ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Monday, December 2, 1996 TAG: 9612030027
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: HILO, HAWAII
SOURCE: RANDY KING STAFF WRITER
THE HOKIES CAN'T STOP Illinois and Colorado in the Big Island Invitational.
There may have been one thing worse than the weather in this Hawaiian outpost this weekend: Virginia Tech's defense.
Exhibiting more leaks than the dark clouds that routinely cover Hilo, the Hokies' defense was almost nonexistent in a crushing 92-68 loss to Illinois in Sunday's third-place game of the Big Island Invitational at the Afook Chinen Civic Auditorium.
Raining 3-pointers all afternoon, Illinois (4-1) hit 13 of 25 shots from long range and shot 52.4 percent for the game against a Hokie team that right now would have a hard time guarding a statue.
Just 16 hours earlier, Tech (1-2) had yielded a 53.5 percent shooting effort in a 63-56 second-round loss to Colorado.
``We're awful,'' said Tech coach Bill Foster, not mincing words.
``I bet we haven't given up back-to-back 50 percent games in three years. Only [four] teams shot 50 percent on us all last year and I think it was five the year before that.
``We're not guarding anybody. We either got to get better in a man or get in a zone. We're not getting it done defensively. We got killed both games on dribble penetration. So we've got a lot of work to do, believe me.''
While they're at it, the Hokies had better work on rebounding, too. The Fighting Illini beat Tech on the backboards 39-24.
``We got worn out on the glass by one of the few teams all year we'll play that's no bigger than we are,'' Foster said.
Tech shot 50 percent from the field - good enough to win most games.
Illinois ran Tech almost off the island with a 17-0 run midway through the first half that turned an 18-15 Hokie lead into a 32-18 deficit. Illinois outscored Tech 34-10 before the Hokies scored the final six points of the half to trail 49-34.
Tech got as close as 53-43 with 16 minutes left, before Illinois said aloha and dominated the rest of the way.
Matt Heldman, who had five 3-pointers, paced five Illini scorers in double figures with 18 points.
Ace Custis led Tech with 19 points and nine rebounds. Jim Jackson added 12 and Keefe Matthews 10 for the Hokies.
In Saturday's game:
Colorado 63, Virginia Tech 56: Unlike Illinois, which did most of its damage outside, Colorado went inside on Tech and proceeded to conduct a layup drill.
The Buffaloes, playing without suspended star guard Chauncey Billups, bullied the Hokies inside with physical play.
``We came out and played soft at the beginning, they pushed us off the block and we didn't get into our offense early and that hurt us,'' Custis said.
Tech, which had shot 52.2 percent in scoring 101 points in its opening-round victory over host Hawaii-Hilo, shot just 44.4 percent but still had plenty of chances to win.
Tech was trailing 58-56 with 61 seconds left when point guard Troy Manns, with a wide-open 3-point look from the top of the key, came up short.
After Charlie Melvin hit two free throws with 30 seconds left to put the Buffs up 60-56, Manns threw the ball away. Following a Will Smith free throw with :19 showing that put Colorado up five, Tech was washed away when Custis traveled while trying to get off a contested 3-pointer.
Most of Tech's offense came inside through Matthews and Custis, who combined for all but eight of the Hokies' 20 field goals. Matthews missed just once in seven shots and finished with a game-high 15 points. Custis, who had 30 points and 17 rebounds against Hilo, was limited to 14 points and seven rebounds.
``I know we're going to have some growing pains early,'' said Foster, whose club meets East Tennessee State on Thursday in Blacksburg.
After the two losses and all the rain in Hilo, the Hokies were ready to blow this joint quickly Sunday night. Tech flew out of Hilo at 8 p.m. local time and is expected to arrive in Blacksburg around 10 tonight.
``I don't care if it's eight degrees and snow on the ground in Blacksburg, I want to go home,'' Foster said.
``No doubt,'' said Custis, ``let's get out of this place. It hasn't been a real good Hawaiian experience for us the past couple days. We need to get back to Blacksburg and get better.''
NOTE: Please see microfilm for scores.
LENGTH: Medium: 84 linesby CNB