After a string of nail-biters that left fans holding their breath until the final buzzer, Virginia Tech finally got a chance to breathe - and dominate.
The Hokies (14-5, 3-3 ACC) took control early against Notre Dame on Saturday and never looked back, cruising to an 89-76 win that marked their largest margin of victory in ACC play this season. Once they grabbed the lead just three minutes in, they kept the Fighting Irish at arm’s length for the rest of the afternoon, maintaining at least a nine-point cushion for the final 34 minutes of the game.
“It was a breath of fresh air to come away with the win like that,” said guard Jailen Bedford, and you could hear the collective exhale from Blacksburg.
The timing couldn’t have been better. Just days earlier, the Hokies were stunned by a buzzer-beating half-court shot from SMU’s Boopie Miller in a 77-76 heartbreaker.
That kind of loss lingers - not just in the locker room, but all over social media, as Bedford pointed out. Virginia Tech needed a bounce-back, and they didn’t just get it - they delivered it with authority.
“We could have moped around,” head coach Mike Young said. “We could have been sluggish to start, but played a good ball game. Went into the half up 11, closed it out in the second in pretty good fashion.”
At the heart of the Hokies’ win was physicality - especially from their frontcourt. Tobi Lawal and Amani Hansberry set the tone by relentlessly attacking the paint and living at the free throw line. Notre Dame simply didn’t have the size to keep them in check.
Lawal had a career day at the stripe, going 14-of-18 and finishing with a 22-point, 11-rebound double-double. Hansberry was a perfect 9-for-9 from the line, adding 21 points, six boards, and a pair of assists.
As a team, Virginia Tech knocked down 28 of 32 free throws - a massive improvement from their late-game misses in the SMU loss. They were perfect from the line until Lawal missed four late in the second half with the game already in hand.
“We had a lot of perfect (from the free throw line),” Young said. “Lawal and Hansberry are big, rugged people … We shot a lot (of free throws in practice), not as much Thursday as we did on Friday.
Our numbers on Friday were good. Needless to say, those can cost you.
They’ve cost us this year.”
The Hokies didn’t just bring it on offense. Defensively, they were locked in - aggressive, disciplined, and dialed into the scouting report.
Notre Dame struggled to find rhythm from deep, going just 6-for-24 from beyond the arc and shooting 44% overall. The Irish’s key scorers - Jalen Haralson and Braeden Shrewsberry - were kept in check all game, combining for just 14 points while committing five turnovers.
Haralson, who battled early foul trouble, didn’t even get on the scoreboard until late in the first half.
“Our mindset on defense was aggressiveness,” Bedford said. “Taking pride in the scout.
That was big. We came out wanting to set the tone that’s like, we’re gonna lock up and get the job done.”
There was one brief hiccup. After jumping out to an 18-9 lead, Tech hit a rough patch midway through the first half. A flurry of turnovers opened the door for an 11-3 Notre Dame run, with contributions from Garrett Sundra, Shrewsberry, Cole Certa, and Brady Koehler trimming the Hokies’ lead to just two.
But just as quickly, Virginia Tech slammed that door shut. Ben Hammond and Neoklis Avdalas responded with back-to-back threes, igniting a 10-0 run that reasserted control.
From that point on, it was all Hokies. Hammond finished with 16 points, while Avdalas added 8 points, 7 assists, and 2 rebounds in a steady, composed performance.
Next up, Virginia Tech heads north to face Syracuse (12-6, 3-2 ACC) at the JMA Wireless Dome on Wednesday night. The Orange are coming off a surprising 81-73 loss to Boston College - and both teams will be looking to make a statement in the crowded ACC race.
But if Saturday’s performance is any indication, the Hokies may have found their rhythm - and their edge - at just the right time.