Clemson
Less than a month ago, the Hokies faced off against what was thought of as a similarly-built No. 12 Clemson Tiger team. Tech handled the full-court pressure with ease, and there seemed to be the sweet taste of an upset filling Cassell Coliseum.
After squandering a 15-point lead that night, the Hokies (16-10, 6-6 ACC) have lost five of their last seven games. That Clemson collapse signifies the recent downturn in the Atlantic Coast Conference standings for Tech, dropping the team from third to eighth in that span of time.
The Hokies will now head south to take on that same Tigers team (22-4, 8-4 ACC) in what has to be considered a "must win" game for them if they are going to make a late-season push toward an NCAA Tournament bid.
"We knew this was going to be a tough segment of the schedule," said head coach Seth Greenberg. "It just proves there is such a fine line between winning and losing. That ability to get that last stop or score that last basket is really the difference between winning 16 games and winning 20 or 21. That's college basketball. That's playing in this league."
The Hokies will be expecting more pressure once again, having to play on the road in a hostile environment.
This time, they will be looking to improve on their half court offense, seeing as they hit a drought in the second half of their last meeting with the Tigers. The Hokies only scored 29 points after Clemson decided to tighten up its half court defense.
"I think you have to start with their pressure, whether it's in the full court or the half court," Greenberg said. "We did a good job with their full court pressure... we have got to do a better job of attacking their blitzes at the ball screens in the half court."
Malcolm Delaney, who had a career-high 37 points in that last Clemson meeting and is averaging 18.5 points per game this season, will be a key factor in determining whether the Hokie half-court offense can be more effective.
"(We need to) try to guard Malcolm Delaney a little bit better," said Clemson head coach Oliver Purnell. "Delaney controlled the basketball and much of the game last time, so we've just got to find him. He's just so good coming right at you off of the dribble. He can pull up or go by you and shoot that runner in the lane."
Defensively, the Hokies will be expected to play better against K.C. Rivers and Trevor Booker, who tallied 50 of Clemson's 86 total points the last time these teams faced off. Rivers is second on the team in scoring, averaging 14.5 points per game. Booker leads the Tigers in scoring, averaging 15.2 points per game.
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