A.D. Vassallo attacks the baseline on Feb. 21 in a 67-65 loss to FSU.
For the first time in school history, the Virginia Tech men's basketball team will face its fourth ranked opponent in succession.
After consecutive home defeats to No.2 North Carolina and No. 7 Duke, the Hokies (17-12, 7-8 ACC) travel south to Tallahassee this weekend to face-off against a No. 24 Florida State Seminole team (22-8, 9-6) that stole one at Cassell Coliseum, 67-65, nearly two weeks ago.
In what will be their final regular season opportunity to potentially win a spot the NCAA Tournament, the Hokies understand that coming away with a victory against the 'Noles is a necessity.
"We've just got to go out there and play," said senior A.D. Vassallo. "(We cannot) worry about the NCAA Tournament. We've got to win."
Tech could have ensured themselves a bid to the Big Dance by securing victories over highly-ranked Duke or UNC over the past week, but fell short both times despite keeping the score surprisingly close.
Three elements will be key for Hokie success on Sunday -- defensive pressure on Florida State guards Derwin Kitchen and Toney Douglas, the play of Malcolm Delaney and rebounding.
In their Feb. 21 meeting, Tech started off in a zone defense that was easily picked apart by the Seminoles -- as they opened up as much as a 14-point cushion on 50 percent shooting from the field.
Tech head coach Seth Greenberg eventually switched his team to a man-to-man, which proved to be very successful. For the last 30 minutes of the contests, Tech fans may have seen the best Hokie defense effort of the season. In the second half of that game the Seminoles had a 30.8 percent shooting performance.
Unfortunately, Tech was unable to stop the shooting and penetration of Kitchen and Douglas down the stretch -- this will be one of the keys on Sunday afternoon.
In that previous encounter, the duo combined for 41 of the Seminoles' 67 points and seven makes from three-point territory.
Kitchen had a career-best day scoring, posting 19 points and making 8-of-11 from the floor -- including 3-for-3 from beyond the arc. Douglas, a strong contender for the ACC Player of the Year, led FSU with 22 points. He also made good on the most important shot of the game -- a short jump shot in the lane with 6.2 seconds remaining that gave his club the win.
Florida State head coach Leonard Hamilton is most impressed with Douglas' defensive efforts.
"I think he's the best on-the-ball defensive guard that I've ever coached," he said. "That sets him apart. ... This guy has done a tremendous job for us from a defensive standpoint. Obviously, he's been a go-to guy who plays major minutes."
Another key to the game will be the play of Tech guard Malcolm Delaney. As the leader on the court, the sophomore helps set the tempo for his team. However, in Tech's last two games, Delaney has struggled with shooting from the field.
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