In front of a massive crowd, the Virginia Tech Hokies took down the visiting Clemson Tigers, 60-57.

Big Implications

Coming into their Saturday afternoon matchup against the Clemson Tigers, the Virginia Tech Hokies knew that their NIT hopes were in jeopardy. Sitting at 12-11 and 4-6 in the ACC and in the midst of a 5 game losing streak, VT was desperate for a victory.

The stakes were even higher for Clemson, a team with NCAA Tournament aspirations. Brad Brownell's team was at 14-8, 7-3 in the ACC, and coming off of a victory over Wake Forest.

Landry Nnoko Steals Show Early For Clemson

In a low-scoring first half, Clemson's biggest weapon was senior Cameroonian Landry Nnoko. The big man was a force in the paint on offense, scoring 8 points on three field goals and a pair of free throws. He was key on defense, blocking two shocks and leaping for four defensive rebounds.

Virginia Tech was very reluctant to pound the paint where Nnoko was lurking. VT's big man Zach LeDay had a very slow start as the Hokies jacked up seven missed three-pointers instead.

The Tigers looked as though they would blow the game wide open after star forward Jaron Blossomgame showed his range by drilling a trey. This extended the Clemson lead, making it 24-17 with 2 minutes remaining. However, Virginia Tech went on a mini 5-0 run in the remaining time which included a weaving drive into the lane by Seth Allen, who went on to produce the three-point-play. At halftime, Clemson held a slight advantage, 24-22.

Virginia Tech Gets Swagger Back, Starts Knocking Down Treys And Cutting Clemson Defense

Clemson took a punch early in the 2nd half, as Buzz Williams's team found some paths to the rim for easy layups and close jumpers. Seth Allen shouldered his way down low, flipping a shot over the defender and in. Cassell Coliseum roared when, on the other end, young Justin Robinson got up for an electrifying block against talented senior Tiger Jordan Roper.

Justin Bibbs and Seth Allen knocked down shots beyond the parabola in succession, giving Virginia Tech a 36-31 lead with 13 minutes left. A three-point play by continually-improving big man KJ Blackshear put the lead at 7 with 12:25 on the clock. The arena erupted when Jalen Hudson cut down the middle for a massive slam dunk, causing Clemson's Brad Brownell to call a frantic timeout. VT had been on a 19-8 run to start the 2nd half. The Fighting Gobblers were playing inspired basketball.

West Virginia native Donte Granthem kept the Clemson Tigers within striking distance with a few drives to the rim, but nobody could stop old VPI's Jalen Hudson show. VT's rising sophomore continued his second half dominance by creating havoc on defense. Hudson also contributed a three-pointer and a layup in succession as Clemson's defense continued to wilt.

Clemson Mounts Late Run, Can't Overcome Virginia Tech In The End

Clemson knew that someone in their backcourt would have to step up. Jordan Roper, who was in the midst of a poor shooting day, gave a spark for the Tigers, scoring a quick layup and later a three from the corner to get the deficit down to 3. Avry Holmes, an X factor for Clemson this year, made it a one point game after getting back for the score in transition.

The Tigers took the lead once with another Roper triple, but KJ Blackshear promptly answered with a pretty post move to make it 53-52 with just over a minute remaining. Following a failed Clemson possession, Zach LeDay made a move himself to extend the slim Hokie lead.

Clemson had a chance to tie with under a minute remaining, but a three point attempt by Roper at the top of the key sailed wide left. Clemson got the ball back fairly quickly, and got down to the paint. The ball was tipped out of bounds off of a Hokie player, a call that went to review. Clemson retained the ball with 31 ticks left, and Nnoko slammed it home to cut it back to 1.

After a pair of LeDay free throws were drilled, Blossomgame scored a key jumper on the other end. He was fouled as well, but missed from the charity stripe. The fouling fest was on with LeDay scoring another two. On the other end with 17 seconds left, Avry Holmes was fouled, but he missed the first. Clemson still had life with 10 seconds left when VT went 1-2 at the line, but a messy Tigers possession ended without a shot even being took. Somehow, Virginia Tech survived 60-57 to break the 5 game losing streak.

Going Forward

Clemson, now 14-9 (7-4) on the year, just suffered a crippling loss for their NCAA Tournament case. They will have to rebound quickly as they face off against Notre Dame on Monday in a must win game.

Virginia Tech, now 13-11 (5-6), grabbed another huge win for their growing program. The Hokies, still searching for an NIT bid, will head to Charlottesville on Tuesday to take on their rival, the Virginia Cavaliers.