No. 9 Virginia Tech Passes by Houston Christian

The No. 9 Virginia Tech Hokies defeated Houston Christian 105-36 on Thursday. This ties three previous games for the most points in Cassell Coliseum, the most recent of which was against Saint Francis in 2019.

The Hokies took the court and the offense started to flow, smooth as butter. Tech moved on its home court like there wasn’t a team in the way, getting to spots and making passes with ease. The crew took a solid 14-point lead in the first quarter and never looked back.

By halftime, the game was next to over. At 61-23, it was clear VT would come out on top once the clock hit zero. Houston Christian struggled to get it in the bucket, having a tough time getting through and over the VT defense. The Huskies shot just 22% (13-58) from the floor.

Georgia Amoore facilitated her way into the Virginia Tech record book. The point guard put up 16 assists, breaking a record held by three players tied at 13. She tacked on 10 points as well on her way into VT history.

“Georgia’s assist number shows that we did a really good job of playing for each other and helping each other out,” said Liz Kitley. “We have to keep doing that as we move forward.”

Kitley led the way with 23 points in dominant fashion. She got to her spots and the team fed her. Once she had the ball, there was nothing Houston Christian could do to stop her. The combo of spins and fades with her height advantage was too much.

Clara Strack came in off the bench to make a ton of noise for her biggest game yet. She had 19 points and eight rebounds, looking Kitley-esque in her 20 minutes.

Head Coach Kenny Brooks even compared her to Kitley postgame saying, “A lot of the things [Clara] does is very reminiscent of Elizabeth Kitley as a freshman.”

For a time Virginia Tech had the duo on the floor, and the big lineup spaced surprisingly well. The two complimented each other despite both being centers.

“I made it a point to put [Clara] in a rotation in practice with Liz to see how that was going to work,” said Brooks. “I liked what I saw and we went with it and it gave [Clara] that opportunity,” he continued.

Rose Micheaux also had a solid game, slowly finding her role in this offense. Her 12 points and six boards don’t fully quantify her play on the floor, as the transfer drove the paint with power. She started off hot with two buckets in the early minutes to get the team moving.

“Right after the Iowa game, [Rose] took accountability, she wasn’t pointing fingers. She wasn’t moping around,” said Brooks. “[Rose] took ownership of her performance and she got better. She had a really good week.”

Virginia Tech will next play UNC Greensboro (2-1) on Monday at 6 p.m. in Blacksburg.