Hokies Needed More in 85-68 Quarterfinal Loss to North Carolina Tarheels - A Deep Dive

The fans were looking forward to it. The players were eager to play it. After leading the then no. 22 ranked North Carolina Tarheel for all but four minutes two weeks ago before losing by three in overtime, everyone anticipated the ACC quarterfinal matchup against Carolina this Friday. Tech’s Carleigh Wenzel put the team on her back, but, unfortunately, it was not enough as poor shooting and interior defense cost the Hokies the game, 85-68

GAME SUMMARY

FIRST QUARTER

The Tarheels won the tip and immediately attacked inside to Nyla Harris who had buried Kilah Freelon deep in the post. While Harris traveled, it was a sign of things to come.  Virginia Tech got multiple opportunities on its first possession, but Mackenzie Nelson, Carleigh Wenzel, and Freelon could not get close looks at the basket to fall. On their next possession, Carys Baker missed a baseline jumper but retrieved another offensive rebound and got it to Nelson, who missed a three. Just in the first two possessions, Virginia Tech had missed five straight shots, but the hustle to get three offensive rebounds looked promising.

Neither team could get anything going until Carolina’s Laney Grant hit a driving jumpshot at the 7:50 mark to break the seal on the basket. Tech would immediately respond with their patented pass head to Freelon for a transition layup. Wenzel followed that with a pull up jumpshot off a screen by Freelon. After that score, the Hokies’ offense went through a mini-lull, turning the ball over and missing three straight three pointers.

The Hokies were initially active on defense against Harris, denying her opportunities at the basket; however, Grant heated up as she nailed a three to give Carolina the 5-4 lead. Carolina’s size also started to make its presence felt. Both Harris and Sierra Toomey grabbed offensive rebounds, with Toomey scoring and drawing a foul on Freelon. Carolina then went inside to Nyla Harris for another bucket to put the Tarheels up 7-4 with over five minutes left in the quarter.

The Hokies defense picked up, holding Carolina scoreless for nearly four minutes. Meanwhile, Tech went on a 8-0 run. Wenzel drew a foul and then hit another jumper on two baseline out of bounds plays. After stopping Carolina at the basket, Nelson went the length of the court for a layup, and then Samyha Suffren hit two free throws to give Tech a 12-7 lead. Even after Caroline pulled closer, Mel Davis scored a layup and Kayl Petersen knocked down a baseline jumper for a 16-11 Teach lead to end the first quarter.

SECOND QUARTER

The pace of the game favored the Hokies. Tech’s defense was forcing the Tarheels into missed shots, allowing them to get out running. Seven different Hokies had scored.  Then, the second quarter happened.

Tech was outscored 29-11 in the second frame. It began with a foul by Nelson on a Tarheel Nyla Brooks on a three point shot in transition that allowed Carolina to pull closer. A smooth pull up by Suffren and a transition layup by Leila Wells that gave Tech a 20-19 lead masked what was to come. 

The game slipped away from Tech from that point. Nelson and Freelon drew their second fouls, sending both to the bench. Carolina turned up its defense and the Tarheels started to make shots. Nyla Harris had  six points on a layup, a three pointer, and a screen and roll. Nyla Brooks scored eight points.

North Carolina shot 9-for-16 (53.3%) from the field, including three 3-pointers and a 6-of-8 mark from inside the arc. Carolina also made 8-of-10 free throws.  On the other hand, Virginia Tech could not get any traction in the period. It was 3-for-15 from the field. Over the first half, Tech had missed all ten of its three point shot attempts.

It was 25-22 in favor of the Tarheels at the 5:48 mark. The Hokies did not score a field goal over the final 5:48 and fell behind 40-27 to end the half. Only five free throws during that dry spell prevented the score from being worse. Carleigh Wenzel had scored 11 points. Freelon and Sufften had four apiece, but Baker had finished the half scoreless.

THIRD QUARTER

The second half did not start any better as Carolina had gone on a 10-0 across the end of the second and the beginning of the third quarter. 

Virginia Tech clawed its way back with a 6-0 run of its own. Wenzel snapped the scoring drought, driving for a pull up jumper in the shallow wing to pull Tech within 45-29.  After Tech forced a Carolina miss, Nelson drifted into the lane and turned the corner for a layup that made it 45-31. Tech’s defense forced turnovers on consecutive possessions when Carolina tried to hit cutters in the lane. Finally, Wells got a pass on the right wing from Wenzel and drained Tech’s first three pointer of the night. Just like that, Virginia Tech had closed the gap to eleven 45-34 during a one minute of great basketball. 

The two teams began trading punches. After Carolina stabilized its offense with five straight points, Nelson passed ahead to Freelon to make it 50-36. The Tarheels hit a three, but then Wenzel took the ball up court and drifted into a layup to score her team-high 15th point as no one stopped her.

Wenzel continued to put the team on her back. She drove relentlessly at the Tarheel defense, getting fouled on three straight possessions and knocking down six straight free throws to pull the Hokies to within ten at 56-46.

Carolina matched every Tech play with a score of its own, throwing a steady diet of straight line drives and pick and rolls at the Hokies.

Tech point guard Mackenzie Nelson drove into the lane, drew the defense, and passed to Aniya Trent for a layup. When Tech went to a zone defense near the end of the third, Mel Daley stole the ball at the top of the key and raced downcourt for a layup.

However, Carolina matched every Tech play with a score of its own, throwing a steady diet of straight line drives and pick and rolls at the Hokies to end the third quarter leading 64-51.

FOURTH QUARTER

Virginia Tech began the fourth quarter moving the ball well around the perimeter that led to Nelson driving into the lane, drawing the defense, passing to Trent again on the opposite block for a layup to make it 64-53.

On Virginia Tech’s next possession, Carys Baker finally scored her first points from the field when she made a short layup off a pass from Wenzel that closed the gap to nine with 8 minutes left in the game. After a Caroline score, Nelson pushed the ball up court and again passed to Trent for a layup.

Tech continued to fight to the end, but Carolina’s size became too much for Hokies as the Tarheels repeatedly scored inside, ballooning the final score to 87-68 and ending Tech’s run in the ACC Tournament.

SIX THOUGHTS AFTER THE GAME

CARLEIGH WENZEL PUTS THE TEAM ON HER BACK

Carleigh Wenzel's goal coming into this season was to be a better leader.  While the team overall struggled to shoot, she put the team on her back. 

Wenzel scored a game-high 26 points. She was just 6-for-17 from the field and 0-for-6 from beyond the arc. However, she fearlessly and relentelessly attacked the Tarheels with drives that lead to fouls. She made 14-of-15 free throws, a career high in makes.   Wenzel also had three assists, one steal, and two rebounds.

Since that Louisville game earlier in the season, Wenzel has scored in double digits in 16 straight games, including exceeding 20 points in five of those games.  She has become Tech's go to player who can defend and score on all three levels.

MACKENZIE NELSON DISHES

Tech point guard Mackenzie Nelson scored 9 points on 4-of-9 shooting. She also dished out a team high 6 assists, repeatedly using her speed to get into the lane, drawing defenders, and getting the ball to teammates.  Nelson was personally responsible for Aniya Trent’s six points from layups created by the attention Nelson drew. She also grabbed three defensive rebounds.

OTHERS NEED TO DO MORE

Wenzel’s 26 points were not enough. Nelson’s efforts were not enough. Wenzel was the only Tech player with double digit points.

Various players made contributions in the game on both offense and defense. Not to diminish anyone's efforts, the team needed more to be larger factors in the game.

Carys Baker was 1-for-8 and 0-4 from three. She did not score her first point until she was fouled and made a free throw with 2:32 left in the third quarter. Wenzel found her for a layup on the weakside block in the fourth to give her three points, but Baker never got unlocked on offense. 

To her credit, she grabbed a team-high eight rebounds, including two offensive, and battled inside on defense all game. Baker clearly worked hard and sought to lead and encourage her teams. 

Samyha Suffren played 26 minutes and was 1-for-8 from the field. She hit a smooth mid-range shot in the first half and made two free throws, but could not find her consistency. Suffren did get four defensive rebounds.

Mel Daley played 14 minutes and scored 6 points. She was 3-for-9 from the field, had two rebounds, and that steal to end the first half that kept Tech within striking distance.

Kilah Freelon was saddled with foul trouble in parts of the second and third quarters that limited her impact. Nevertheless, she scored 7 points on 2-of-5 shooting and 3-of-4 from the free throw line. Freelon was also active on the boards, getting a team-high three high offensive rebounds to go with her three defensive boards.

Leila Wells played 13 minutes and hit Tech’s first three pointer of the game after the team’s 0-for-10 drought.  She also muscled up a layup and worked to grab 5 rebounds, including two offensive.

Aniya Trent played 16 minutes and held her own against the 16th ranked Tarheels. She scored six points of assists from Nelson and had both one rebound and a nice block that prevented a Carolina score.

Kayl Petersen played 8 minutes and scored 2 points on that nice baseline jumper. She was very active with her minutes, dishing out an assist and securing three rebounds, including two offensive boards.

KRYPTONITE I - OUTSIDE SHOOTING  / 2-FOR-18 FROM THREE

Virginia Tech shot 20% in that fateful second quarter that changed the game. In addition, the team was 2-for-18 (11.1%) from three for the game. While the Hokies recovered from that second quarter to shoot 47% and 40% in the third and fourth quarter, that shooting performance creating an uphill climb that the Hokies could not get over.

In addition, in my opinion, there are times when shooters need to pass more. For example, there have been situations during the season in which screens have opened up forwards for potential passes going to the basket; however, the guards have a tendency to pull up for shots and miss wide open teammates.

Poor shooting nights, especially against the top teams in the ACC, have hurt the team’s offense at times.  Right now, Baker and the Wenzel are the main outside shooters, and if one of them is off, the offense is handicapped.

This season was always going to be about the “relentless growth” and development of players, including the development of their perimeter shooting.  To that point, Mel Daley went through a stretch earlier in the season where her mid-range shot was the difference in certain games. Samyha Sufften has also developed her mid-range pull up over the course of the season Nelson has shown the confidence to shoot threes and the ability to make them. Wells can make three pointers.

However, perimeter shooting is an inconsistent work-in-progress, which prevents Virginia Tech from truly stretching the floor and allows defenses to key on Baker and Wenzel. 

However Virginia Tech fares in the NCAA tournament, outside shooting has to be a real priority this off-season in order for the program to take the next step, whether it comes from the continued development of the guards, the internal development by players such as Kate Sears, or from the transfer portal.

KRYPTONITE II - SIZE / SCREEN AND ROLLS HURT

North Carolina repeatedly hurt Virginia Tech with its inside size. Nyla Harris bullied the Hokies at times posting up or fighting for offensive rebounds. She only had four to Tech’s credit, though one was a momentum killer in the second half when she grabbed a weakside offensive rebound over Tech’s weakside defender when Tech briefly went to a zone defense, keeping a Carolina possession alive.

When it came to offensive rebounds for Tech and the Carolina defense, the Hokies had at least four in the first few minutes of the first quarter but only ten for the game as the Tarheels limited the Hokies to few second chances and only three second chance points.

The main issue defensively for the Hokies in this game was defending screen and roll actions. Carolina repeatedly attacked the Tech defense with screens that freed up Nyla Harris and others going to the basket.  Tech fought on defense and was able to turn back several attempts by Carolina, forcing high passes that sailed out bounds. However, there were breakdowns that led to buckets by Harris or a wide open opportunity for Ciera Toomey underneath, for example.  The screens also put pressure on help defenders, presenting the risk of foul trouble.  

Defending screens, whether rolls to the basket by posts or ones that free up guards, has been an issue at times all year. It contributed to the James Madison loss, for example, earlier in the season. Tech has overcome teams with size advantages this season, but it has been hurt when facing the size and execution by top teams . 

NEXT UP: WAITING ON THE NCAA

Keeping perspective, this was just one game. The Hokies finished the season with 23-9 and 12-6, earning a bye and earning their way to a quarterfinal matchup against one of the top teams in the ACC. There is a lot that this team has done for the coaches, players, and fans to be proud of. In addition, the season is not over. 

After not being selected to play in the NCAA tournament and losing in the second round in the WNIT last year, the team's goal this sesaon has been to dance in March. Virginia Tech should be invited to play in the NCAA tournament.  Selections and seedings will be announced Sunday, March 7. Tune in to find out Virginia Tech’s seeding and where it will be play.

Youtube Video of Condensed Game