Collegiate Times

Standing in at 6-feet-9-inches tall, Cheick Diakite played much bigger than his size let on.

Graduating last spring, Diakite left Virginia Tech fifth on the career block list despite never averaging more than 20 minutes a game. His refusal to take a play off led him to be a key contributor defensively year after year.

A fan-favorite and a powerful rebounder, the Mali native brought a relentless work ethic and a stout physical presence to the Hokies’ low post-game that will be crucial to replace as they enter the upcoming season.

The ACC is getting bigger.

Typically for its quick, “slash to the basket” style, it has seen more and more big men come find success in the league.

The University of North Carolina brings in a 7-footer in Tyler Zeller; Florida State’s sophomore Solomon Alabi stands at 7-feet-1-inch; and Georgia Tech sends a pair of big men to the court in freshmen Derrick Favors and Daniel Miller.

Part of this hype can be attributed to the lack of established guards in the league. Six of the top eight backcourt scorers in the league are gone, so the need for versatile forwards has become more prevalent in the 2009-10 season.

Tech’s recruiting reflects this growing need.

The Hokies host two freshmen this season who are at least 6-feet-9-inches tall. Forward Cadarian Raines along with center Gene Swindle look to help a defensive interior that struggled at times last year, ranking ninth in the ACC in scoring defense.

“We need to get more out of our defense,” said head coach Seth Greenberg. “Last year, we didn’t defend with the consistency that we need to defend if we’re going to be a really good basketball team.”

Unfortunately for the Hokies, defense was what the team lost most with Diakite’s departure. He was often utilized in one-on-one match-ups against opposing team’s big men.

The team as a whole will need to pull together to fill in the void left by Diakite.

“We just need to stop some more people on defense and that will take away some of the scoring,” said junior guard Malcolm Delaney. “We’ve got four or five guys that can play in the post — Terrell (Bell) is going to play a lot of forward this year and J.T. (Thompson) is going to play forward so we’re deep in the post.”

The most obvious candidate to take over Diakite’s place in the post is Victor Davila, a sophomore from Canovanas, Puerto Rico.

At 6-feet-8-inches and 245 pounds, Davila possesses the physical tools needed to be a strong presence in the post position.

“Victor is probably one of the best post players we have,” said Tech junior Malcolm Delaney.

The only scholarship freshman to see game time last year, Davila impressed coaches and players with his hands and footwork. However, he’ll need to be more aggressive in the paint before he’s established himself as a solid post player.

“If I could take Victor’s skill and put in Cheick’s spirit, we’d have something really special,” Greenberg said. “But, we have to go by committee. Dorenzo Hudson, J.T. Thompson need to step up, Victor needs to step up.”

One of only two seniors on last year’s team, Diakite’s consistent work ethic proved him to be a reliable replacement for then-sophomore Jeff Allen who suffered from an up-and-down season.

Greenberg focused on stopping the big men “from catching the ball deep” to limit their dominance.

“You’ve got to move them and put them in ball screens to get them away from the basket so that you can take away their shot blocking ability,” Greenberg said.

While Allen struggled with that mentality last season, he looks forward to being that guy this year.

“I’m going to have to take a leadership role this year,” Allen said. “That’s what the team needs right now.”