After picking up a massive Quad 1 road win at Clemson last week, 76-66, the Virginia Tech men's basketball team erased all the good they did by being blown out at home on Saturday afternoon by Florida State. That loss all but popped the Hokeis NCAA Tournament bubble. Unless they picked up another Quad 1 road win at Miami on Tuesday night.
Trailing 67-66 with 3.8 seconds left, Virginia Tech had one shot to win the game on an out-of-bounds play and again came up short in a one-possession game. The story of the 2025-26 season in ACC play. Another gut check loss for a team that has endured too many in one season.
Virginia Tech's NCAA Tournament bubble popped
That should come close to being the final dagger for the Hokies this year. They had the ball on the sideline with 3.8 seconds left, and Ben Hammond, who was terrific in the game, missed a runner at the buzzer that really had no shot of going in.
However, the story of the second half was Miami's Tre Donaldson. Virginia Tech had no answer for him whatsoever. He got what he wanted when he wanted. He drove to the basket, finished, and then knocked down the game-tying 3-pointer with a minute left. He was fouled with 12 seconds left in a tie game and made the front end of a one-and-one, which was the deciding point.
Donaldson had a career-high 32 points (of course, he did against Virginia Tech), and 24 of those points came in the second half. When Miami and Donaldson missed, the Hokeis failed to grab rebounds as the Hurricanes had 13 offensive rebounds that led to 19 points. That can't happen.
It is the fourth ACC loss by one possession and a gut-punch in what has turned into one of those years. Virginia Tech, which got 16 points from Amani Hansberry, 12 from Jailen Bedford, and 10 from Hammond, returns home Saturday to host Wake Forest.