Eagles fall flat in Blacksburg

Judgment Week has not been kind to our Catholic institution. Despite the fact that this must-win game fell on one of the holiest days of the year, Boston College could find no salvation and was routed, 79-62, by Virginia Tech yesterday.

The last time these two teams met, the results were the exact opposite, and the surging Eagles walked away with the blowout win. This time, it was the Hokies time to shine, and they exploited the recently struggling Eagles who have now lost three in a row.

"Obviously this is not the time of year to be having breakdowns," said BC head coach Al Skinner to reporters after the game.

For the second time in the past three games, Jared Dudley has been extremely limited on the offensive end; he was held to just 15 points on six-for-14 shooting.

BC got off to a good start and raced out to a 9-4 lead, but they could not hold on for long. The Hokies quickly cut their deficit to two when A.D. Vasallo dunked over Jared Dudley, then got an easy lay-in off of the rebound of a missed Tyrese Rice trey. Dudley pushed the Eagles' lead back out to four when he hit a reverse off of a feed from Rice, but he fouled Coleman Collins at the other end, and Collins made one free throw to bring the Hokies back within three.

Virginia Tech took its first lead at just under the 12-minute mark when John Oates was called for goaltending. The Hokies then embarked on 21-4 run that began with a Vasallo three-pointer. Their lead reached double-digits when Deron Washington registered the tip-in of a missed jumper, then Zabian Dowdell iced two free throws to extend the advantage to 29-16.

Marquez Haynes stopped the bleeding when he drove to the hoop and got fouled going up, making the shot and the free throw. Washington came back at the other end with a deep jumper to push the lead back out to 10.

Dudley then got the rebound of a missed jumper on Virginia Tech's next possession, and he kicked it to Haynes, who was fouled under the basket. Haynes missed both free throws, but Oates grabbed the rebound of the second one to bring the Eagles within eight. Once again, Vasallo powered down the lane for two points, and after Dudley tallied his second personal foul with a charge on the Eagles' next possession, Washington made the score 36-23 with a three.

BC managed to put together a 12-4 run to end the half and cut the Hokies' lead to four at the intermission, punctuated by a drive through the lane by Rice as time expired on the clock.

Unfortunately, the Eagles could not sustain the momentum and allowed the game to spiral out of control very early in the second half.

Vasallo initiated a 14-0 Virginia Tech run with a deep three pointer. Repeatedly, the Eagles turned the ball over on sloppy passes in the paint that were easily picked by the Hokies. By the 18-minute mark, the Hokies had extended their lead to 14.

Sean Marshall had a chance to notch BC's first two points of the half when he was fouled with about 17 minutes remaining, but he missed both free throws. After the Eagles fell behind by 16, Marshall was fouled again and finally put the Eagles on the board at around the 15-minute mark.

A very messy series of possessions ensued, beginning with a Washington jumper. Oates was blocked on BC's next possession, but freshman Tyler Roche managed a steal on the other end; he lost his footing and was picked by Dowdell, who came back with another two points for the Hokies. When BC got the ball back, Rice threw up an airball that was picked by Virginia Tech and dunked by Washington on the other end.

Blair finally halted the 22-2 Virginia Tech run when he managed to knock in BC's first field goal of the half at the 12:09 mark. By then, the Eagles were down 58-36; the Hokies would extend that lead to as much as 30 with about eight minutes remaining.

Although the Eagles heated up enough at the end of the game to make the score respectable, the damage had already been done. They now look ahead to a critical stretch to end the season in which they must win at home against Clemson and on the road against Georgia Tech to keep their NCAA Tournament hopes alive.

With the win, the Hokies gain sole possession of second place in the conference. Dowdell led a balanced Virginia Tech scoring attack with 23 points; Washington and Vasallo chipped in 19 and 18, respectively. n