BLACKSBURG – Despite getting 21 points from Kerry Blackshear Jr., the No. 11 Virginia Tech men's basketball team fell 72-64 to No. 16 Louisville in an ACC game Monday night at Carilion Clinic Court.
With the loss, Tech fell to 18-4 overall on the season, 7-3 in the ACC. Louisville moved to 17-6 overall, 8-2 in league play.
Louisville grabbed the lead right from the start and never trailed in the game. The Cardinals led 31-26 at halftime and then pushed the lead to 15 points in the second half, taking a 57-42 lead on two free throws by Steven Enoch with 8:26 remaining.
The Hokies cut the lead to 63-58 on two free throws by Blackshear with 1:50 remaining, but Louisville's Dwayne Sutton banked in a 3-pointer from the top of the key with 1:36 to go, pushing the lead to 66-58. Tech's Nickeil Alexander-Walker made one of two free-throw attempts on the ensuing possession for the Hokies, but Louisville responded again, with Jordan Nwora scoring on a layup to give the Cardinals a 68-59 advantage with 54 seconds to go and essentially sealing the game.
(2/4/2019) 2019 MEN'S BASKETBALL vs. LOUISVILLE
Blackshear made 6 of 13 from the floor and 8 of 9 from the free-throw line for the Hokies, who shot 44.4 percent, but hurt themselves with 13 turnovers. Alexander-Walker scored 17 points and handed out four assists, and Ty Outlaw had 12 points and seven rebounds.
Ryan McMahon led Louisville with 17 points off the bench – including 12 straight during a stretch midway through the second half. He hit four 3-pointers and all five of his free-throw attempts. Sutton added 17 points as well, while Nwora finished with 15.
Louisville shot 45.3 percent from the floor and drained 13 3-pointers.
QUOTES TO NOTE
Virginia Tech head coach Buzz Williams
(On McMahon's outburst in the second half)
"Six of his 12, we were in a zone press, just trying to change the rhythm. Both of those were big shots. I thought they were in a little bit too much of a groove prior to the zone press."
(On Sutton's banked 3-pointer and whether that deflated the team)
"It's OK. They didn't get a paint touch and they banked in a 3. That's just part of it. I thought defensively we were good that possession."
(On finding a new identity without Justin Robinson and P.J. Horne)
"I'm not sure. I don't mean that in a condescending way. A lot has changed since Wednesday night, and we had practice Friday morning before class for an hour. They'll be off tomorrow. We'll have a 'get better' day on Wednesday, and then we'll be able to work on Thursday and Friday, but that will be the first real practice that we've had. We need as many practices as we can. I think we play Saturday on the road, and then the following week, we play three games in five days again. I think it's Wednesday, Saturday, Monday again. Tomorrow is the fifth, so we play six games in the next 23 days. We'll have to be off a day a week, but our practices, those reps are going to be really important so that we can figure out what gives us our best chance."
GAME NOTES
• Robinson missed his second straight game with a foot injury that he suffered in the second half of the Miami game. Horne missed his fourth straight game after suffering a leg injury late in the Wake Forest game.
• Blackshear now has scored at least 20 points in three games this season and reached the double-figure mark in 17 games.
• Alexander-Walker now has scored in double figures in 19 games this season.
• The 13 3-pointers allowed by Tech were tied for its third-most allowed in a game this season.
• Wabissa Bede tied his ACC career high with five assists.
UP NEXT
The Hokies return to the court Saturday when they face the Clemson Tigers in Clemson, South Carolina. Tech has won four straight games against the Tigers, including last season's 68-58 victory in Blacksburg. The game tips off at noon.