Virginia Tech (18-10, 7-8 ACC) took care of business on Senior Day against Wake Forest (14-13,5-9 ACC) 82-63 to split the season series and add to their late-season resume. It was a much-needed win after falling in their last two contests, against Florida State and Miami.
The Hokies, who turned the ball over 19 times in Winston Salem last month, committed just five turnovers on the day and totaled 19 assists. Six Virginia Tech players scored in double figures: Hansberry (13), Avdalas (17,) Lawal (18), Bedford (10), Hammond (12), and Gurdak (10). Virginia Tech shot 51% from the field as a team, out-rebounded Wake Forest 37-34, and forced seven turnovers.
“The ball is meant to be shared, and when people are turning down good shots, and giving it to a teammate who has a great shot and we had a number of those,” said Hokies' head coach Mike Young about the playmaking ability from his team.
Seven of the Hokies' assists came from Neoklis Avdalas, who had a reinvigorated game, shooting 6-for-14 (42%) from the field, including four threes. The Demon Deacons had a tough task in taking away his options, leading to Avdalas taking advantage in the second go-around.
“He looked like Neo, how he [was] getting downhill. He attacked the rim early in the first half, [and] his shot selection was very good,” Young said. “He was a big league player today.”
To start the game, the Demon Deacons scored 12 of their first 14 points off of open corner threes from four different players. Juke Harris, Tre’Von Spillers, Myles Colvin, and Cooper Schwieger took advantage of Tech’s lax perimeter defense early, but their opportunities were few and far between moving forward. Wake Forest missed its next 14 three-point attempts in the half. After making their first few long balls early in the game, the Demon Deacons went just 2-for-26 the rest of the way, and finished the game 6-30 (20%) from three-point range. Virginia Tech's defense limited Wake Forest to shooting 23-61 (38%) from the floor on the day.
Wake Forest's Nate Calmese, who nailed the game-winner against the Hokies in January, likely was sidelined an ankle injury. Consequently, the Demon Deacons appeared to have lost some of their offensive spark. Juke Harris had 16 points while shooting 7-for-17 from the field and 2-for-10 from beyond the arc. Outside of Harris, Spillers and Schwieger scored in double-digits, but Wake Forest’s poor shooting made it hard for them to keep up.
Virginia Tech matched with treys of its own, starting with an Avdalas three, followed by Tobi Lawal, Ben Hammond, and Jailen Bedford, all knocking down one of their own. The Hokies' hot shooting contributed to a 15-4 run to give them a 43-33 lead that they would carry into halftime.
Early in the second half it was a back-and-forth affair, in which the Demon Deacons were able to cut the deficit to seven. That would be the closest margin between the two teams for the rest of the game, as the Hokies rattled off three straight three-pointers and a layup by Christian Gurdak to cap an 11-0 run.
The Hokies had one of their better shooting performances from beyond the arc as of late, shooting 11-28 (39%), which enabled them the opportunity to pull away.
For the rest of the game, the Hokies cruised to their first comfortable win in the last few weeks.
The final four points for Virginia Tech fittingly came from Tobi Lawal, who was honored before the game for Senior Day. In addition to his 17 points on 7-for-11 shooting (64%), he brought down and nine rebounds.
This win certainly won't hurt the Hokies' NCAA tournament chances, but it won't move the needle much either, as they still sit on bubble looking in at the projected field.
Virginia Tech has a week of rest and before hitting the road to Chapel Hill to take on No. 16 North Carolina (21-6, 9-5 ACC) Saturday at 8:30 p.m. The Tar Heels will be missing their star player Caleb Wilson, so this will be another chance for the Hokies to build wins against another Quad 1 team as the regular season winds down.
