Virginia Tech falls to VCU in Battle 4 Atlantis tournament

The Virginia Tech Hokies came to the Bahamas undefeated (5-0). In the first round of the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament, the Hokies narrowly defeated Colorado State 66-64. In the semifinal, the Hokies lost their first game to Saint Mary’s on Thanksgiving Day. On Friday, Tech faced state rival VCU for the first time in 12 years, falling to the Rams 86-68 in the third-place game.

Virginia Tech is now 6-2 on the season. Virginia Tech senior forward Tobi Lawal, who is averaging a double-double, missed his second straight game, and the Hokies lost both games.

VCU dominated this game from the start, jumping on the Hokies early, taking a 10-2 lead three minutes in. The Rams would continue to lead for several minutes until VT junior guard Jaden Schutt got hot from beyond the arc. Thanks to Schutt, the Hokies got back into the game, and back-to-back buckets by freshman guard Neoklis Avdalas and junior forward Amani Hansberry gave them a 27-25 lead. The Rams called timeout and proceeeded to score the next 10 points and never looked back.

VCU would reel off a 7-2 run before halftime to take a 45-35 lead at the break.

It would be the same after halftime, with the Rams outscoring the Hokies 14-4 to open a 20-point lead. Virginia Tech would finally get the game back to within six points with under eight minutes remaining as sophomore Izaiah Pasha scored on a layup. Unfortunately, the Hokies couldn’t create enough stops and VCU quickly opened the game back up with another big run.

VCU shot 53% from the field and 52% from beyond the arc (11 of 21). The Rams outrebounded the Hokies 36-28. Virginia Tech clearly had some issues with VCU’s length and athleticism. Once the Rams changed how they defended Schutt, he wasn’t as effective. He did finish with 15 points off the bench, however, only two of those points came after halftime.

Hansberry and sophomore guard Tyler Johnson each scored 16 points to lead the Hokies. Avdalas scored only eight points. It was the second straight game that Tech allowed its opponent to shoot over 50% from the field. The Hokies shot 44% from the field.

VT will need to put this one behind them as it opens ACC/SEC Challenge on Tuesday at South Carolina. Four days later, the Hokies host undefeated George Mason. It’s a chance for the Hokies to get back on track after a tough weekend. Hopefully, Lawal will be back.