Going into their final non-conference game of the season, the Virginia Tech men's basketball team was extremely shorthanded. Tobi Lawal was out again, and it's not known when he'll return. The Hokies were also without Antonio Dorn, who has a back injury. It was then announced before the game that superstar freshman Neoklis Avdalas was out with an illness.
To compound matters, Elon started the game on fire from behind the 3-point arc and shot lights out in the first half to take an eight-point halftime lead. Once down 19 points and shorthanded, the Hokies rallied and survived a major scare from the Phoenix by getting huge contributions from a pair of freshmen, Sin'Cere Jones and Christian Gurdak, for the one-point win in overtime. Here are some observations from Virginia Tech's 11th win of the 2025-26 season.
Freshman made big plays to secure win
Jones has not played much this season, but boy, did he make an impact on Saturday. With the Hokies down one, he had a huge block at the rim. It was a huge play from the true freshman who only played six minutes, grabbing two big rebounds with his block.
As for Gurdak, he started his first game and finished with 17 points and six rebounds. He scored the game-winning basket with 10 seconds left off a feed from Ben Hammond. Along with his 17 points, he grabbed six rebounds and was 5-for-7 from the line. He has a very nice touch around the basket for a freshman.
Amani Hansberry records another double-double
With Virginia Tech shorthanded, Amani Hansberry needed to stay out of foul trouble. He picked up his fourth foul with 8:03 left in the game, then fouled out early in overtime. Before fouling out, he had 20 points and 14 rebounds, three assists, two steals, and a block. He was 9-for-16 from the field and scored some big baskets, including the game-tying basket at the end of regulation to force overtime.
Ben Hammond was big down the stretch and in overtime
Hammond started in place of Avdalas and played 44 minutes. He scored 15 points, but his biggest play was feeding Gurdak late in overtime for the game-winning layup. He did a nice job at both ends of the floor and had two steals. He has improved from last year, when he took over the starting duties as ACC play began.
Izaiah Pasha had his best game as a Hokie
Mike Young was forced to go deep into his bench, and Delaware transfer Izaiah Pasha played 28 minutes and made his presence felt. He scored 11 points and had three assists, and two blocks. He hasn't been called on a lot this season, but he really stepped up when Virginia Tech needed him to on Saturday.
Give Elon credit for a tough fight
As much as you credit the Hokies for rallying from down 19 points to win the game, you have to give the Phoenix credit. They forced 13 Virginia Tech turnovers, and they made 10 3-pointers to build their lead. Even when they fell behind late in the game, they rallied back to force overtime and had a chance to win the game at the end of regulation and overtime. They fell to 7-5, but they will be a tough out in the CAA this year.
At 11-2, the Hokies are off until they host Virginia on New Year's Eve afternoon to open the ACC schedule in the first of two Commonwealth Clashes this season.