Collegiate Times

Dorenzo Hudson takes on a Campbell defender.

The last time the Virginia Tech men’s basketball team played a ranked non-conference opponent in Cassell Coliseum was Nov. 24, 2000 — when the Hokies were still members of the Big East Conference. Tech was blasted by rival and then-No. 25 Virginia, 64-48, and would finish that year with an 8-19 record overall.

Tech’s basketball program has come a long way since then.

Tonight, the Hokies have an opportunity to announce they’re contenders on a national level, as the ACC/Big Ten challenge pits Tech against No. 22 Purdue in Blacksburg.

Tech coach Seth Greenberg and company (4-2) are coming off a second-place finish at the 76 Classic in Anaheim, Calif.

Tech handled Cal State Northridge, and then won a close one over Oklahoma State before falling to UNLV, 71-59, in Sunday’s tournament championship game. 

In a game marred by 18 turnovers and a sorry performance from the foul line (9-of-21), the Hokies were still in it until midway through the second half, when the Rebels used a 14-6 run to pull away for good. Chance Stanback, who was voted the tournament’s most outstanding player, led UNLV with 17 points and eight rebounds.

Foul trouble also plagued Tech — forward Jeff Allen, in particular. It was the third time the senior forward has fouled out already this season. When on the court, Allen has been a dominating force in the paint for Tech on both ends of the floor, averaging 11 points and 8.2 rebounds per game.

His presence has almost become a necessity, as the team lost fellow big men JT Thompson, Cadarian Raines and Allan Chaney to various ailments and injuries in the preseason.

Raines, however, has recently been cleared to play and tallied a total of 10 minutes in the final two games of the 76 Classic.

Malcolm Delaney was named ACC Player of the Week for his performance in Anaheim. He averaged 21 points and four assists per game throughout the tournament.

Meanwhile, the Boilermakers (5-1) have faced struggles all too familiar to Tech. 

Senior forward Robbie Hummel, who also chose to return to college basketball for his senior year rather than head to the NBA a year early, suffered his second ACL tear in less than a year during an October practice.

It would be easy to say Hummel’s presence has already been missed, as Purdue fell to Atlantic-10 opponent Richmond Saturday night — a game in which the Boilermaker’s offense mustered only 54 points and a shockingly low six assists. The loss dropped them 12 spots in this week’s AP Poll, from No. 10 to No. 22.

But Purdue has still managed to find playmakers.

Guard E’Twaun Moore and forward JaJuan Johnson — two other seniors who, along with Hummel, chose to return to Purdue for their final year in the hopes of making a national title run — have averaged a combined 37.3 points and 15.5 rebounds a game.

Tech’s lack of frontcourt depth might not hurt it as much in tonight’s game as it usually would. Purdue’s big men have scored an average of 23.4 of the team’s 80 points per game. Johnson has accounted for 16.5 of those.

That puts the pressure on Delaney and fellow senior guard Dorenzo Hudson to slow down a Purdue team that loves to score in transition. Delaney and Hudson have struggled to take care of the ball thus far (53 combined turnovers) and must improve in that area if the Hokies are to stand a chance tonight.

Purdue head coach Matt Painter, who is in his sixth year at the helm of his alma mater, has transformed his team into a perennial power over the past several seasons. 

The program has made four straight NCAA Tournament appearances, and is one of only five teams to reach the Sweet 16 in each of the past two seasons. Painter has quickly turned the program around, as Purdue is a nationally respected team.

With both teams coming off early season struggles, it appears to be anyone’s game. 

The Hokies obviously have a huge edge in homecourt advantage (52-14 in Cassell since 2006) and that could prove to be the difference in this contest.

A win tonight would go a long way toward national respect and an NCAA bid in March.

A version of this article appeared in the Dec 1 issue of the Collegiate Times.