BLACKSBURG – Though they haven't played in a while, with their last game played being on Feb. 27, the 22nd-ranked Hokies' men's basketball squad is ready to go, according to their head coach Mike Young, who was named ACC Coach of the Year on Monday.
Young and Co. have played just two games within the last month, a double-digit loss to Georgia Tech (15-8, 11-6 ACC), which is the No. 4 seed in the ACC Tournament and is expected to make the NCAA Tournament, and a double-digit win over Wake Forest (6-15, 3-15), which it could face again come Thursday night in Greensboro if the Demon Deacons win two games in the tourney.
The tourney, which is in its 68th year for the league, has been a staple in the South for many years now. With teachers in the state of North Carolina rolling out big, brick TVs to allow their students to tune in and watch the games while class was going on, to schools doing trips via the bus to the tournament as well. It's a special thing to be a part of, and Young's Hokies are chomping at the bit to get there and compete.
"Really well," Young said in a press conference Tuesday when asked on how the team is feeling. "We are practicing and practicing well. We are healthy and look forward to getting to Greensboro."
Sure, there are concerns for the Hokies (15-5, 9-4), who are the No. 3 seed in the tournament, of being able to pick things back up quickly and show no rust. After missing at least one game due to a cancellation or postponement in a few instances, Tech went 0-3 when it returned, falling to then-RV/No. 25 Louisville, Syracuse and the Yellow Jackets. But, this is a little different of a situation than those prior times.
"I do feel better going into our league tournament, having had the opportunity to continue to practice," Young said. "It's March and kids want to play. I think to not have played in 10 days, whomever we play on Thursday, we look forward to it."
Tech looks to bolster its résumé this week and will have plenty of instances to do so. If the higher seed wins on their side of the bracket, the Hokies would take on sixth-seeded North Carolina (16-9, 10-6) in the quarterfinals and then No. 15/13 Florida State (15-5, 11-4), the No. 2 seed in the tournament, in the semifinals on Friday night.
Interestingly enough, the Hokies didn't face either team during the regular season, despite being matched up to play the Seminoles twice and the Tar Heels once, with all of those matchups coming in the month of February. But all three contests were canceled due to Covid-19 protocols and were not able to be made up at a later date. So, it would make it a unique situation playing a team for the first time in the conference tournament, something Young said he's never dealt with back in his Wofford days at the SoCon tournament.
"That's different, have never done that," Young said. "Having said that, we were scheduled to play Florida State twice. At least one of those we had done quite a bit of work, in terms of our scouting. We had done quite a bit of work for North Carolina in that preparation, too. Notre Dame we played twice. Wake Forest we played twice, as well. But that's new for me, I can assure you of that."
Having plenty opportunities will be nice for Tech, which, as of today, is projected as a No. 9 seed in ESPN's Bracketology by Joe Lunardi. We will see if it cashes in on those opportunities to improve its seed come Selection Sunday, as well make some more history in the postseason. Either way, it will be good nonetheless to see the Hokies back out there on the court. And, as Young said, they'll be ready.