For a good part of the game against California on Saturday afternoon at Cassell Coliseum, it appeared that the Virginia Tech men's basketball team was on the verge of a third straight ACC loss and second crushing loss at home in three days. On Wednesday night, the Hokies held a 13-point lead on Stanford with 3:36 left, only to blow it and lose, 69-68, in a game that could end up crushing their NCAA Tournament hopes in March.
A rebound victory against California was needed with a daunting schedule coming up, including a road game at SMU on Wednesday night. Virginia Tech trailed most of the game, but they were able to put together a run late in the game and hold off one last push from the Golden Bears to escape with a 78-75 win. Here are three takeaways after the Hokies improved to 13-4 overall and 2-2 in the ACC.
Virginia Tech uses balanced scoring to take down Cal
Balance was the name of the game for Mike Young's team. It is a big key to success for the Hokies in 2025-26. They placed six players in double figures, despite shooting poorly from behind the 3-point line and missing some free throws late in the game that gave the visitors a chance to force overtime.
Amani Hansberry led the way with 15 points and nine rebounds. He knocked down a 3-pointer late in the second half that was a key basket. Jalien Bedford had another good game with 13 points and four rebounds, while freshman Christan Gurdak had 12 points and was a perfect 6-for-6 from the free throw line. Neoklis Avdalas (six assists) and Jaden Schutt each had 11 points. Tobi Lawal again came off the bench to score 10 points and grabbed seven rebounds.
Virginia Tech clamped down on defense against John Camden
Former Hokie John Camden is now playing for the Golden Bears and returned to Cassell Coliseum. He entered the game averaging 13.9 points a game and has been very good from behind the 3-point line. The Hokies kept him in check, and that turned out to be key.
Camden finished with just two points, both on free throws with eight seconds left. He was 0-for-4 from behind the arc in 22 minutes and 0-for-5 from the field in the game. It may not seem like much, but holding someone averaging nearly 14 points a game to two and winning by three points is huge.
Virginia Tech survived one last push from Cal to hold on
Trailing 76-75 with 37 seconds left, Cal called their final timeout, and Hokies fans were envisioning another last-second loss. The Golden Bears had a couple of clean looks at the basket, but they were not able to knock a shot down. Jaden Schutt made one of two free throws for a 77-75 lead with eight seconds left. After a steal, Bedford knocked down one of two free throws, and Tech survived a buzzer 3-point attempt from Cal's Justin Pippen, and the Hokie escaped. Too close for comfort.