THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, March 15, 1996 TAG: 9603150602
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TOM ROBINSON, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: DALLAS LENGTH: Medium: 82 lines
Virginia Tech beat Wisconsin-Green Bay at its own game Thursday, methodically crafting a 61-48 NCAA Midwest Regional victory at Reunion Arena.
Now, all all the ninth-seeded Hokies have to do is completely scrap that game plan and crank up something entirely different for Saturday's second-round .
The opponent then will be top-seeded Kentucky, which thrashed San Jose State by 38 points. And the Wildcats definitely do not do slow-down basketball.
``I think the worst thing you can do, unless you can just dominate them, is to try to make a running game out of something that's not a running game,'' Tech coach Bill Foster said of Wisconsin-Green Bay. ``I was proud that we were patient today.
``We like to run, but I told our kids we can't beat them if we've got to depend on transition, because they're not going to give you any.''
For the greater part of the afternoon, shots at both ends of the court were launched only after multiple passes, with the 35-second shot clock into single digits. The full-court press was extraneous, the fast-break layup nonexistent.
This was walk-it-up, pick-and-roll, protect-the-rock basketball right out of the text book, the only way eighth-seeded Wisconsin-Green Bay (25-4) can play. And the Hokies, with senior guard Shawn Good's 25 points driving them, appeared more than comfortable in that mode.
``A big strength of this team is the way we're able to adjust to the situation,'' Good said.
The Hokies (23-5) didn't give Phoenix star Jeff Nordgaard a break, and it was critical to their effort. They rotated three defenders on the high-scoring senior forward - Good, Ace Custis and reserve Jim Jackson, who was so effective he played a season-high 30 minutes - and they all bumped, shoved and otherwise harassed Nordgaard for 40 minutes.
That Nordgaard still hit his 22-point average and shot 10 for 19 speaks to his ability, because the Hokies made him sweat just to touch the ball. Aside from 15 points from forward Ben Berlowski, though, Nordgaard received minimal help from his teammates, who often appeared afraid to shoot.
``We have some physical limitations that we have to deal with,'' Wisconsin-Green Bay coach Mike Heideman said. ``We needed someone to step up and we did not have that happen today.''
That was no problem for Tech. With backcourt mate Damon Watlington (2 for 10 from the field) still off his game because of a sprained ankle, Good reached a career-high point total - and surpassed 1,000 points for his career - by shooting 8 for 12, including 5 of 7 3-pointers.
Good averages eight points, but topped that with a 13-point first half that propelled the Hokies to a 27-19 lead.
``I knew coming in that Damon's ankle was a little sore,'' said Good, who also had six rebounds to match Shawn Smith for game honors. ``I knew I was going to have to shoot a lot.''
The Phoenix led early, 4-0, as Tech turned the ball over on its first three possessions. The Hokies gave it up only six more times the rest of the way and went ahead to stay when Smith's two free throws made it 10-8 with 12:49 left in the first half.
The eight-point halftime lead, however, was 34-32 with 12:16 to go when Good sank a 3-pointer and was fouled by Tom Anderson. He made the free throw for a four-point play.
Thereafter, Tech never led by less than six until 1:15 remained, when a run of four straight 3-pointers, two by Nordgaard, brought the Phoenix to within 53-48. But the Hokies responded by making 12 of 14 free throws within the final two minutes to wrap it up. ILLUSTRATION: Color photo
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Tech's Shawn Smith threads his way through Wisconsin-Green Bay
defenders Jeff Nordgaard, left, and Kevin Olm.
Photo
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Virginia Tech's Ace Custis weathers defensive pursuit of
Wisconsin-Green Bay's Gary Grzesk in the first half.
by CNB