Virginia Tech put together one of their best halves of the season tonight going up 52-33 at halftime on their way to a dominant 85-70 victory over Syracuse to improve to 13-8 on the season including 3-7 in ACC play.
Grant Basile was the biggest star of the night leading the Hokies with 25 points plus 8 rebounds and 5 assists while Hunter Cattoor added 20 points plus 8 assists and 3 rebounds. Justyn Mutts came close to his second career triple-double finishing with 11 points, 12 rebounds, and 8 assists while MJ Collins had another strong game with 11 points plus 2 steals and 1 rebound.
1. Tech's Three-Point Shooting is Hitting Its Stride
Virginia Tech's three-point shooting slump appears to be a thing of the past as the return of Hunter Cattoor, the rise of MJ Collins, and better shooting from more open shots as a whole has led to a shooting turnaround for the Hokies.
Tech has made at least 40% of their threes in three of their past four games going 12-27 (44.4%) against UVA, 10-19 (52.6%) against Duke, and 13-32 (40.6%) tonight against Syracuse.
Hunter Cattoor has been a big part of that having another strong night this evening as he went 6-10 from three-point range this evening on his way to having 20 points. This comes after Cattoor went 3-6 against UVA from three-point range and 5-10 from behind the arc against Duke as he continues to be in top form from deep.
Not only is Cattoor making shots but his presence and movement off the ball is forcing opponents to guard him more tightly and creating more space for others all around. While Tech's issues without him weren't clearly due to his absence, the value of his presence has been proven to be quite significant given how Tech's three-point shooting surge has come in the aftermath of his return.
MJ Collins has also been a big part of it playing with a whole lot of confidence and becoming a big time three-point threat going 8-12 from deep in his past four games. Tech's shooting across the board has been better from deep with better quality shots with Cattoor adding some other reasons as to why Tech has been shooting it better not mentioning himself (though he undoubtedly deserves plenty of personal credit even if he humbly won't take it).
"I think we're just moving the ball more, we're screening better, we got better motion offense which is giving us better opportunities and more open shots. I think we've been really trying to emphasize in practice moving the ball, taking a great shot over a good shot, and screening bodies; the more you screen for others, the more open you're going to be. So I think us relying on that and focusing on that has helped our shooting percentages," Cattoor said.
Add in Tech playing basketball like they know how to plus having their best three-point shooter healthy again in Hunter Cattoor along with MJ Collins hitting his stride and you have a winning combination for Tech's offense hitting its three-point stride to go with a strong post game from Justyn Mutts and Grant Basile.
2. Modern Basketball at Its Finest in the First Half
The analytical influence on modern basketball has led to an embrace of a style where in an ideal world, all your shots are either from inside the paint or three-point range. Tech's impressive offensive first half was the perfect example of what the analytics say is possible.
All but 3 of Tech's 52 first half points came from outside of the paint or three-point range (all 3 of which came off a John Camden baseline mid-range shot plus a free throw from Camden).
For the Hokies, it wasn't a point of emphasis but simply how to best break the zone with the looks that they got from the Orange in the eyes of head coach Mike Young.
"I can't say it was a point of emphasis don't give me any credit. They dictate it in how it play. You've heard me say it before, the thing (Syracuse's zone) breathes. You come out of a media timeout and there's (Joe) Girard and (Judah) Mintz up above the arc and then it's back below and really a concerted effort to keep it out of the high post. We wanted to space Basile some, that was helpful. His first three was off of that action, we caught (Chris) Bell, I don't think Bell knew that he'd gotten under him, we got a pass down there to the corner. Our first three was Grant's down there. That's just how it played out," Young said.
The Syracuse zone may have dictated that, but part of that is players executing well to create those good looks and know where they need to be, and part of that coaching to come up with the right gameplan and make sure his players know exactly what they do.
You can't do it that well without a mixture of everything being on point and though Mike Young may not want any credit for it, he deserves a little bit of it as do his players for executing well.
3. The Luxury of Justyn Mutts' Passing
When you take on the zone, you need someone who can work from the free throw line and move the basketball at a high level to best break it apart. You ideally want to be able to do that without having to use your point guard there.
Tech has a great luxury in that regard to have a 6'7'' forward who is a high level passer in Justyn Mutts.
That showed today as Mutts had 8 assists to go with his 11 points and 12 rebounds plus some other passes that were close to being (and the full-court pass to Basile that in my mind should have been an assist at first glance). You can not like some of the turnovers Mutts has but he consistently produces more good than bad and is a net positive in a big way.
That was clear tonight with Mutts taking on the critical role of offensive decision maker/quarterback working at the free-throw line. Again and again, Mutts picked it apart with his passing with Mike Young knowing that what he has in Mutts as a passer is a luxury especially against the Syracuse zone.
"I can't imagine a better one. He had a triple-double in here against the Cuse last year. We needed a great Justyn Mutts and he's typically great," Young said. "Justyn Mutts was great tonight. He was a special man."
Mutts may not have been anywhere near being the leading scorer tonight, but he may have been the player of the game in some regards for what he did making the key passes again and again from the free-throw line against the Syracuse zone.
4. MJ Collins Continues to Play at a High Level
MJ Collins has found his form to say the least in the middle of ACC play and is starting to play at an extremely high level with a confidence reflecting his surge.
Foul trouble kept Collins quiet in the second half but he played well overall with 11 points on 4-6 shooting from the field including 3-5 from three-point range plus 2 steals and an offensive rebound on a tip-in.
While Collins has largely been known for what he can do attacking the rim, the energy that he brings, and some of the defense that he has shown including tonight; his three-point shooting has come along lately. Over the past 4 games now, Collins is shooting 8-12 from three-point range becoming another dynamic threat from deep for the Hokies that teams have to be prepared for.
Hunter Cattoor feels that Collins' confidence is a main reason why he's playing better lately.
"His confidence, he works hard and he believes in the work that he's put in. Each day, you can tell he's going out there, he'll get a shot, you might get a split second and he's shooting that three with confidence. Earlier in the season, he might have had that and hesitated. So it's good to see him out there playing with confidence and being himself," Cattoor said.
We'll have more from Justyn Mutts, Mike Young, and more on the level of confidence that Collins is playing with, but that confidence boost that we've seen has elevated his game to a high level to say the least.
5. Tech Contains Joe Girard and Jesse Edwards
Syracuse may have its deepest team in recent memory with loads of talented young players, but two veterans remain their most important players in Joe Girard and Jesse Edwards. Part of why this game wasn't close was because what the Hokies did defensively to take Girard and Edwards out of this game.
Joe Girard was a non-factor in this game being held to only 7 points on 2-8 shooting while Edwards had only 9 points and 5 rebounds playing only 24 minutes due to foul trouble. The 16 combined points from Girard and Edwards is the second fewest the duo have scored in a game this season with only the 9 combined points they had in their loss to Illinois being fewer.
Mike Young was particularly pleased with what the Hokies did defending Girard and had this to say about what Tech knew they would be facing with Girard and what they would have to defend well to slow him down.
"We did not let Joe curl which he wants to do to get in the lane and he's going to shot fake, shot fake, twist, get around you, get fouled. Joe has to score for them, he has to. We have a couple that have to score for us. To limit him to 7 points is one hell of a defensive effort," Young said.
Yes, Judah Mintz had 21 points but to hold Syracuse' 2 other players averaging double figures (and 31 between the 2 at that) to a combined 16 points is impressive to say the least and a reason why this was a 15-point victory rather than a full-on shootout both ways.
6. Grant Basile Continues to be a Force in the Post Offensively
Grant Basile's biggest strength is his refinement as an offensive player who can score at the glass with finesse or physicality, or make a big three-point shot. While the threes weren't falling tonight as much, his physicality and IQ showed in his production inside the paint this evening.
Basile had his 25 points on 11-23 shooting from the field including an efficient 9-14 from inside the arc. This comes after Basile was the biggest star over the course of the game in the win over Duke with 24 points on an even more efficient 10-15 from the field. That's now three-straight games where he's shot at least 50% from the field and 4 of his last 5 which is especially good for a stretch 5 who takes threes at the volume he does.
Tonight was a great example of the high IQ and great refinement to go with some physicality that Basile plays with. He worked in the important baseline and had plenty of decisions to make as to whether cut to the basket from the mid-range or step back behind the arc especially once Justyn Mutts got it. Again and again, Basile made great decisions with some smart timing added in to help even more.
Basile credited his play in that baseline role to the preparation by the coaching staff, the passing of Justyn Mutts, and his personal feel for the zone defense.
"Our coaches did a really good job finding some things on film that we thought we could exploit. So they were giving me the call during the game. We were feeling it out. Justyn did such a great job passing it out of the high post that it was a feel thing (from there)," Basile said.
Tonight was another great example of Grant Basile showing off how skilled of a basketball player that he is with the Wright State transfer starting to hit his stride in ACC play after putting up 49 points in two games this week.
7. John Camden With a Nice Game
John Camden hasn't played much but with Darius Maddox out due to a family matter this evening, Camden was called upon with the Hokies only having three available scholarship guards. Combine that with Sean Pedulla and MJ Collins dealing with foul trouble throughout the game and that led to an expanded role for Camden playing a career high 27 minutes.
Camden stepped up with maybe his best performance as a Hokie with 8 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists. While he wasn't great defensively, he was an effective threat on the offensive end of the floor going 3-8 from the field though his 1-5 from three-point range did leave something to be desired.
For Camden, it's been about staying ready for an opportunity like this against a unique Syracuse zone on a team that is full of players who can make an impact in any game.
"The mindset has just been 'stay ready' and my coaches have harped on that. It's just been a 'next man up', we have a lot of capable guys in our locker room and I think all of us can make an impact at any given moment. I think that's something that's really special about this team," Camden said.
We haven't seen much of John Camden since those first few games outside of when Hunter Cattoor was out, but with Darius Maddox out due to family matters, Camden stepped up and provided a boost off the bench.
