Virginia Tech Drops Near-Comeback Against FSU
Virginia Tech fell to FSU 77-74 on Saturday after coming back from down 10 with 2:19 left, marking its second straight loss in conference play.
The Seminoles ran a full-court press right off the tip, which initially gave the Hokies some trouble on offense. A few early turnovers and missed opportunities saw the Hokies down five at the midpoint of the first half after a four-minute scoring drought.
FSU’s Darin Green Jr. was responsible for most of the deficit early on. He knocked down his first three shots for seven points, seemingly unstoppable when he put shots up in the first half.
The Hokies brought the game back into their control soon after with a run of their own. Tech put up 10 unanswered points in 2.5 minutes off a jumpers from Hunter Cattoor, a jumper and three from Sean Pedulla, and a three from MJ Collins. The quick burst of offense put VT up 25-17 with five minutes left before halftime, looking to head to the locker room with plenty of momentum.
FSU’s defensive pressure got back to work disrupting, holding Tech to just five points in the five minutes to halftime. The Seminoles were well within striking distance, having pulled it to 30-27 by the buzzer.
The second half was much the same, with VT slowly pulling away before being reigned right back in. At 15:53, they once again had a solid lead up nine, but after five points from Taylor Bol Bowen and a dunk from Cameron Corhen, Florida State needed just a bucket to tie or a three to lead.
Like a broken record, VT ran up the lead to seven, but this time Florida State bounced back stronger. They continued to force turnovers across the roster, ultimately taking the lead amid a 14-0 run that lasted nearly another four minutes.
The Hokies slowly lost a grip on the game, but somehow managed a shocking comeback in the final two minutes. Six points from free throws, a jumper, and a three tied the game up with five seconds on the clock.
FSU inbounded and Primo Spears drove down the right side of the lane, getting fouled by Cattoor. He made both shots to go up two, and the Hokies were in trouble.
They lobbed out to Lynn Kidd, the ball went oout, and the clock expired. After taking a closer look, nobody touched the ball though, and FSU was forced to inbound again. They made the pass to Bol Bowen and Pedulla fouled. Bol Bowen made his first, missed the second, and the real final buzzer went off.
The Hokies ended with 16 total turnovers, a very disappointing outing from them. Pedulla led the team with 26 points but contributed four turnovers to the total. Cattoor had 19 with a steal, Collins had 10-4-1, while Kidd had an underwhelming 2-8-3 with another three turnovers.
Virginia Tech will look to bounce back on January 10th against No. 16 Clemson (11-3, 1-2 ACC) at home.
