MBB: Hoos fight back, but drop 75-74 heartbreaker in first of two meetings with Hokies

By Scott Ratcliffe

Despite outscoring visiting Virginia Tech by a 6-0 margin across the final minute of play, Virginia came up short in the first of two meetings in two weeks against its arch rival on Saturday at John Paul Jones Arena, falling 75-74 in heartbreaking fashion.

The Cavaliers (10-12, 3-8 ACC) trailed by as many as 13 points in the second half, but battled back and had a chance to win on the game’s final possession. The Hokies (10-12, 5-6) escaped when Andrew Rohde’s driving, game-winning shot attempt bounced off the rim as the final buzzer sounded.

Playing a second consecutive contest without the services of Elijah Saunders, Isaac McKneely again carried the load offensively for the Wahoos, dropping in a game-high 19 points.

Trailing by three with just 8.7 ticks on the clock, McKneely appeared to draw three free throws after being hacked from beyond the arc with 6.4 seconds left, but the officials determined that he was not yet in his shooting motion, and UVA had to settle for a pair at the line, which the Poca, W,Va., native drilled both.

Tech’s Mylyjael Poteat was immediately sent to the other end of the floor for two shots and clanked both, as Blake Buchanan gathered the rebound and kicked it to Rohde, who hustled down the court, launching an off-balanced runner that wasn’t in the cards. Buchanan’s tip follow also didn’t fall, but it turned out that it wouldn’t have counted anyway.

After falling behind by seven by halftime, Virginia cut it to two, 46-44, after a personal flurry by Dai Dai Ames, who scored nine of his 11 points in a matter of just over three and a half minutes out of the locker room.

However, the Hokies had an answer, just as they seemingly did all evening long whenever the Cavaliers would get within striking distance, using a 9-2 scoring spurt to push the difference back to nine points.

Moments later, when a Rohde 3-ball trimmed it to four, 60-56, midway through the second half, Tech responded with nine unanswered points to build its largest lead.

The Hoos had one more push left in them, reeling off seven unanswered points as the Hokies went scoreless for over four minutes. Rohde followed with another triple from the corner, and UVA was back within five, 71-66, with 2:18 to go.

Still up by five as the game went under the one-minute mark, the Hokies kept leaving the door open. Jaydon Young missed the front end of a one-and-one with 59 seconds left, as Rohde backed down his defender on the other end and scored to make it a one-possession affair, 75-72, with 44.9 on the JPJ game clock.

After a Ben Hammond miss on yet another one-and-one opportunity a few seconds later, Tech was whistled for a foul on the loose ball, and Buchanan had a chance to draw closer, but couldn’t connect on his one-and-one try.

The Cavaliers decided not to foul and it paid off, as Tobi Lawal came up short on a scoop shot at the end of the shot clock and UVA hauled in the rebound, and Ron Sanchez called his final timeout with 8.7 seconds left, setting up the crunchtime drama.

Neither team could get much separation in a first half that featured four ties and five lead changes until Tech took advantage of a UVA cold spell.

Virginia battled back behind the outside shooting of McKneely, Murray and Ishan Sharma, who collectively accounted for all but six of the team’s first-half points (10 for 18 FG, 5 for 10 from deep; rest of team was 2 for 11, 0 for 3). Murray sank his second triple of the day with 2:24 until halftime to trim the Hokies’ lead to 34-31, but the Hoos didn’t score again for the remainder of the half.

The Hokies took their largest lead of the half with just over a minute to go on a Tyler Johnson layup off the glass, and the visitors went into the break with a 38-31 advantage.

Virginia, which has now dropped seven of its last nine games, shot 48 percent (26 of 54) from the field, 35 percent from long distance (8 for 23) and 78 percent (14 for 18) from the charity stripe on Saturday. The Hoos were edged on the boards, 31-30, but turned 7 VT turnovers into 11 points and outscored the Hokies on the fast break, 12-1.

Rohde scored all 12 of his points in the second half after sitting out Wednesday’s contest in Miami. Murray finished with 10 and Sharma added 8 in the loss.

The Hokies shot 52 percent (25 for 48), including 52 percent (11 of 21) from 3-point land. Tech shot just 61 percent (14 for 23) from the foul line, misfiring on its final six attempts (0 for 4 in the last minute).

Tech’s Jaden Schutt had a big first half and set a new career high with 18 points, while Lawal came alive in the second half, scoring 12 of his 17. Ben Burnham scored 8 points and Poteat and Young each chipped in 7.

The two in-state foes will meet for the rematch in exactly two weeks at Cassell Coliseum (Sat., Feb. 15 at 2 p.m. on The CW Network) in Blacksburg.

Jon Golden Photo Gallery

Team Notes

Courtesy UVA Media Relations

• The Cavaliers fell to 10-12 overall, 3-8 ACC
• Virginia Tech earned a half point in the Smithfield Commonwealth Clash, but the Cavaliers lead this year’s Clash 5.5-2.5
• UVA is 8-5 at home, including a 2-4 mark in ACC play
• UVA has lost four ACC games at home for the first time since 2021-22 (Florida State, Duke, Wake Forest, and Clemson)
• Virginia is 173-12 all-time when scoring 70 or more points since 2009-10 (5-1 in 2024-25)
• UVA has allowed 70 or more points in nine games (1-8)
• Virginia Tech shot 52.1 percent (25-48) overall and 52.4 percent (11-21) from 3-point range
• Virginia Tech shot 50 percent (12 of 24) and led 38-31 at halftime
• UVA (8 3-pointers) has made six or more 3-pointers in 20 games
• UVA had a season-low four turnovers
• UVA’s 12 fast break points in an ACC contest were its most since 13 vs. Syracuse on Jan. 30, 2023

Series Notes

• The teams met as sub .500 opponents for the first time since Jan. 7, 1970, when Cavaliers (3-7) beat the Hokies (3-5) 81-71 in Charlottesville
• Virginia is 98-61 all-time vs. Virginia Tech, including a 43-14 mark in Charlottesville, in a series that dates to 1914-15
• UVA’s five-game win streak against the Hokies at John Paul Jones Arena ended with the loss

Player Notes

• Double Figure Scorers: Isaac McKneely (19), Andrew Rohde (12), Dai Dai Ames (11), Taine Murray (10)
• McKneely reached double figures for the 17th time (43 career)
• McKneely has made multiple 3-pointers in 15 games
• McKneely added a career-high seven assists
• Ames reached double figures for the fifth time (13 career)
• Murray reached double figures for the fourth time (9 career)
• Murray made his fifth start of the season (7 career)
• Rohde reached double figures for the ninth time (40 career)
• Rohde had a game-high seven assists without a turnover
• Elijah Saunders missed his second straight game due to injury

UP NEXT

The Cavaliers have a quick turnaround with a trip to face Pittsburgh on Monday night in front of a nationally televised audience (7 p.m., ESPN).