2 Truths and a Lie From Virginia Tech Men's Basketball Near Upset of Pittsburgh

So close, yet so far. That could very well end up being the theme for the Virginia Tech men's basketball team in 2024-25. Losers of five straight as they entered ACC play at home on Saturday afternoon against Pittsburgh, which entered the game ranked 18th in the country.

In what could be considered the Hokies' best game of the season, they came up short of pulling an upset losing, 64-59, at Cassell Coliseum. At 3-6, Mike Young's team will have five days before returning to the court in a non-conference game against North Carolina A&T. Before we look ahead, let's look back to the loss to the Panthers with two truths and a lie against Pittsburgh.

Truth: Key stat favored Hokies, but they still lose

If this stat doesn't sum up the struggles this season for Virginia Tech, I don't know what does. The Hokies led the game for 31 of the 40 minutes, while Pittsburgh led for just 2:45. Obviously the rest of the time the game was tied, but Tech did just about everything they needed to do except win the game.

Jaydon Young gave the Hokies a 29-26 lead late in the first half with a 3-pointer and they held the lead until the Panthers went ahead at 60-59 on a Jaland Lowe layup with a minute left. Turnovers, missed shots, allowing offensive rebounds and missed free throws all added up to a five-point loss for Young's team.

Truth: Tobi Lawal was Virginia Tech's best player

VCU transfer Tobi Lawal was by far the best player for the Hokies against the Panthers. He finished with a team-high 16 points and 3-for-4 from the foul line. He grabbed four rebounds and handed out a pair of assists with two steals.

He was 6-for-10 from the field and Duke transfer Jaden Schutt finally shot the ball well and finished with 14 points, but Lawal does so much at both ends of the floor for Virginia Tech. Like most of his teammates, he played well enough for the Hokies to win.

Lie: Pittsburgh is a legit ACC contender

There is a lot of hype around the Panthers this season and they very well may end up being in the mix when all is said and done, but they didn't impress a lot of people against Virginia Tech. It's easy to say that they have been on the road since November and jet lag was a reason why the game was close and maybe the Hokies played better, but Tech is going to struggle at the bottom of the conference standings while the Panthers will have to play better to compete with the top teams in the conference or they could miss the NCAA Tournament again.