Quick thoughts from Duke 67, Virginia Tech 55
Darryl Slater
Feb 22, 2010
Twenty-seven.
That’s how many second-chance points Duke had in tonight’s 67-55 win over Virginia Tech, which snapped the Hokies’ five game winning streak and further established the Blue Devils as the ACC’s lone elite team.
None of those second-chance points were bigger than center Brian Zoubek’s put-back layup—and ensuing free throw, after a Jeff Allen foul—which put the Blue Devils up 52-47 with 7:09 left tonight here at Cameron Indoor Stadium. The play highlighted an 11-2 run.
“He’s a mountain masquerading as a man,” Hokies coach Seth Greenberg said of Zoubek, who entered the game averaging six rebounds in league play. “The guy’s a huge human being. He gives you a little pop, [and] he creates space to rebound the ball. He’s not too far from the basket once he rebounds it.”
Greenberg wished his players were “more physical in our block outs. We had to make [the officials] make a call.”
Allen picked up his fourth foul on the Zoubek put-back. It was the third consecutive game he experienced foul trouble, and he finished with just eight points in 19 minutes. The Hokies simply cannot afford to have him off the floor that much.
For more, see tomorrow’s print edition.
-30-
Hokies’ five-game winning streak is over.