The Virginia Tech men's basketball team will look to capitalize on momentum garnered from a tough road upset of No. 12 Clemson as it plays host to the No. 7 Duke Blue Devils on Saturday afternoon.
Wednesday night's 80-77 win kept the Hokies (17-10, 7-6 ACC) in the NCAA Tournament picture with three games remaining in the regular season.
Sophomore guard Malcolm Delaney led scoring with 26 points in the win, draining 17 of them in the second half.
"Hopefully, this will get us over the edge," Delaney said. "We had lost three straight, and I'd almost forgot how it felt to win a game, especially one of these close games."
Tech has played 14 contests that have been decided by five points or fewer this season.
Much as the Hokies' down-to-the-wire victory in South Carolina, the Blue Devils were able to escape Maryland with a win later that same night, besting the Terrapins 78-67 while pulling away in the final minutes on free throws.
Duke (23-5, 9-4 ACC) has spent every week of the season ranked in the top 10, holding the No. 1 ranking for a week in late January before being upset at Wake Forest. The loss came exactly one week after the Hokies defeated the Demon Deacons who, at the time, were ranked No. 1 in the country.
Duke's backcourt features guard Jon Scheyer who is averaging 13.9 points and a team-best 2.9 assists per game.
Freshman guard Elliot Williams is the newcomer to the Blue Devils' starting lineup, but has already proven his worth since making the transition three weeks ago, scoring in double-figures in Duke's past three contests.
"He's given us a huge lift," said Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski. "He's developed so much in practice. I've seen steady progression from him this season. He's made a commitment to getting better and that is what has earned him that starting role."
The team's leader in points scored, forward Gerald Henderson, averages 16.3 per game to go along with 4.7 rebounds per contest. He scored 19 in Duke's Wednesday night win in College Park. Complimenting Henderson is much-heralded teammate, forward Kyle Singler, who boasts 16.1 points and 7.8 boards per game.
"Gerald's kind of our catalyst," Singler said. "If we need a big play, it seems like he comes up with it. That's who Gerald is. He's a very good player. If he keeps doing what he's been doing, we'll be much better off."
The Blue Devils' bench is one of the deepest in the conference with recognizable guard Greg Paulus and 7-foot-1 center Brian Zoubek, who leads the team in blocks.
The two clubs have already met once this season with the Blue Devils winning easily, 69-44, at Cameron Indoor Stadium in early January.
Only Delaney was able to score in double-digits in the Hokies' worst loss of their season thus far, producing 12 points with classmate and forward Jeff Allen contributing nine points and a team-best five rebounds.
As a team, Tech had 18 defensive rebounds, six blocks and seven steals but shot 36 percent from the field and 58 percent from the free throw line in the hostile environment of Cameron.
"Defensively, at times, I thought we were good," said head coach Seth Greenberg after the loss. "Offensively, we were inept at best. That's probably a compliment, actually."
The Hokies made a late run the first half to come within eight points of the Blue Devils at the break, but the second half told a very different story.
Shooting 33 percent from the field in the second 20 minutes of play, the Hokies tallied just 13 points in comparison to the Blue Devils' 31. An 11-point lead soon became a 20-point lead in less than four minutes. A three-pointer by Paulus began a 12-3 Duke run with 11:12 to go.
Duke never looked back as the Hokies scored only one field goal in the last 8:30 of the game.
"They do a great job at defending," Greenberg said of the Blue Devils. "They switch very well and push us out. They don't allow any easy shots to be taken."
Saturday's contest will be the second-to-last at home for the Hokies in the 2008-09 regular season. The final stretch does not get any easier, as they host No. 4 North Carolina next Wednesday night before traveling to Tallahassee the following Sunday to face No. 23 Florida State. Tech is 2-3 against ranked opponents this season.
Saturday's tip-off with the Blue Devils is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. and will be broadcasted nationally on ABC.