced to create his own shot. It was a decent look from the baseline, but it fell short.
Adam Smith led the Hokies with 12 points, but his shot selection was very questionable. He was just 5-of-16 from the field and 2-of-9 from 3-point range. C.J. Barksdale added 11 points, including a pair of 3-pointers. Jarell Eddie had 10 points and eight rebounds for Tech, but he was only 3-of-14 from the field and 1-of-6 from the outside.
Tech did a good job on BC’s two best players. Olivier Hanlan had just 14 points on 5-of-15 shooting, and Ryan Anderson had just six points while rarely touching the ball in the low post. However, Lonnie Anderson scored 17 points, including the game winning shot. He came into the game averaging just 4.4 points per game.
Rebounds were tied at 38, and both teams shot poorly from the free throw line. BC was just 8-of-14, while the Hokies were 12-of-21.
Tech returns to action on Wednesday night when they host the Clemson Tigers. Tipoff is scheduled 7pm, and the game will be televised by RSN. Check your local listings.
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This staff must go, JJ has not had the team show any improvement at all, last year or this. It is really unfortunate for the kids to be put in this position. JJ is just a not a head coach. The offense does not improve, the defense does not improve, discipline and effort seem to be constant problems with one player or another.
If the administration wants fans to show up in Cassell, then they need to make some attempt to provide us a viable product on the floor. At this time I am not sure if we have one player on the roster who would start for another ACC team at least at this point in their development. And what development can we expect as long as this staff remains.
Disappointing does not begin to cover it but I have ranted enough. Weaver has done some outstanding work during his tenure but what he had done to the Hokie basketball program just about balances the books.
I like our recruits – give JJ a chance to teach and mold – after 2 more seasons then decide
They don’t have any talent dude…look at the transfers that start or play big minutes at Louisville and Florida. Let this staff go and the players we do have will likely leave. The answer to everything is not fire everyone. I think some fans should be fired.
They don’t have any talent – who is responsible for that, coaching staff. And yes I know JJ has only been head coach for a season and a half but he has been there for quite some time developing these young men and the results are not encouraging.
Transfers – huh? Not sure what relevance this has to the discussion.
Let the staff go and the existing players go – well you don’t think they have any talent so I am not sure how this bolsters any argument. I think they may well have some talent but question the ability of this staff to maximize it.
The answer is not to fire everyone – you’re right the answer is not always to fire but given the results we are seeing and the apparent lack of any development I believe it is in this case. Haven’t we seen enough with the handling of the previous O staff in football to realize that just as often hanging on to a staff is not necessarily the answer either.
Some fans should be fired – so don’t fire the staff, but fans with whom you disagree certainly must go. I support the team which is why I think a change needs to be made.
He coached well enough to win Saturday, he didn’t miss the dunk, or the open jump shots. The freshmen playing are playing well. I think we need to give him the 3rd year.
Let’s not abandon the team. Remember, your parents never gave up on you. Loyalty is the difference between a fan and a spectator.
Comparing parents dedication to commitment to a team is foolish and ff base. Blind loyalty to something that doesnt work and it is obvious it doesnt work is bad business. it does not make you a disloyal fan to have a feeling about the coaching staff. What was said was pure truth, JJ is simply not a head coach. To continue to keep him on is detrimental to the program, the young people who work so hard, the fan base, the financial alumni supporters, and to recruiting.
Why is Raines not playing. He is obviously the best big man on our team. Does our coach not want to win? Talk about giving up on people, mayne this seperates JJ from being a coach and a spectator.
C’mon, Griff. I was simply suggesting that we continue to fill the seats in Cassell. Poor attendance is not going to help anything. Clearly there is a problem. Is it coaching? Is it recruiting? I’m not savvy enough to tell, but you can bet our basketball program will be one of the first orders of business for the new AD.
And there went the little sliver of interest I had in VT basketball this year. A loss to perennial doormat BC at home pretty much kills the rest of the season. We’ll be (deservedly) huge underdogs in every game from here on out. Only drama left is to see if we can avoid finishing dead last in the ACC again. Sigh.
The team looks more and more like a beaten mule after each game. At the beginning the season you saw more smiles, more pride, more camaraderie, more passion. Now the starters spend most of the time with grim faces, hung heads, and almost no passion on the court. The walk-on Donlon seems the only one to really still be excited to be a part of this Hokie basketball team. It’s getting harder to go out there and cheer on the guys each day when they don’t seem to be pumped up and ready to play. I could deal with a mostly losing season if the guys looked passionate and gave it all they got. But, at times it looks like they
would rather go back into the locker room and concede the loss! (Sorry, was typing on the laptop and my clumsy fingers submitted the form too soon.
Where are the Washington Generals when you need them?
Raines has gone from starter – to no minutes.
If we can not beat BC at home, it is going to be a long ACC Season!
We are a terrible basketball team, program, coach, etc……a timeout with 22.8 seconds left and the best we can do is Adam Smith and 1 on 1 ball for a bad shot to lose the game? Our offense looks just like it did when Seth was the head coach, i.e. 1 player dribbling the ball at the 3 point line until there is 5 seconds left on the shot clock and then we hoist up a bad shot!! And how is Raines all of the sudden not playing in games? VZ cannot pass, shoot (FT’s included), rebound, post up, etc…..JJ better enjoy his time as head coach this year because he will be gone after next year, maybe this year because I don’t think we will win 10 games this year!! Another thing, when will we learn to fight over the top of screens at the 3 pt line, for that reason and that reason alone JJ should be fired!! The next player who doesn’t fight through a screen at the three point line should be kicked off the team!! Hopefully our new AD will find us a REAL bball coach!!
12-21 FT shooting? Really?!? And how missed dunks did we have? Really no excuse losing this game.
There were several possessions where BC looked like a sharp passing offense, getting the ball to the open man for a good shot. I saw very few possessions like that for Tech. This team seems like a collection of talented players who don’t play together particularly well. I certainly hope this will improve with time but today a 4-11 team looked like it had an offensive identity and Tech did not.
No so sure they are that talented
Exactly. That is my big issue with Coach JJ. BC had less talent than VT but they ran an offense that got open looks. Our offense rarely created open shots and more likely created desperation shots as the clock ran down. That is coaching.
What in the world has happened to Devin Wilson’s FT shooting? He looked great early in the yr, today 2-8
For one thing Wilson does not bend his knees on his ft attempts. Maybe it bad technique or tired legs.
not expecting much from this team, but still disappointing. Hokie teams continue to lose to teams they should beat.