For the second straight game, the Hokies fell behind early and were never truly in the game, this time losing by 26 points to byu, 97-71.

The following line will tell you all you need to know: walk-on Christian Beyer, a sophomore from New Bern, N.C., played 23 minutes, scored a career-high 9 points, and had a team-high 11 rebounds, also a career-best.

Senior guard Erick Green failed to score at least 20 points for the first time this season, meaning he as not able to set a new Virginia Tech record of 13 consecutive games with at least 20 points. The nation’s leading scorer coming into the game, finished with 12.

Jerell Eddie (pretty sure I’ve been spelling his name with two Rs Ls since he got here, sorry ’bout that Jerell) led the Hokies with 17 points. Robert Brown had 13 points.

Cadarian Raines continues to struggle. Mightily. For the third time in the last five games, he scored zero points. During that five game stretch, he’s scored a total of 18 points and committed 17 personal fouls. Not a good ratio.

The cougars got out to a quick 6-0 start behind two three pointers by Tyler Haws, who had a career day against Tech, scoring 42 points. In the first half, alone, Haws had 29 points. The Hokies, as a team, had 31.

As I watched the first half, I recalled what Niemo wrote in his game preview. Let us go back in time, shall we?

One good thing is byu is not a great 3-point shooting team (I know, I know, I said that against wvu and bradley and they torched us from deep). But, can that really keep happening?

To answer Niemo’s question, yes. As a team, the cougs shot 50 percent from behind the arc in the first half (7 of 14). Haws alone was 6-for-7. byu cooled off in the second half, going 0-for-5, but they led by as many as 30, so there was no need to shoot.

Also, Niemo is hereby banned from mentioning opponents abysmal three-point shooting in game previews.

This was the worst game the Hokies have played in quite some time. A lot of that was the opponent, a team that’s been to six straight NCAA tournament.

But this Hokies’ team that has lost three of its last four games is not the same team that beat oklahoma state and iowa. They are exactly the team we thought they’d be at the beginning of the season – a team with only seven scholarship players, little depth, an unproven coach, and only one dependable player, Erick Green.

How did they beat the cowpokes and hawkeyes? Probably because they didn’t know they weren’t supposed to be any good and both opponents took the undermanned Hokies lightly.

Now, with nearly half a season under their belts, opponents know that VT is not that good and today we saw a good team effectively take Green out of the game and when he’s out of the game, no one else was able to step up.

It’s still too early to pass judgement on JJ, but this team looks like and is playing like his predecessor’s teams; stagnant on offense and lackadaisical on defense.

Hey, the Hokies have a better winning percentage than the cougars! So you’re sayin’ there’s a chance! Well, yes and no.

This game is not a good match-up for the Hokies in many ways. First, it is in Utah. And Frank, the story is Utah. byu is 8-0 in their home state (although all eight were at home, not in Salt Lake).

Next, byu is a solid program. They’ve made the Big Dance six years in a row and are a top 40 RPI team this year despite their four losses. How? Their four losses are to RPI #43 baylor, #55 iowa state, #74 notre dame, and #130 florida state. They’ve beaten four teams in the top 120 of the RPI (VT has beaten just two). And they’ve played the 13th toughest schedule in the land.

Third, they have 6’9″ senior Brandon Davies. He had 17 last year at VT and is averaging 20 ppg, 8.1 rpg, 2.7 apg, 1.4 steals, and 1.8 blocks. He is a real stat stuffer. He has tremendous low post moves and gets to the line a lot, which could put the depleted Hokies in foul trouble. Quite frankly, the Hokies can’t handle him alone. They will have to double him despite the disaster that was colorado state. The key will be releasing the double team if he drifts out from the basket (I’m fine giving Davies 16-foot jumpers — he can make them but this takes him away from the hoop in case of a miss and is a lower percentage shot) and rotating better than VT did against the rams. Tech should NOT double 6’11″ Nate Austin in the post. He’s not a scoring threat (3.9 ppg and just 3.6 shots per game).

One good thing is byu is not a great 3-point shooting team (I know, I know, I said that against wvu and bradley and they torched us from deep). But, can that really keep happening? Third times the charm? Maybe, if Tech doesn’t rotate well and play good help defense. The Hokies will need to double Davies, have the oppo-side defender drop down to pick up the other big, and then rotate well with the two remaining perimeter defenders to avoid giving up wide open 3s and at least get a hand in byu’s face. Quite frankly, VT quit in the 2nd half Sunday, tired or not, they quit.

Another good thing is the cougars do like to push the ball. Don’t think just because they are a bunch of mormons (well, not all of them) that they’ll slow the pace. They have the 13th fastest tempo in the nation. Even on makes they’ll inbound the ball quickly and push it up the floor, trying to beat you up the court in transition. Tech must get back on makes or misses and look to push the ball themselves. Hopefully the altitude won’t be a factor and take the wind out of the Hokies.

The fact byu likes to run should help the Hokies. Let’s face it. VT’s offense has been offensive… smelling… of late. Getting more transition opportunities would be a huge plus. Guys like Brown and Eddie who have been in horrible slumps of late could get some confidence if they can get some easy early buckets. And JvZ is great at cleaning up junk on the glass for dunks or putbacks. The problem is Davies is a great shot-blocker if he gets back in time.

Davies is a great rebounder and Haws, a 6’5″ guard, also does a nice job on the offensive glass. But this is an average rebounding team. They only have two guys over 6’7″ that play significant minutes, so they don’t have their usual stable of tall mormons. Perhaps the Hokies will actually show some signs of life in the rebounding game and hold their opponent to a low Offensive Rebound %. Tech has allowed their opponents an average of 16 offensive rebounds per game over the last 5 games.

Also, byu played Thursday night at home against northern arizona (an 84-54 win behind 27/10 from Davies). That means they’ll only have about 41 hours between games. They don’t have a deep bench (they’ll only play around 7 or 8 guys significant minutes), so maybe the cougars will have tired legs on Saturday instead of the Hokies.

Plus, Tech got a much needed break after that woodshed blowout in Vegas. They got a chance to put that behind them with Christmas, and I’m sure are hungry to get back out there and play better, and finish the out of conference schedule on a high note.

The two teams are pretty even in most other stats including FG%, FT%, and Rebounding. As you see below, their Adjusted Offensive numbers are pretty even (~105 points per 100 possessions). The problem is that is trending WAY down for the Hokies (they were #3 in the nation with 109.0/100 going into wvu). And Tech’s Adjusted Defensive numbers are trending up (from 96.9/100 going into wvu to 99.7/100 in this game). But it is time to stop the bleeding and get back to knocking down 3s, pushing the ball, and playing what we thought was Hokie basketball. Let’s turn the calendar back to November.

Expect byu to use some full court man-to-man defense, and they’ll also run some zone in the half court. They’ll give the Hokies different looks which will challenge Tech to read and attack the defenses.

FYI: Erick Green, the nation’s leading scorer, will look to set a VT record with his 13th straight 20+ point game. Here’s hoping someone else gets close to 20 with him.

Note: the graphic below does NOT include stats from byu’s game on Thursday.

The Hokies fall to 1-5 in 2012.  Here are your highlights from the loss Wednesday night at the Cassell (Tech’s 3rd straight loss at home)…

Boxscore

Wow, what a rollercoaster game that was. The Hokies started the game 0/16 from field, falling behind by 12 early, battled back to go up 6 in the 2nd half, fell behind by 4 with 20 seconds left, but still had an Erick Green shot at the end to tie the game (blocked) and a 3-pointer by Robert Brown to win it at the buzzer (off the mark). Virginia Tech falls to 1-5 in 2012, with four of those losses by 4 points or less, and in three of which Tech had a shot to tie or win in the final 10 seconds.

This marks Tech’s third straight loss at home, the first time that’s happened since 2008-09 when VT lost to fsu, duke, and unc in a row late in the season.

The story of the game was free throw shooting. In a tightly called game, which this was, you have to make your FTs. Tech was the better team coming in, and were at home, but byu just could not miss. They finished 21/24 (88%) from the line, while VT went 15/23 (65%). There’s your difference. Davies and Hartsock were a combined 18/20 from the line, and those are their bigs!

This game started out uglier than a Proactiv before video. I mentioned the Hokies started 0-16 from the field. byu wasn’t doing much better, starting 2/10. But as they got going the Hokies kept missing. Tech did not make their 1st field goal until the 10:20 mark of the 1st half. VT trailed 13-1 before that make.

Virginia Tech did improve after that, hitting 8/15 the rest of the half. Tech used a 9-0 to turn a 15-3 deficit into a manageable 15-12 margin with 6:40 left in the 1st half. VT fell back behind by 10 at 27-17 but back-to-back 3-pointers by Eddie and Hudson got the Hokies within 2. byu went into the half up 29-25.

The Hokies were already thin at guard with Marquis Rankin out with an illness. That further became an issue when Erick Green picked up his 3rd foul with 4:39 left in the half. Dorenzo was forced to play point and committed a couple of turnovers, leading to 9 first half giveaways for Tech. Green had 0 points at the half while Brandon Davies had 12 on 8/8 FTs for byu.

Tech exploded offensively in the second half, attacking the rim. They were in the double bonus by the halfway mark of the half. Tech shot 64% for the 2nd half and jumped to a 45-39 lead with Davies on the bench with 4 fouls for the cougars.

But Noah Hartsock, byu’s leading scorer, took over the game. He scored 16 2nd half points (22 overall to lead byu) and was just dominate in getting byu back in the game. The cougars went on an 11-0 run with Davies on the bench to turn that 45-39 deficit into a 50-45 lead.

The Hokies battled back to tie the game at 55 on a Zo jumper. The teams would trade baskets after that for a while. VT went ahead 59-57 with 4:20 to play on a Green layup, but byu seemed to control the game after that.

The shot of the game was a 3-pointer by Brock Zylstra with 26 seconds left to break a 66-66 tie. It was Brock’s only points of the game.

Hudson turned the ball over with 20 seconds left and Anson Winder put byu up 4 with 15 seconds to go. Green easily drove and scored with 11 seconds to go to make it 70-68 cougars. Tech forced a turnover on the inbounds (it actually went off VT but we were due a call). That gave the Hokies the ball out of bounds with 10 seconds to go. VT launched a pass into the backcourt that was nearly picked off. Green ran it up court, drove inside, had his layup blocked, gathered the loose ball, kicked it to Eddie in the corner, but he was off balance so he threw it to Robert Brown at the left wing. Brown had a good look, but he was fading away slightly and was out at NBA range. The shot clanked off the rim and Tech had another devastating defeat.

Hudson paced the Hokies again, with 14 points off the bench. Davila and Eddie each had 12, while Erick Green scored 11 extending his double-digit point streak to 21.

byu had 22 by Hartsock and 17 by Davies (their two main low post players). VT just could not handle their bigs inside. byu started 1/14 from behind the arc (just like uva), but unlike the hoos, they hit 4/9 down the stretch and that helped them win.

Tech, who had 10 offensive rebounds in the 1st half, had just 1 in the 2nd.

Not to pick on Dorian Finney-Smith, but Doe Doe put up another no no. The kid went 0/8 from the field tonight, including a missed dunk. Here are his numbers in 2012:

• wake – 0 (0/1)
• fsu – 9 (4/9)
• bc – 0 (0/4)
• unc – 2 (0/5)
• uva – 0 (0/1)
• byu – 0 (0/8)
• That’s 11 points in 6 games, going 4/28 from the field.

But hats off to Jarell Eddie – he grabbed a career high 14 rebounds to go with his 12 points, his first career double-double. He now has 20 points and 24 rebounds in the last two games.

Well, congrats to all you cougar fans out there. Have a victory Scotch on me… Well, go enjoy whatever it is you do.

Tech heads to maryland for their fourth straight ACC weekend road game (total BS!) on Saturday afternoon.

SCORES AT THE MEDIA TIMEOUTS:

1st Half:

• Under 16: byu 4-0
• U12: byu 11-1
• U8: byu 15-8
• U4: byu 23-15

HALF: byu 29-25

2nd half:

• U16: byu 34-33
• U12: VT 43-39
• U8: byu 50-47
• U4: Tied at 62

Spread: VT by 2.

The Hokies go on a cougar hunt Wednesday night in the Cassell, hoping to knock off the byu cougars in Tech’s final out of conference game of the regular season.  Tech is 11-3 away from the ACC, and had won six in a row to close out 2011.

byu is coming off a 32-5 season that saw them make the Sweet 16, losing to florida in overtime.  But All-American Jimmer Fredette, who was open from the time he walked in the arena, is gone, averaging 7.6 ppg for Sacramento in the NBA.  Their second leading scorer, Jackson Emery, is also gone.

This year 6’8″ senior Noah Hartsock has really stepped up his game, up from 8.5 ppg last year to 17.5 this year.  He’s shooting 58% from the field and can tear it up down low, or with a nice midrange shot.  Brandon Davies (their third leading scorer last year), Matt Carlino (their PG and leading assist man this year), and Charles Abouo all average between 11.5 and 14.1 ppg.  The final starter, wing Brock Zlystra, averages 9.0.  They score a lot and will push the ball, averaging 80 ppg.  But they don’t get much off their bench, especially with Stephen Rogers battling injuries.  They also shoot a lot of 3-pointers, averaging 7.4 makes per game.  They have eight players that average more than one 3-point attempt per game (VT has just five with more than nine attempts).  Let’s hope they come out uva-cold from deep.

byu, as always, has good size (see below for more on that).  The Hokies will have to battle on the boards.  Tech’s allowed 32 offensive rebounds in their last two games while grabbing just 15 themselves.  byu has not been a great offensive rebounding team this year, despite their size.  But they are in the top 10 in the nation at defensive rebounding, so the Hokies have their work cut out for them trying to get second chances.

Neither team has a big time win this season.  Both teams are 0-for against top 50 RPI teams* (VT is 0-5, byu is 0-3).  But both teams are undefeated against teams ranked 51-100.  (VT 3-0, byu 4-0).  Well, guess what – both teams are ranked between 51-100 (VT at 68, byu at 56).  So something has gotta give there.

*VT’s win over uva knocked the hoos out of the top 50 in the RPI.

SERIES: First ever meeting

STARTERS:

The cougars always have great size… think about it, who are they competing with?  For members of the LDS Church, the answer is no one.  So they get the best and biggest Mormon players in the land and world.

STATS:

BORING FACTS ABOUT brigham young: