The No. 21 Hokies started off hot against the No. 12 Florida State Seminoles on the road but the momentum and home crowd that was behind FSU was just too much for Buzz Williams and his Hokies squad.
It is very likely even with a win over Duke at home and the two losses on the road in the ACC, dropping the Hokies to 1-2 in conference play will drop them out of the AP Top 25. Virginia Tech got ranked in the polls this past Monday and rightfully so, but when the polls release this coming Monday they won’t be there and rightfully so.
Virginia Tech will return home on Jan. 10 to start a three-game home stand that welcomes Syracuse first, Notre Dame on Jan. 14 and Georgia Tech on Jan. 18. That is good new for the Hokies and their fans as Virginia Tech hasn’t lost a game at home this season (9-0).
It is still early for ACC basketball but looking at the most recent outcomes in some of these games, if the home team doesn’t protect their court, it could potentially be a long season. Even though the Hokies scored the first six points of the game, the lack of size and depth eventually hurt the Hokies.
Dwayne Bacon for FSU had 17 points and has scored in double figures in 25 straight games. The bench continues to show why the Seminoles are one of the deepest teams in not just the ACC but college basketball. If FSU manages to stay healthy, unlike Virginia Tech, they can be a dangerous team once the NCAA Tournament starts.
This was the second straight game where the Hokies were trailing by double digits at the half. Virginia Tech trailed by 25 on Wednesday on the road against the Wolfpack who went on defeat Tech, 104-78 and then again by 11 against FSU. Tech has combined for 17 turnovers in both games with 11 coming off opponents steals.