Dream week for the Hokies. Got Villanova to play them last minute, then beat the Wildcats
College Basketball Teams of the Week – Week 1 (November 25-29, 2020)
Virginia Tech – A ton of bricks hitting me unsuspectedly. That’s what it felt like after the Hokies took down Villanova, 81-73, in overtime on Saturday evening and I suddenly realized how capable this Hokies team is of having a big season. It felt this way because I did not have them in the preseason bracket or very close to it, despite picking V-Tech to be my darkhorse ACC team. Even more impressive, before this week started the Hokies were only supposed to play Radford in the opener and South Florida at the Mohegan Sun on Sunday. That all changed when Mike Young and Villanova HC Jay Wright got on the phone late on Thursday evening, and struck a deal to have the Hokies arrive at Connecticut’s Mohegan Sun Casino a day early, to make this game happen. Both schools were impacted by Temple shutting down their program, and the game was a fit on both sides.
In the Radford opener, Virginia Tech struggled most of the first half until a 12-2 run sparked the Hokies into the lead for good. Radford hung around in the second half for a while, but the Hokies left Blacksburg with a 77-62 season opening victory. It truthfully wasn’t the kind of win that left you thinking they would battle Villanova tooth and nail. Yet, Virginia Tech and Villanova indeed battled hard on Saturday night. The Hokies took the lead at 64-62 with 1.3 seconds remaining on a traditional three-point play by Keve Aluma, who scored on a beautiful assist from Cartier Diarra, and then unintentionally made his free throw. Villanova’s Justin Moore then drew a charge on Justyn Mutts on the inbounds play and Moore’s two made free throws sent the game into overtime tied at 64. Mutts made up for that mistake by scoring the first five points in extra time and the Hokies never relinquished the lead, outscoring the Wildcats 17-9 in the extra frame en route to a 87-79 major victory. Villanova was a preseason #2 seed and are the favorites to win the Big East. Hokies had more business to handle this week, as the took on the South Florida Bulls on Sunday evening. The Hokies finished off a perfect 3-0 week by beating USF, 76-58, behind 26 points from Aluma and 25 from Tyrece Radford.
Richmond – Let’s not forget how the Richmond Spiders finished the 2019-20 season. From February 1st through the abrupt ending of the season, the Spiders tore apart A-10 competition by going 9-1 and playing their way back inside the NCAA Tournament bubble. This preseason, Richmond received well-deserved hype and brought back the core of their roster, led by Jacob Gilyard, Blake Francis, and Grant Golden. Then a setback occurred with the loss of Nick Sherod with an ACL tear for the season, however Richmond still possessed the depth needed for an A-10 Title run this year.
That brings us to the start of this season, where Richmond joined the four-team Kentucky event in a round-robin format. The Spiders opened later than expected after Detroit Mercy was a late exit from the event, due to Covid-19 concerns. Spiders would ultimately be left with two games, Morehead State and Kentucky. Richmond cruised to an 82-64 vicotry against the Eagles in the opener, led by Nathan Cayo’s 23 points and Tyler Burton’s 12 rebounds. Then the big test came on Sunday against hosts, Kentucky. The first half was back and forth between the two squads, with UK taking a 32-28 lead into halftime. The second half was a completely different story. Francis and Cayo powered the Spiders to its first road victory over an AP Top 10 team in school history, by scoring 18 points a piece. Richmond ran away with a 76-64 triumph. This will do wonders for Richmond’s at-large tournament hopes and for the Spiders confidence moving forward. A couple sneaky games coming this week for Richmond, at Charleston and vs. Furman – but let’s allow Richmond to celebrate for today.
Gonzaga – The Bulldogs started the year as our #1 overall seed, and it didn’t take long to show why. The Zags had the rare opportunity to face Kansas in a season-opening game down in Fort Myers, after a series of cancellations and shifting over the offseason. Gonzaga came ready to dominate despite traveling across the country and having a few Covid complications with their team personnel. The Kansas win (102-90) was a track meet, that not even a powerhouse like Kansas was ready for. They fluid ball movement and ball handling mastery of Freshman phenom Jalen Suggs (8 assists and 24 points) were too much for the Jayhawks. Drew Timme picked up where he left off from last season, by adding 25 points and six boards. And Corey Kispert, who may be the most important player to any one team’s roster in the country, added 23. Kispert has always displayed a tremendously high level of Basketball IQ and focus on the court, and clearly makes his teammates better. He continues to impress me each year. The Bulldogs followed their emphatic Kansas win up by beating Auburn 90-67. Gonzaga led by double-figures for most of the game, got 28 from Timme and 25 from Kispert. Gonzaga is scheduled to play Baylor this coming Saturday, must watch TV.
Abilene Christian – ACU is only in their 8th season as a D1 program. The former D2 powerhouse in most athletics, made the jump to D1 Basketball ahead of the 2013-14 season. By year six, Head Coach Joe Golding had led his Wildcats to their first NCAA Tournament. After going 20-11 last year, many had the Wildcats in the top three of the Southland alongside juggernaut Stephen F. Austin, and up and coming Nicholls State. However, when reviewing the Gulf Coast Showcase bracket (which changed a few times), ACU was somewhat of an afterthought. After all, ETSU a darling from last season was there and a hyped Austin Peay team came in as the likely favorites. It just so happens that those two teams were up first for ACU. And the Wildcats were more than ready. They blitzed ETSU to kickoff College Basketball season, 70-47, and made a statement. On Friday, they took on Austin Peay and got a very impressive 80-72 victory. In Saturday’s finale, the Wildcats capped off a tournament title by beating Omaha 70-58. For the tournament, ACU held opponents to just 19% shooting from 3 point land, while shooting 54.5% themselves. We are nine days away from ACU at Texas Tech, could be very interesting. For the time being, congrats to the Wildcats on an outstanding Gulf Coast Showcase Title run.
Houston – The Cougars were a hotly debated preseason team among College Basketball’s finest pundits. We landed with Houston as a preseason #5 seed and the clear favorites to win the AAC. As games went on this week, we saw Memphis drop two games in South Dakota, Tulsa lose twice in KC, South Florida had lost, overall the AAC picture was prematurely looking rough. Then knowing Houston’s big non-conference games were Texas Tech and Alabama, this game on Sunday with the Red Raiders suddenly felt even bigger. The Cougars were beyond ready for the test. UH opened up a 37-19 edge at Halftime. Texas Tech made a couple of runs in the second half, but Houston held them off at every turn and went home with a crucial 64-53 victory. Marcus Sasser, Quentin Grimes, Justin Gorham all played a significant role in the victory. Houston also beat Boise State 68-58 and Lamar 89-45 earlier in the week. Just what the doctor ordered if you are a UH supporter.
Strongly Considered
Mercer – Bears went into Georgia Tech and thoroughly beat the Yellow Jackets, 83-73.
West Virginia – Won Bad Boy Mowers Tournament. Clearly stronger than South Dakota St., VCU, Western Kentucky in each round
Clemson – Won the Space Coast Challenge over Mississippi State and looked great in win over Purdue.
Saint Louis – Beat LSU in a key opportunity to build resume, also crushed SIU-Edwardsville in opener.
Georgia State – Won at Georgia Tech in 4OT thriller. Moses Wright had 31 points and 20 boards.
Others Considered
Enjoy the upcoming games in Week 2!
~Rocco Miller