Virginia Tech was beaten by No. 19 UVA 65-39 in Charlottesville on Saturday afternoon. The Hokies dropped to 10-4 overall and 1-2 in the ACC with the loss, while the Hoos improved to 11-2 and 3-0.
Through three ACC games, nobody has been able to crack 50 points on the UVA defense, with UNC scoring just 47 and Syracuse managing only 34. The Hokies were right in the middle at 39, which was their worst offensive output since a loss to East Carolina way back in 1967. The Hoos rank No. 1 in the country in defensive efficiency.
Virginia Tech was just 4-of-25 (16%) from three-point range, with Landers Nolley making three of those four outside shots. The redshirt freshman led the team with 18 points, and scored 15 of his team’s 17 first half points, all consecutively. Fellow redshirt freshman Tyrece Radford scored the first two points of the game for the Hokies, and after that it was all Nolley in the first half. However, such a one-man show meant that Tech couldn’t manage much on the offensive end, and they found themselves trailing 30-17 at halftime.
Radford scored eight points for the Hokies, while nobody else managed more than four. UVA gave Virginia Tech center PJ Horne numerous open looks from three-point range, but the junior was 0-of-9 from the outside despite coming into the game shooting 43% on the season. Horne’s tough shooting night, plus Kihei Clark’s one-on-one victory over Wabissa Bede, were the key factors in the blowout loss. Clark had 18 points and six assists, while Bede has no points and only two assists.
Overall, the Hokies shot just 13-of-48 (27.1%) from the field, while the Hoos were 25-of-54 (46.3%) from the field and 7-of-21 (33.3%) from the outside. Rebounds were 38-25 in UVA’s favor, though much of that was because of the disparity in missed shots. Tech had 13 turnovers to the Hoos’ 11.
Virginia Tech returns to action on Tuesday, January 7 when they face Syracuse in the Carrier Dome. Tipoff is scheduled for 9pm, and the game will be televised by The ACC Network.