Virginia Tech Men's Basketball: Hokies Win Overtime Thriller Against Syracuse

Virginia Tech (13-16, 8-10 ACC) entered Saturday’s matchup coming off a tough 5-point loss to No. 19 Louisville at home in which the Hokies displayed their usual grit, but just couldn’t get the job done. Mike Young’s team continues to make their push late into the ACC schedule in hopes of securing a first round bye in the conference tournament in Charlotte beginning on March 11th. In a stretch where every game has significant ramifications, Saturday’s matchup against Syracuse (12-17, 6-12 ACC) was a must-win for the Hokies. 

Hokies struggled early

In the first half, Virginia Tech missed its leading scorer and rebounder, Tobi Lawal, who was out with an illness on both ends of the floor. The Hokies managed to hold their own offensively, though, shooting 58% from the floor and 40% from three-point range. Without Lawal, Mike Young relied on different rotations of players to generate offensive rhythm to notch a total of 38 points, despite 6 turnovers.

Jaden Schutt led the Hokies in scoring with 10 points. Virginia Tech struggled defensively, surrendering 47 points before the break, 28 of which came in the paint. Eddie Lampkin and Jyare Davis paced the Orange on the offensive end with 14 and 10 points, respectively. Syracuse, which led by 11 at one point, closed the half on a 10-4 run.

After halftime, Virginia Tech was put in a bind early, as Mylyjael Poteat picked up his third personal foul just under a minute and a half into play. The Orange capitalized on the Hokies’ hollow interior defense, feeding Lampkin and company down low and extending their scoring advantage in the paint to. Meanwhile, the Hokies struggled to find the same offensive efficiency they played with in the first 20 minutes, shooting just 38% at the 15:30 mark.

The Orange extended their lead to 13 following the 12-minute timeout as part of a 10-0 run. Momentum would soon shift in the home team’s favor, however, as Virginia Tech battled back, putting together a 14-1 run of its own by the 4:41 mark to tie the game at 70. It was during this run that the Hokies finally found their defense, scoring in transition off of several forced turnovers. 

Virginia Tech took its first lead since the 18:54 mark of the first half with 1:12 left to go up 78-77. Poteat then hit a spinning jump hook to extend the Hokies’ lead to 80-77 with 27.8 seconds remaining. But just as the game seemed to be wrapping up, on the final play of the half, Syracuse’s Jaquan Carlos hit a leaning three point shot with 0.6 seconds left to tie the game at 82 and send the contest to overtime, stunning the Cassell Coliseum crowd.

In the extra five minutes of play, Jaydon Young and Ben Hammond took over for the Hokies, leading the way to a 19-13 scoring advantage in overtime play to win the game 101-95. 

Hokies picked up much-needed victory

Coming into this game, Mike Young's team knew they would have to find a way to win without Tobi Lawal on the floor. On Senior Day, not only did other players step up, but it was underclassmen who led the way. Jaydon Young’s 26 points– 24 of which came after halftime– propelled the offense, and the sophomore guard’s superb performance was deftly supplemented by freshman Ben Hammond’s 21 points and sophomore Jaden Schutt’s 20 points.

In fact, Saturday’s win was the first game in which three Hokies have scored 20 or more points since 2018. The youth of this team has always been one of its most exciting qualities, particularly as the Hokies have improved as the season has progressed. In the absence of many seasoned veterans to lead by example, time and time again it’s the younger members of the team who have shouldered the load when the going gets tough– an impressive trend that should excite all Virginia Tech fans. Like other times this season, after going down 13 points in the second half, Virginia Tech's young team easily could have folded.

Instead, they just kept battling with a workmanlike approach. If Mike Young can retain this core of Lawal, Hammond, and Young, and supplement it with improved play from Johnson, Rechsteiner, Wessler, and Brown, the potential for this team is great in the coming seasons. 

The Hokies return to the hardwood on Tuesday, March 4th at 7:00 PM against North Carolina in Blacksburg.