Coming into Virginia Tech’s first round NCAA Tournament game against Marshall, it seemed like all the headlines surrounding the program were about anything but the matchup. With three-time ACC Player of the Year Liz Kitley being ruled out for March Madness the day prior due to a torn ACL and rumors swirling about Kenny Brooks being a top candidate for the Kentucky head coaching position, it would have been easy for the Hokies to let those things distract them.
But that isn’t the kind of program Brooks has built in Blacksburg. From top to bottom, Tech showed remarkable poise in their 43-point victory over the Thundering Herd to advance to Sunday's second round.
“That was the first thing I said when I walked in there, the poise,” Kenny Brooks said postgame. “We wanted to be poised and so I thought we won out on that and therefore, that's why we were able to come away with a great win."
Travel back in time to two weeks ago, and Virginia Tech didn’t seem like the same confident and poised team they had been all season long in Greensboro for the ACC Tournament. Granted, the Hokies were adjusting to life without Kitley.
However, with ample time to rest, recover and prepare for the Big Dance, the Hokies showed out big in front of a roaring crowd in Cassell Coliseum.
“In the ACC Tournament we had one actual day to prepare. Having this much time to prepare helped us a lot. It helped me a lot to get into a rhythm and get us into a flow.” Clara Strack said postgame in the locker room.
The Hokies crushed the Herd in all facets of the game. Tech shot 54% to Marshall's 24%, had five scorers crack double figures and went on a 36-9 run in the third quarter. The dominance from the Hokies came in large part from their preparation in the days prior.
“It’s from our preparation. We didn’t play as well in the ACC Tournament as we wanted to. We came back here and focused on ourselves, had a good week of practice and created confidence that wasn’t there in the tournament (ACC).” Carleigh Wenzel said postgame in the locker room.
All told, Marshall has four players on their roster at 6’0 tall or above. On the other hand, Virginia Tech has eight on their roster. The size mismatch on paper certainly worked itself out on the court in practice for the Hokies.
Straight from the get-go, Tech fed Clara Strack, who made her first career start Friday afternoon. The freshman connected on three-straight baskets before the game’s first media timeout and her early six points got Tech going on a 13-0 run early into the game.
“We knew we had a big size advantage. We had talked about that in practice all week. It was a really big emphasis for us.” Strack said.
As the game went on, the Hokies carried an all gas and no breaks type of mentality that catapulted them into a double-digit advantage for the entire second half. Matilda Ekh connected on a pair of three pointers in the first two minutes that boosted her into double figures, a mark she hadn’t hit since February 29th vs. Notre Dame.
“Those shots felt good. I haven’t been playing great lately so seeing that first shot and then others later go in was a great feeling.” Matilda Ekh said postgame in the locker room.
Not only had Ekh not cracked double figures since late February, she had been held scoreless in each of her past three outings since then. Ekh finished with a game high 21 points and five made three pointers in the contest.
“No matter if I miss or make, think about the next one. No matter if I’m 0-4 or 4-4, I still need to have that confidence in my shot.” Ekh said.
While Ekh’s shooting brilliance and Strack’s interior presence with 17 points on 7-7 shooting were the headline performances, Carleigh Wenzel made a major impact on the floor for the Hokies as well. Wenzel’s control as a ball handler against Marshall’s press was paramount in Tech’s impressive offensive output as she totaled 12 points and seven assists on the night.
“We had confidence in each other. Understanding we can all bring the ball up the floor and it’s not just Georgia and not just me.” Wenzel said.
In Marshall’s last game against James Madison in the Sun Belt Tournament Championship, the Herd forced 39 turnovers on the Dukes. Tech finished with 15 turnovers, a high mark in some games but quite good against a Marshall that forces 24.5 turnovers per game.
In the process, the Hokies were able to crack through the press enough to shoot 64% from the floor for the first three quarters of the game.
“Not rushing our shots and taking what was given to us. There were times where we came down and didn’t rush a shot and took our time. That made a big difference for us.” Wenzel added.
“We knew we needed to break the press. Once we did, we knew we could play five on five and we had a big size advantage and could get the shots we wanted.” Ekh said.
Before Friday, the trio of Strack, Wenzel and Ekh had played in a combined zero NCAA Tournament games. Their first one turned out to be a roaring success with the trio combining for 50 points, 14 rebounds and nine assists in the Hokies' round one victory over Marshall.
More importantly, the way the role players stepped up showcased how strong Tech’s culture is as a program. Even through noise and adversity, the Hokies under Kenny Brooks can step up when pressure is put on them.
That's good sign moving forward for Virginia Tech as the Hokies prepare to take on Baylor in Cassell Coliseum on Sunday for a spot in the Sweet 16.
