Miami Muscles Way To Win Over Hokies

BLACKSBURG, Va., Feb. 9 -- J.T. Thompson watched the ball roll off the rim, and his desperation yielded to relief. Virginia Tech had whacked away at a 10-point deficit for three wild minutes using wanton fouling and rapid shooting, desperate to beat Miami and desperate to keep viable its NCAA tournament dreams.

When Miami missed a free throw with less than three seconds remaining, the Hokies were within one basket of tying the score. Point guard Hank Thorns pumped his fist at midcourt. The odds still seemed long, but not for a gang of freshmen who knew only success in such situations.

"I thought for sure we were at least going to get it into overtime," Thompson said. "That's usually how it works for us."

Not Saturday afternoon, as Virginia Tech fell, 74-71, to Miami at Cassell Coliseum, squandering another chance to add a quality line to its tournament r¿sum¿. The Hokies dropped to 0-5 against top 50 teams in the Ratings Percentage Index despite guard A.D. Vassallo scoring 19 of his game-high 24 points in the second half, unable to overcome the Hurricanes' 35-20 rebounding advantage.

Virginia Tech (14-10, 5-5), third in the ACC and a tournament bubble team at worst a week ago, now faces a week off before consecutive road games at conference heavyweights North Carolina and Maryland. Still, Coach Seth Greenberg viewed the Hokies' current stretch with more levity than angst.

"Wow, I'm going to jump off the top of the Cassell tomorrow," Greenberg said, sarcasm dripping off his tongue. "I might slit my wrists, I don't know. My wife better keep sharp objects away from me."

Miami (16-7, 3-6) built its 10-point lead by battering Virginia Tech in the post. Rebounding was "the focal point of our scouting report," Greenberg said, but Miami's size and strength negated any of his plans. The Hurricanes snared 13 offensive rebounds and turned them into 13 points. Anthony King led Miami with 11 and Jimmy Graham grabbed seven in just 18 minutes. At times, King looked like a 24-year-old man overpowering freshmen in their late teens, which was exactly the case.

"Their big guys were big and strong," Thompson said. "You had to fight hard for a rebound. They had too many opportunities."

While Miami's forwards dominated the rebounding, Jack McClinton and reserve Eddie Rios handled the scoring. McClinton scored a team-high 19 and Rios, who averaged three points entering the game, added 14.

Though Rios surprised, McClinton deserved the spotlight. His final three-pointer came after charging around a screen and with 6-foot-7 Deron Washington thrusting a hand in his face. Washington shook his head and glanced at McClinton, as if wondering if what he saw really happened.

"That shot was ridiculous," Greenberg said. "He makes big-time shots."

Miami maintained breathing room by making free throws; the Hurricanes entered the game shooting 65 percent from the foul line but made 21 of 25 Saturday. Still, the Hokies sliced the lead to 73-71 when Thorns banked in a driving layup, and Virginia Tech sent Graham to the free throw line 2.4 seconds left.

Washington heaved a baseball pass down the floor to Thorns, but Graham leapt and deflected the ball out of bounds. Graham's tip became a fortunate break for Virginia Tech, which could inbound close to its basket and set up a three-point attempt that could have tied the score.

McClinton and Raymond Hicks glued themselves to Vassallo even as Jeff Allen set a screen. Washington flashed to the left wing with no one around, but he fumbled Thorns's inbounds pass. He barely had control when he shot-putted a three, but it still sailed on line.

"I thought it was going in," Allen said.

As Washington leaned forward, the ball caromed off the front rim, dropped to the ground and rolled harmlessly away.

"We had our chances," Vassallo said. "We're just not executing for 40 minutes. We play good for 25, 30 minutes, and that other 10 minutes we just play terrible. It's hard for us to come back. We did a great job coming back, but it was too tough."