Virginia Tech women’s basketball lands prized recruit Carla Silva

If you win, they will come. The Virginia Tech women’s basketball team is finding that out.

Fresh off a trip to the Final Four last season, along with winning the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament Championship, the Hokies hit it big in the recruiting trail.

Clara Silva commits to Virginia Tech on Sunday

Clara Silva, a 6-foot-6 center, committed to Virginia Tech Sunday and the recruit is going to be a big addition to the Hokies. If there is one thing true about basketball, it’s that you can’t teach height. You can teach skills and techniques, but height is something you can’t teach, which is why coaches are constantly looking for it in recruiting.

Silva, who is from Portugal, is a finesse player who plays strong around the basket and can dominate the post against just about any defense. In July, she started visiting campuses and one of her stops was Blacksburg and coach Kenny Brooks.

Some of the other top women’s programs in the country were also recruiting Silva. The University of Maryland, the University of Connecticut, Tennessee, and North Carolina were in on Silva. In years past, recruits like this would have ended up at UConn with Geno Auriemma or with Brenda Frese and Maryland, but now Brooks has the Hokies on the map and they are able to compete with the premier programs not only on the court and on the recruiting trail.

At the Under-18 FIBA Championships, she averaged a double-double for Portugal to help them win their Group stage, but her work on the defensive end is just as important as the offensive end as her size allows her to protect the rim. She is going to step into the Hokies program and is the type of player who is going to make an immediate impact right from her first game.