Virginia Tech 81, Loyola (Md.) 58
by Chris James, TechSideline.com, 11/19/04

Blacksburg, VA -- The Virginia Tech Hokies got their inaugural season in the ACC off to a good start Friday night as they knocked off Loyola (Md.) 81-58 in front of an announced crowd of 8,772 fans at Cassell Coliseum on Friday night. The Hokies were led in scoring with 21 points by senior guard Carlos Dixon, who made a successful return from a foot injury that sidelined him for the entire 2003-04 season. Dixon also chipped in 5 rebounds and 2 steals in 30 minutes of action.

The Hokies also got a strong offensive performance from freshman forward Deron Washington, who scored 20 points in his offensive debut. Washington shot 9 of 11 from the field and had several monster dunks that wowed the Tech faithful.

In a first half that was very similar to their exhibition matchup against EA Sports, Tech got off to a big lead by putting tremendous pressure on the basketball and forcing turnovers. The Hokies started the game with a 15-1 run, and eventually extended their lead to 23-7 with on two Allen Calloway free throws with 9:52 remaining in the first half.

The Greyhounds, who were led by Freddie Stanback with 16 points, were able to nibble away at the Tech lead for the remainder of the first half. The Hokies took a 34-26 lead into intermission.

Washington got the Hokies started 40 seconds into the second half when he tipped in a missed jumper by Jamon Gordon. Tech, who had been stifled offensively in the first half by Loyola’s 2-3 zone defense, finally found their offensive rhythm in the second half, and gradually extended their lead. The Hokies shot 19-of-33 in the second half and had 13 assists after the break.

The Hokies used their superior athleticism to force the Greyhounds into 27 turnovers during the course of the game, and converted those turnovers into 33 points. Jamon Gordon was Tech’s leader on the defensive end. Gordon, who led the Big East conference in steals last season as a freshman, had 7 steals Friday night. He also had a blocked shot. On the offensive end, he scored 6 points and dished out 9 assists.

Tech was outrebounded in the contest 36-34. Five players—Carlos Dixon, Robert Krabbendam, Coleman Collins, Zabian Dowdell and Allen Calloway—had 5 rebounds for the Hokies.

Virginia Tech moved to 1-0 on the young season, while Loyola (Md.) fell to 0-1. The Hokies take the court again on Tuesday night at 7 pm when they host Maryland-Eastern Shore. The game will not be televised.


LOYOLA MD (58)

                          fg    ft    rb             
                   min   m-a   m-a   o-t   a  pf   tp
B Allen             17   2-4   0-1   3-5   0   1    4
B Farrell           29  3-10   3-4   2-4   2   2    9
J Chivers           23   1-5   4-6   2-3   0   2    6
C Bell              17   0-1   2-2   1-3   0   1    2
S James             15   5-5   0-0   1-2   0   1   10
G Bouindas          12   1-2   0-0   0-2   2   3    2
F Stanback          30  5-11   5-6   2-9   0   1   16
G Manning           18   0-2   0-0   0-2   1   0    0
J Fox                1   0-0   0-0   0-0   0   0    0
R Nixon             20   3-7   1-2   3-4   0   1    7
S Corrigan           7   0-1   0-0   0-0   0   1    0
I Nijaradze          3   0-0   0-0   0-0   0   0    0
J Alujevic           8   1-2   0-0   0-2   0   0    2
  
_____________________________________________________
TOTALS             200 21-50 15-21 14-36   5  13   58
_____________________________________________________

Percentages: FG-.420, FT-.714. 3-Point Goals:
1-11, .091 (B Farrell 0-2, J Chivers 0-1, F 
Stanback 1-6, G Manning 0-2). Team Rebounds: 
0. Blocked Shots: 3 (R Nixon 2, B Allen). 
Turnovers: 26 (B Farrell 6, G Bouindas 5, B 
Allen 3, C Bell 3, S James 3, J Chivers 2, R 
Nixon 2, I Nijaradze, F Stanback). Steals: 5 
(B Allen 2, J Chivers, C Bell, R Nixon).

VIRGINIA TECH (81)

                          fg    ft    rb             
                   min   m-a   m-a   o-t   a  pf   tp
D Washington        24  9-11   2-3   1-2   3   5   20
C Collins           31   5-5   1-4   2-5   2   0   11
Z Dowdell           25  3-12   0-0   0-5   1   0    7
J Gordon            29   3-9   0-0   2-2   9   4    6
C Dixon             30  9-19   0-1   3-5   1   1   21
B Ritchie            3   0-0   0-0   0-0   0   0    0
S Harris             6   2-2   0-0   0-0   0   1    4
R Krabbendam         7   1-1   0-0   1-5   0   2    2
M Cooke             18   0-5   3-4   0-0   2   3    3
A Calloway          12   1-1   3-3   4-5   0   1    5
M Sailes            11   0-1   0-0   1-1   1   1    0
C Tucker             4   1-1   0-0   0-2   0   1    2
  
_____________________________________________________
TOTALS             200 34-67  9-15 14-32  19  19   81
_____________________________________________________

Percentages: FG-.507, FT-.600. 3-Point Goals:
4-17, .235 (Z Dowdell 1-4, J Gordon 0-2, C 
Dixon 3-7, M Cooke 0-4). Team Rebounds: 2. 
Blocked Shots: 4 (C Dixon, A Calloway, J 
Gordon, C Tucker). Turnovers: 14 (C Collins 
3, Z Dowdell 2, M Cooke 2, C Dixon, J Gordon,
D Washington, R Krabbendam, C Tucker, A 
Calloway, M Sailes). Steals: 17 (J Gordon 7, 
D Washington 3, C Dixon 2, Z Dowdell 2, C 
Collins, R Krabbendam, M Cooke).


-----------------------------------
LOYOLA MD            26  32   -  58
VIRGINIA TECH        34  47   -  81
----------------------------------- 

Technical fouls: None. A: 8,772. Officials: 
Charles Robinson, Dan Stryffdeler, Earl Walton


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