Hokies' Season Ends with 79-76 Overtime Loss to Wichita State

In what can easily be described as a microcosm of this season, the short-handed Hokies battled throughout but fell in the waning seconds to Wichita State 79-76 in the second round of the NIT. The loss finishes Tech's season at 22-12 and marks the end of the careers of Malcolm Delaney, Jeff Allen, Terrell Bell, and Paul Debnam. This senior class tied the 1985-86 class for the most victories by a class (87) in school history.

Neither team led by more than six the entire game, but things looked bleak as Jeff Allen fouled out with a little more than six minutes remaining in regulation. WSU went on a brief 4-0 run to open up a six-point lead at 63-57. Victor Davila picked up his fourth foul in the process and Paul Debnam checked in with 4:36 to go. Debnam's appearance during meaningful minutes sparked Tech, who went on a 7-0 run to take a 64-63 lead with 2:37 remaining.

With the game tied at 66, Manny Atkins sank a big time three-pointer, but was countered by J.T. Durley with 47 seconds left. After Terrell Bell missed a three-pointer, Joe Ragland missed a floater as time expired to send the game into overtime.

With both post men on the bench, Wichita State went inside during the overtime session, scoring all four of its buckets in the paint. Facing a 78-76 deficit with 26.7 seconds remaining, Tech faced a similar situation to the ACC Tournament game against Florida State. And just like the game against the Seminoles, the Hokies forced a turnover that resulted in a Terrell Bell layup to tie the game. However, Toure' Murry went the length of the floor and dropped in a floater with 2.6 seconds remaining to put the Shockers back up by two.

After a timeout, Delaney received the ball and was called for stepping out of bounds despite an apparent foul forcing him out of bounds. WSU then hit one-of-two free throws to seal the deal.

Delaney played his heart out in his final game as a Hokie, scoring 30 points for the ninth time in his career. The senior from Baltimore finished with 2,255 career points, which is the third-highest total in school history. Unfortunately Jeff Allen couldn't stay out of foul trouble, finishing with 10 points and seven boards. The future stars of Tech, Green and Atkins, finished with 17 and 8 respectively.

The loss fittingly ends a tough season for the Hokies. Facing injuries and a tough start, the resilient group of eight and eventually seven scholarship players battled until the very end, but simply just ran out of gas against the Shockers. Delaney, Allen, and Bell will obviously be missed, but the future is bright for the Virginia Tech program. Next year, the Hokies welcome back Dorenzo Hudson, JT Thompson, Cadarian Raines, and hopefully Allen Chaney. In addition the Hokies usher in the best recruiting class in school history with 4-star recruits Dorian Finney-Smith and C.J. Barksdale coming to Blacksburg along with 3-star recruits Marquis Rankin and Robert Brown. Despite the disappointment this year, the next couple years look extremely bright for Virginia Tech Basketball.