Well, the college basketball season ended with disappointment tonight for both of Virginia's ACC programs.

For Virginia, a 96-85 loss to Bradley ended a frustrating senior season for All-ACC PG Sean Singletary. After an NCAA tournament run in '07, UVA had been picked to finish fifth in the ACC this year. However, a midseason thumping by Xavier sent the Cavaliers' season spiraling out of control, resulting in a 10th place finish in the ACC. UVA did have a chance to redeem its season in the inaugural CBI postseason tournament, but after beating in-state challengers Richmond and ODU, they couldn't get the job done in the CBI's Final Four and ended the season on a sour note.

Over in Blacksburg, the young Hokie hoopsters exceeded all expectations by finishing in 4th place in the ACC after having been picked 10th in the preseason poll. After early losses to those same Richmond and ODU teams beaten by UVA, the Hokies righted the ship in ACC play finishing with a 9-7 conference mark including sweeps of UVA and Maryland.

The Hokies seemed to be playing their best ball at the end of the season, losing to NCAA Tourney teams Clemson and UNC by a combined 3 poits and defeating another NCAA team in Miami. They also had high hopes for their postseason appearance in the NIT and played well in their first two games, winning by a combined 58 points. The long season seemed to take its toll on the freshmen-laden Hokies tonight though as they were out-hustled in almost every facet of the game by Ole Miss. The 81-72 loss in Blacksburg tonight was punctuated by a 43-19 advantage in rebounds for the Rebels.

As a Hokie fan, I have to say a big THANK YOU to Senior Deron Washington for all the excitement he has brought to the VT Basketball program these past four years. His boundless energy and sick dunks will surely be missed by all us Hokie fans next year. I look forward to watching Deron perform in the Slam Dunk Competition at the Final Four in San Antonio and I wish him the best in whatever he may do in life.

This is for you, Deron:

Newest additions to list of things that I HATE with the fiery passion of a thousand suns:

1. Tyler Hansborough
2. The University of Georgia

Thanks to these two things, Virginia Tech was denied a chance to play in the NCAA tournament despite finishing with a winning record in the toughest league in the country and despite taking the #1 team in the nation to the wire in the ACC semifinals.

SEC fans, your conference is a complete joke. When a team wth a losing record can come in and win your conference tournament that makes you a mid-major. And don't even get me started on the Big [L]East.

Oh well, now I get the joy of watching Deron Washington and VT's fabulous freshman class play a few more games at Cassell Coliseum as they have secured a #1 seed in the NIT tournament. I'll be in my seat Wednesday night clad in Orange and Maroon to watch the Hokies demolish Morgan State.

Only three teams will finish this season with a win. Here's hoping that Virginia Tech will prove the selection comittee wrong and be one of them.

Congratulations to Virginia Tech men's basketball coach Seth Greenberg for being named the ACC's Coach of the Year today. That makes the second time in four years in the league that Greenberg has received the honor.

I can't help but smile at all those pretentious ACC basketball types who predicted that Virginia Tech was "just a football school" and that their basketball program would be dead weight on the conference. All the Hokies have done since joing the conference is finish in the Top 4 of the conference 3 out of their 4 years.

Now, if they could just win the ACC Tournament, that would really set some heads spinning down on Tobacco Road!

Go Hokies!

40 minutes STILL wasn't enough for the Hoos and Hokies to decide a basketball game yesterday as the teams went into overtime for the second time this season. Unfortunately for the Wahoos, the outcome in Blacksburg was the same as it was in Charlottesville, a Hokies victory 72-65.

These are two teams going in completely opposite directions right now. After being picked to finish 10th in the ACC in the preseason poll, and struggling with early season lossess to the likes of Richmond and ODU, Virginia Tech has now won six of its last eight games and sit alone in third place in the ACC with a record of 5-3 midway through conference play.

The Wahoos, meanwile were picked to finish 5th in the ACC and looked to be a possible NCAA tournament team with a 10-2 start to the season. However, since the calendar turned to 2008, the Hoos have gone a measly 1-7 and sit in dead last in the ACC.

The Richmond Times' Bob Lipper today examines the differences in coaching between the two teams and how that may be affecting their play. While I believe Dave Lietao is a good coach and a good fit for UVA, Lipper may have a point when it comes to how his kids are responding to his style.

Meanwhile, all I know about VT is that these freshman have been a joy to watch and give Hokie Hoops fans a lot to be excited about for the future.

70-69

And here I thought VT was just a football school.

Well folks, it is that time of year again. It is VT-UVA week in college football. That means, just like Jerome from the FedEx-Kinkos commercial, it's time for the Wahoos to talk a big game and then do nothing.

In all seriousness, this could be the biggest game EVER in the storied history of the UVA-VT rivalry. If you haven't been following along, the Hokies and Hoos are currently ranked #8 and #16 respectively in the BCS. The winner of the game will not only hoist the shiny silver bauble known as the Commonwealth Cup, but will also earn a trip to Jacksonville to face Boston College in the ACC Championship game, and play for a spot in a BCS bowl game.

While both teams come into the game with identical 9-2 records, the way they have obtained those records has been far from similar. Virginia Tech struggled early in the season getting blown out by LSU in their second game, benching their QB for a true freshman and surviving early offensive struggles before hitting their stride in ACC play. Aside from a last minute collapse at the hands of the aforementioned BC Eagles, VT has fairly well handled their conference competition this year. The Hokies average margin of victory in their 6 conference wins has been an impressive 21.5 points and their defense has held their 7 conference foes to an average of about 14 points a game.

Meanwhile, over in Charlottesville, UVA rebounded from an early whipping at the hands of the Wyoming Cowboys (a game which prompted Lighthorse Harry to call for Al Groh's head on a platter) to win seven games in a row before losing again, this time to NC State. Unlike the Hokies, however, the Wahoos have lived a little bit closer to the edge. UVA's average margin of victory in 6 ACC wins was 11.3 points, but that includes a 48-0 blowout of Miami, without which the margin falls to 4 points per win. However, UVA's defense against conference foes has been almost as stingy as VT's, having given up an average of 16.8 points per game.

It is true that when a rivalry game such as this is played the stats go out the window. And while these stats don't tell us everything we need to know about these two teams, I think they do tell us a lot. First, they tell us that these are two very good defenses. Second, they tell us that Virginia has made its living by surviving close battles, while VT has largely smacked down their conference opponents. Finally, it tells us that both teams can put up some high scores at times.

The end result is that I predict this game is going to be a slugfest. Both offenses will have a tough time finding a rhythm, and field position and special teams will be key. Fortunately, these are two areas where VT excels. The game is being played in Charlottesville, but VT is looking as good as they have all season AND they have the additional motivation of a possible rematch with Boston College. Furthermore, the hidden statistic in this game is VT's 11-1 conference road record since joining the ACC in 2004. The Hokies have been very comfortable on the road in the ACC, and it will be no different in a mixed crowd in Scott Stadium next saturday.

While I won't go so far as to predict a final score or anything, I believe VT will outlast the Hoos in this one (shocking, I know). Like most of VT's other ACC games, I expect a close back-and-forth game that VT blows open towards the end. UVA has battled valiantly this season, but they haven't played a team as good as VT, while VT has played a few teams at or above UVA's level. I wouldn't be totally shocked by a UVA victory, but barring a bunch of turnovers or a Cory Holt sighting for VT, I don't see it happening.

Let the smacktalk begin!

Well, you knew it couldn't be long before I let some college football creep onto the pages of this here blog. This week's announcement out of Blacksburg that true freshman Tyrod Taylor will be the Hokies' starting quarterback this Saturday is a good opportunity to break the seal on my sports blogging.

First off, let me say that I was rooting hard for Sean Glennon to succeed this year and I feel terrible for the guy. I spent all of Labor Day weekend defending him as the starter and pointing out the reasons why he could still prove successful. However, I have to admit that I think Frank Beamer is making the right choice in replacing Glennon with Taylor and I am excited to see the results.

In some ways, the switch to Taylor is not entirely Glennon's fault, but rather that of a porous offensive line that could not protect him in the pocket. Further, the level to which Taylor has proved himself as prepared for the starting job has surprised even me. In addition, the schedule dictates that the move be made now while VT has a few opportunities (against Ohio, W&M and UNC) to get Taylor's feeet wet without risking too much. If VT had entered the meat of their ACC schedule without getting Taylor snaps under center, they probably couldn't have made the switch even if Glennon started stinking up the joint.

In fairness, Glennon did have an opportunity to quiet all the doubters and secure his spot as the #1 guy. The simple fact is that Glennon couldn't get the job done and his lack of production forced Beamer's hand.

I will be watching VT's game against Ohio University closely this weekend to see how Taylor responds to his new role. It is pretty remarkable that this young man has such an opportunity at such a young age. He appears to have all the physical tools necessary to do the job. Now, if he can just get a handle on the mental part, VT could have a lot of room to improve from their lackluster start to the season.