On Friday night, Virginia Tech defeated Iowa State in the ESPN Events Invitational Semifinal. On Sunday at 1 p.m., the Hokies will face #19 Florida Atlantic in the championship game.
Virginia Tech got off to a fast start against Iowa State on Friday night and used an exceptional effort to build a 10-point lead into halftime and keep the lead the whole second half to upset the Cyclones 71-62. Iowa State attempted a furious rally, but Virginia Tech remained composed and held on thanks to crucial shots from Sean Pedulla.
Cattoor was the catalyst to start the game and his offense was infectious, finishing with 18 points and 3 rebounds in the game with 12 points coming in the first half. The second half was all about Sean Pedulla stepping up, keeping the offense going with smooth passes out of double teams and hitting shots when Virginia Tech needed it most. Sean finished with 17 points, 4 rebounds, and 6 assists in the game with none bigger than the 6 points in the closing moments of the game on two big shots.
Lynn Kidd and Tyler Nickel both finished with double digits as well and made an impact, specifically in the first half. Kidd struggled to find his usual space with how quickly Iowa State moves to double the ball in the post but he still found his way and finished with 13 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 assists. Nickel finished with 10 points, 9 of which game in the first half, and 3 rebounds but his defense stood out against the bigger wings on the Cyclones team.
Mekhi Long, MJ Collins, and Robbie Beran all added in 4 points and showed some impressive defense throughout the game. Long was a perfect match with his length and athleticism and where Iowa State tried to take advantage of switching defenders they couldn’t do that with Long in the sequence. Mekhi was also a monster on the boards and finished with 8 rebounds. Collins struggled offensively again but showed impressive toughness on the defensive end and added 5 rebounds, 3 assists, and 4 steals with his points. Beran was limited with foul trouble but his length caused issues when Iowa State ran the pick-and-roll.
The Cyclones defense was a known commodity coming into the game but the offense showed something as well, especially Milan Momcilovic. The freshman forward struggled against VCU but looked comfortable out there today and used his size to shoot over smaller defenders, arguably keeping Iowa State in the game by himself at moments. Momcilovic finished with 21 points, 2 rebounds, and 2 steals in the game.
Tamin Lipsey came on strong at the end of the game and finished with 18 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 steals, but Virginia Tech did a great job slowing him throughout most of the matchup. Keshon Gilbert is typically the other star guard for Iowa State but finished with 3 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 steals while going 1-6 from the field. Virginia Tech did a really good job contesting shots in the paint and clogging the lane so the downhill play of the guards continuously ran into help defenders.
Tre King added in 10 points and 7 rebounds, Robert Jones added in 5 points and 7 rebounds, Curtis Jones finished with 3 points, and Jackson Paveletzke finished with 2 points. The team did a good job of getting to the line and attempted 26 free throws in the game but did not convert well, making just 15 of them which was good for 57.7% in the game. Virginia Tech got to the line for 23 attempts and made 20 of them, good for 87% in the game.
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