Damn It

In a way, it's funny.

Just a week ago I was here, telling you, that a win against then #6 Virginia was the last chance the Virginia Tech men's basketball team had at earning an at-large spot in the NCAA Tournament. And while emotionally it felt true, the argument was built more on vibes, momentum and the ever-changing algebra equation that is a bubble resume. Cold, hard logic says that one game will never make or break a season. Ever. When you play a 31 game regular season, the math just doesn't work like that.

And so, with the same logic, I could sit here and tell you now that Tech's absolutely inexplicable 82-76 home loss to a mediocre Boston College team didn't magically seal the door to the postseason temple. One loss simply can't break you like that.

But to hell with math. This was the one where the Hokies officially became a mid-seeded NIT team. It's like the moment you board a plane and walk through first class, taking your time as you stroll past the people sipping a scotch and soda, trying to figure out how to turn the noise cancellation on their headphones on. The Tech basketball team walked this aisle from Sunday to Wednesday evening, nodding at other programs whose row starts with a single digit. Dreaming — maybe even thinking — they belonged.

At least until some chunky white guy from a jesuit school slammed the curtain closed:

BC captures an 82-76 win against Virginia Tech! 🦅@BCMBB | #ACCMBB pic.twitter.com/DmQnJtZ3sa— ACC Digital Network (@theACCDN) February 9, 2023

Quinten Post sounds like someone nominated for best original screenplay. Quinten Post sounds like he's the editor of the New York Times real estate section. Quinten Post sounds like the auto-generated name of a fake NBA draft prospect when you're playing NBA Live 2004 on PlayStation 2. But no, apparently Quinten Post is a walking bucket who's playing some of the best basketball of his career.