Virginia Tech men’s basketball has seen better days. In the third year under Mike Young, the Hokies carved out a respectable overall 20-12 record, which is acceptable, admirable even. But such a record comes with caveats: They finished in a paltry seventh place in the ACC regular-season standings. I’m no bracketologist, but that’s probably not how you want to enter March.
Thanks (or no thanks?) to their regular year foibles, Virginia Tech entered the ACC Tournament on the outside looking in to March Madness. Any early defeat would mean the Hokies were all but certainly going to have a silent month.
That nightmare almost became a reality in the second round against Clemson (+5 favorites) on Wednesday night. Virginia Tech faced a 75-73 overtime deficit, and a little over six seconds to go the length of the court, or their season’s over. Welp. Hokie fans should start filing out to beat the traffic.
Not if Darius Maddox has anything to say.
𝗧𝗛𝗜𝗦 𝗜𝗦 𝗠𝗔𝗥𝗖𝗛!!!! pic.twitter.com/hBrAMmBl4P
— Virginia Tech Men's Basketball (@HokiesMBB) March 10, 2022
A game-winning three right through the heart of fellow bubble Clemson, and a stoic stare down after practically screaming, “Yep, I did that.”
Here’s a couple of more angles of this sweet taste of the madness to come.
DARIUS MADDOX‼️‼️‼️ pic.twitter.com/fVSnku8bdD
— Virginia Tech Men's Basketball (@HokiesMBB) March 10, 2022
DARIUS MADDOX CALLED GAME@HokiesMBB GETS THE OT WIN ‼️‼️‼️‼️ pic.twitter.com/JmFyCvn55j
— ACC Network (@accnetwork) March 10, 2022
Virginia Tech survives to play No. 2 seeded Notre Dame on Thursday. Another tall order and another win they probably have to have. After Maddox’s heroics, you’d forgive them if they felt invincible.
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