Collegiate Times

Saturday had all the typical traits of a Virginia Tech basketball win.

Zabian Dodwell slashed and drove past Miami's guards, putting up the solid outing we have come to expect from the senior guard.

Deron Washington threw down a few more YouTubers, decibel-inducing dunks that put the Cassell crowd on their feet.

Coleman Collins had a fantastic outing, scoring seven of the Hokies' first 13 points.

Lost in the mix, though, was a single shot, a shot that not only sealed the victory against Miami, Tech's tenth in the conference and twentieth of the season, but the kind of shot that will carry them through the ACC Tournament and beyond.

With about eight minutes left in the second half, the Hokies were clinging to a six-point a lead when Jamon Gordon led a fast break, rushing down the court. Instead of driving the lane and adding two more to Tech's lead, he kicked the ball out to the top of the key.

Catching the pass was his teammate, A.D. Vassallo. Vassallo toed the three-point line and took up for aim for his favorite shot.

Stroke.

Swish.

That three pushed the lead to nine, and Tech never looked back.

"That was a critical play," said head coach Seth Greenberg. "It gave us a chance to breathe.

Not only did it deliver a demoralizing blow, but it was Vassallo's 11th point of the game, crossing a line the Hokies love to toe.

Virginia Tech is 13-2 when Vassallo scores 10 or more points, and just 7-6 when he doesn't. It's a stat the polite, well-regarded Vassallo didn't know and seemed indifferent to.

"Oh man, I definitely did not know that," said the soft-spoken Pueto Rican. "It's about the team. I'm just another guy stepping in."

For him, it's all about the team. For such a prolific scorer and important player on the team, he's seemingly careless about stats and starts. Despite starting the past two games, he doesn't consider himself a full-time starter, or even deserving.

"It depends on the games," Vassallo said. "If it's a good match-up, if I can dominate, I get the start."

His head coach agrees.

"A lot of it is situational," Greenberg said. "If (other teams) go big, then we'll start Coleman or Cheick."

But just because he doesn't start him, doesn't mean Greenberg doesn't want A.D. in the game.

"I like A.D," Greenberg said. "If (other teams) go big, then they'll have to guard A.D. And he's been playing real well"

Guarding Vassallo is not an easy task. At six foot six, he's taller than most guards, but he's got their kind of touch and range.

Whether starting or coming off the bench, and no matter how much Vassallo will demur his importance to the Hokies, it's obvious that he's as essential to this team as any other player.

Three-pointers are critical in college, shots that provide huge momentum swings, increase a lead or speed up a comeback. They are essential in college play, especially come tournament time.

Now, as Tech embarks on its tournament runs, they have a player who takes just that shot.

"During practice, the coaches don't want me to focus on that, I'm trying to learn other things, but I still shoot about 25 then," Vassallo said.

He can't count how many he puts up on his own time though.

His threes are not the typical deep-range, dead-eye type. It's a flatter shot, one with very little arc. It's not the kind that swishes through the net as it comes in from down high, but rather the kind that beelines for the back of the rim, hitting it with a bit of clang then dropping down the net.

That doesn't matter. What does is that Vassallo has no qualms about hoisting up those threes, and his coach has no problem with the misses that come with taking a huge number of them. Not that Vassallo misses much.

He makes 45.5 percent of his shots from behind the arc, an astounding rate for someone who shoots so frequently. While that number is good for 50th in the nation, what's even more impressive is that only 14 other Division I players have shot more threes with a higher percentage.

And even when he does sometimes miss, it's okay. For Greenberg, it's not the misses that matter, but the makes.

"I tell A.D. to keep shooting," Greenberg said. "We are going to need him to step in and give us a big three."