Hokies Beat 'Hoos In Return To Cassell (Video Included)

By Brian Bartley
January 10, 2009

With Virginia Tech students still on break, there were many doubts as to whether Cassell Coliseum would be ready in full force for a visit from the Virginia Cavaliers on Saturday.  Although the Coliseum never reached full capacity, a raucous crowd arrived to watch the Virginia Tech Hokies grind out a tough 78-75 win over the Cavaliers.

"Its great to be home and I really appreciated our students and the people in the community driving in for the game," said Tech coach Seth Greenberg.  "It's important for us and it's important for our kids."

The Hokies came out fierce when J.T. Thompson knocked the opening tip down court and Malcolm Delaney scooped it up to score an easy lay-up.  On the next possession, A.D. Vassallo created space and drained a pull-up three-pointer to put the Hokies up 5-0 less than a minute into the game.

That lead quickly diminished, as UVa's freshman sensation, Sylven Landesberg, spurred the Cavaliers on the next two possessions.

Later in the half, Landesberg came up big again for the Hoos, scoring on another driving runner with just under 4:00 minutes left to put the Cavaliers up by two.

"We told our guys, you have to stay in front of him and get lower than him, and he still drives to the basket," said Greenberg.  "He's a good player; you're just not going to stop him."    

Fortunately for Tech, a late first half rally sparked by the shooting of Vassallo sent the Hokies into the locker room with a seven-point cushion, leading 40-33.

For the Hokies, Vassallo led all scorers with 15 points at the half, followed by Delaney with 13.  Virginia's Mike Scott and Landesberg both added 10 points. 

As the second half got underway, the Cavaliers seemed to come out with a greater sense of urgency.  By the first media timeout, they had already cut the Hokie lead to one.

Tech responded quickly though.  Fueled by a Delaney offensive explosion, Tech opened up a 49-41 lead with just over 13 minutes remaining in the game.

With Cassell rocking, and the Hokies leading, it felt as if the game was falling right into the hands of Greenberg and his team.  From that point forward, Tech did indeed control the contest, extending the lead to 15 points with around 7:00 minutes remaining.

As has been the case numerous times this season, the Hokies would yet again find themselves in the middle of a one-possession game with under a minute left.

"I thought we actually had the game in a good place," said Greenberg.  "All of the sudden it could go either way."

During the Cavaliers' furious comeback, Mustapha Farrakhan knocked down an astounding four three-pointers in less than five minutes, while the Hokies could only muster four points during the same span.

Then, with a minute left, Farrakhan delivered another dagger from the outside that cut the Hokie lead down to two points.

"You gotta give Farrakhan credit," said Greenberg.  "He made some killer shots."

Determined not to lose, Vassallo delivered a dagger of his own, knocking down a baseline turnaround with just :18 seconds left that put Tech up by four points.

"It was a big-time shot, late in the shot clock," said Virginia coach Dave Leitao. "Ultimately it carried them over the top."

Fittingly, it was also Vassallo who was able to convert on four consecutive free throws in the waning moments of the game to put the Cavaliers away for good.

"Vassallo I thought from start to finish kind of found openings that we didn't close up," said Leitao. "He made us pay for it...I don't just look at that shot, but how he was playing throughout the game.  There was only a time or two he wasn't comfortable."

For Vassallo, the confines of Cassell Coliseum have been very kind.  His 29-point performance against the Cavaliers on Saturday trails only his 30-point effort at home against Wisconsin back on December 1.

The Hokies' win against Virginia came like almost all of their other wins, exciting and close at the end.

"I thought it was a probably a typical Virginia-Virginia Tech game," Greenberg said. "Neither team was gonna quit, both teams were gonna fight back, and it was a game of runs."

The Hokies move to 10-5 (1-1), while the Cavaliers fall to 7-6 (1-1).

"Our league is just like any other league," Greenberg said.  "You're going to play a good team every night."

Up next for Virginia Tech is another home game against the University of Richmond on Wednesday.

When asked if he was worried that his squad might experience a let down against a mid-major school like Richmond, Greenberg was adamant that his team would come out prepared.

"It's not a trap game," said Greenberg, "it's a good game...they're our next game."

Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. and the game is not scheduled to be televised.

Game Notes:

-With the win, Virginia Tech has now beaten Virginia in three consecutive contests.  The last time Virginia won was in February of 2007.

-Since entering the ACC, Virginia Tech is now 5-4 against Virginia in conference play.

-Virginia Tech's record against Virginia moves to 13-2 inside Cassell Coliseum.

-With his two misses today, Malcolm Delaney snapped his streak of 40 consecutive made free throws.

-With the win today, Virginia Tech is now 29-32 under Seth Greenberg in games that have been decided by five-or-fewer points.  They move to 3-4 in such contests this season.

Video by Ryan Call