In ACC basketball, there are going to be ups and downs. There are going to be
good wins, and sometimes there are going to be bad losses. Some games are going
to be better than others, and we have to accept that. Sometimes it’s more
important how you win, or how you lose. My biggest problem with Saturday’s game
at UVA is that I didn’t like how the Hokies lost.

In fact, I didn’t like the way the Hokies lost either game to the Hoos this
year. In the December meeting, UVA came into Blacksburg and showed more energy
than the Hokies from the opening tip. They jumped out to a 16 point lead before
Tech started playing with energy. Tech made it a game down the stretch, but they
lost by three. Had they not waited until the second half of the game to match
UVA’s energy, they would have won.

On Saturday, Tech fell down by 15 points with 12 minutes remaining. Malcolm
Delaney tossed his headband off in frustration, and the Hokies finally started
getting more active defensively. Their energy went up three levels, and they
were able to quickly cut the lead to three points. Just like the December
meeting though, it was too little and too late.

This is mid-February, and as usual, the Hokies find themselves on the bubble.
I don’t care what Seth Davis and Joe Lunardi say right now. Virginia Tech is a
bubble team. At this point, you’d think that this group of players would
understand what it means to play with a sense of urgency in mid-February.

...