Associate Sports Editor
?Hopeless dreaming? is the term Virginia Tech men?s basketball player Bryant Matthews once used for his adolescent dreams of NBA stardom.
The idea of playing basketball on a national stage to a packed crowd seemed as far away to a young Matthews as a berth in the Big East tournament has to Hokie men?s basketball fans for the past two seasons.
This year, those dreams have a very real chance of coming to fruition. At 1-4 in Big East play (8-10 overall), Tech isn?t blowing anyone out of the water quite yet. But out of the four losses, one game went to overtime and only three points decided another.
While a win is a win, and a loss is a loss, regardless of the score or circumstances, the Hokies are gaining confidence and are capable of gaining a post-season berth. Even at 1-4, Tech is just one win away from being tied for fourth place.
?In this league you have to win to get any respect,? Matthews said. ?But I feel like we?re raising a few eyebrows, especially with how wacky everything have been going so far in the conference. To get respect, I feel we have to come to Madison Square Garden and make some noise.?
If the Hokies are to make their post-season dreams a reality, they will need Matthews to continue his stellar play. While Tech?s playing so far this season isn?t any great surprise to Matthews, his role as the leading scorer on this year?s team was unexpected.
?I didn?t expect to be the team?s leading scorer; that was the last thing on my mind,? Matthews said. ?I pretty much thought the definition of my role would be to rebound and play defense. I just do my job and whatever happens, happens and I?ll score.?
What makes Matthews so dangerous is his ability to play inside and outside. A post player his first two seasons, this year marks the first season he has been used as a true wing player.
Matthews has exploited his range while remaining a force inside, as evidenced by his team-leading four offensive rebounds per game.
?I like the wing because it?s an athletic position,? Matthews said. ?Not many people expect a wing player in college to be a great scorer, or if they are a great scorer, to not be a great defender. It just gives me the opportunity to prove to a lot of players that a wing player, a high-caliber three player, can go in there and defend and do all the other necessities.?
As well as Matthews has played this year, the critic in him won?t allow himself to be satisfied. He is working hard to improve his free-throw shooting and to limit turnovers, two things that will be critical down the stretch in close games as Tech looks to make the Big East tournament for the first time.
?You?re never satisfied until you win a championship,? Matthews said. ?We?re still holding it, we still want to win games. Slowly, it?s starting to come to light. Everything is starting to unveil and we expect to win. We just need to keep taking the right steps and we?ll get there.?