Virginia Tech basketball: Hokies fall to No. 4 Duke

The Virginia Tech Hokies have had some success against the Duke Blue Devils over the years in Blacksburg, so there was some excitement heading into Saturday’s game. Unfortunately, it wasn’t meant to be as the No. 4 Blue Devils defeated the Hokies 72-58.

Duke jumped ahead early and never trailed. After the game stayed within five points for the first five minutes, the Blue Devils took a 30-15 lead with around 6 minutes remaining in the first half and appeared to be running away with it. The lead would grow to 16 before halftime, but a late run saw the Hokies get it into single digits (40-31) before halftime.

A problem for Virginia Tech in the first 20 minutes was its defense. The Hokies allowed Duke to shoot 62% from the field. Tech was solid in the first, shooting 46% from the field, but just couldn’t get enough stops. The Hokies had no answer for freshman Cameron Boozer, arguably the nation’s best player.

Virginia Tech got more stops in the second half, at times making a run, but when it needed multiple consecutive stops to make it a game, the Hokies always fell short. Junior forward Amani Hansberry was outstanding, leading the Hokies with 20 points and making 4 of 5 from the 3-point line. The only other Hokies in double figures were familiar names, Ben Hammond (11) and Jailen Bedford (12).

There was a time in the second half where the Hokies were down six points with close to four minutes remaining when freshman Neoklis Avdalas beat a Duke defender off the dribble, and attempted a jumper from around 12 feet that barely got any rim. The Devils took advantage and rebuilt their lead.

It wasn’t like the Hokies didn’t have opportunities. In the final minutes, the Hokies missed six consecutive 3-point attempts, all open looks. The missed opportunities against a team as talented as Duke proved too much to overcome for Virginia Tech.

The loss dropped the Hokies to 16-7 on the season, 5-5 in ACC play. Tech is seventh in the ACC standings, one game out of fifth place, which North Carolina currently holds.

It was another rough day for Avdalas, who made only 1 of 8 shots from the field and scored five points. He also had only four assists. Avdalas even received boos from the crowd after his final miss.

Tech is off for a week before it travels to Raleigh to face N.C. State next Saturday. It kicks off a brutal four-game stretch that could make or break the Hokies’ NCAA Tournament hopes. Three of those four games are on the road and against the Wolfpack, Clemson, and Miami, all of which are ahead of them in the ACC standings.