Monday night the Hokies played a bad Boston College team at home and narrowly escaped with a 66-65 win, needing a tip-in by Dorian Finney-Smith (affectionately called Doe-Doe) with 1.8 seconds left to close it out. This game didn't feel like it would end up good for the Hokies right from the start. They didn't turn the ball over at an alarming rate, giving up 10 possessions for the game, but they did turn it over at the wrong times. Now a turnover is never good but when the game is close and you are on a run to perhaps take a lead or tie that is the worst possible time to have a turnover. I haven't watched the replay yet but from what I remember they turned it over in that situation at least half of the time and that just kills any momentum you had building up. This team has talent and athleticism and a great leader in Erick Greene but they still have a tendency to shoot themselves in the foot by either turning it over or taking bad shots at big moments in the game. They also just need to focus more on the easy plays and not try to make circus passes that have a low rate of conversion. Once they past this hump, figure out their individual roles, and just focus on the game plan instead of trying to do too much I think they could make a run in the ACC Tournament. The emergence of Doe-Doe is going to have a huge impact on the chance of that happening.
On Monday night Doe-Doe took over he finished with 17 points, 8 rebounds (7 offensive),2 assists, 1 steal, and 1 block. And he played like the player Seth Greenberg has been telling us about all season. He didn't try to do too much and you can tell that as his confidence builds and he gets bigger he definately be a force in the ACC. I know I have said this before, but with all of the close games this year if Doe-Doe could have maintained even half of or a third of that point production throughout the year we would be in a completely different position right now and probably looking forward to another NCAA snub at the end of the year. Instead we play every game with the thought of avoiding being last in the ACC and hoping to find the chemistry that will help to make a push in the ACC tournament.
Moving forward I think there are more positives than negatives to look towards. Erick Greene is playing at an all-ACC level and still holds the current streak for double-digit games scoring in the ACC. I think the MVP for the ACC right now should be him, because without his production and leadership this team would be lost. Marquis Rankin seems to be finding himself and gaining valuable experience towards next year. C.J. Barksdale is coming on too and if he hadn't gotten an early injury in this game I think he was going to have a big one as he played his way into the starting lineup and was producing early. Victor Davila is a force offensively, you wish he could step up a little on defense, but if the Hokies can get him the ball a bit more I think it would open more shots for the shooters. Cadarian Raines plays great defense and whoever teaches the big men their hook shots is doing a great job as he is starting to hit those on a consistent basis just like Davila. Jarrell Eddie, while some times inconsistent has also showed that he can takeover games and the combination of him and Doe-Doe on the wings will be fun to watch for a long time.
All in all this is still a very young team but a young team that is showing they can learn. I think Seth Greenberg is a great teacher, he develops his talent well, and most of his players progress at a good rate. I look for more good things this year and in the years to come as these young guys come together. As we all know winning cures all that ails a team and if this team can stay strong and play tough through these next couple of weeks they really could make a run and end up where they want to be. It isn't going to be easy starting with Florida State this Thursday, but they have a chance and that is all they need to win. They already have the tools and hopefully with some confidence in themselves and each other they will take advantage of that chance and I look forward to that. GO HOKIES!
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