Defense and free throws key in hokies first round victory over marquette

Jay Winters

March 21, 2021

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS — In this crazy month of March, one that Virginia Tech has not been a part of since 2006, the word “finish” is amplified to a whole new level.

Seniors fighting to keep their season and basketball careers alive, underdogs battling to make a name for themselves and an unquenchable thirst for victory that only comes out at this time of the year.

All of these were things this Tech team experienced for the first time in an NCAA Tournament setting, but “finishing” is something the Hokies are well versed on.

It's a phrase that has revolved around every single game Virginia Tech has played this year, both in wins and losses, and its 70-63 victory over Marquette proved no different.

“First and foremost, I want to give credit to Marquette,” coach Kenny Brooks said. “They were very fiery and very feisty and we knew they weren’t going to quit, but our kids did a great job and stepped up, and they handled Marquette’s physicality.”

The Golden Eagles, led by two seniors in Selena Lott and Lauren Van Kluenen, were indeed one of the more physical teams the Hokies have matched up against.

But from the tip, Tech met Marquette’s physicality, forcing 13 first half turnovers and pestering the Golden Eagles on the defensive end.

Elizabeth Kitley, a Lisa Leslie Award finalist, established a physical post presence early that was not contained and led to a final stat line of 23 points, eight rebounds, four assists, and three blocks.

“Elizabeth Kitley was Elizabeth Kitley,” Brooks said. “She's one of the best players in the country and proved that tonight. She was double teamed constantly, but did a great job distributing the basketball and was very efficient.”

The Hokies found themselves up 32-21 at the end of the half after a Georgia Amoore buzzer-beating three. And in the third quarter, they answered every Marquette bucket with one of their own, keeping a double-digit lead throughout.

All seven Hokies scored by the end of the game, but in the third, role players like Da’ja Greene and Cayla King stepped up and made crucial threes to keep the contest at a distance.

The Hokies kept that distance up until the two-minute mark in the fourth quarter with a 64-49 lead, but March started to show its true colors to Tech.

After missing all eight three-pointers that it took prior to the three minute mark, Marquette went on a run and knocked down a flurry of shots, including four treys in the final portion of the game.

In a sequence led by Van Kleunen, the Golden Eagles knocked down a three, forced a jump ball and hit another three in a matter of seconds to cut the game to 66-63 with less than 40 ticks left.

Unfazed by the giant run, the Hokies broke a press, got a decent shot from Kitley, and in the play of the game, King hustled across the paint for an offensive rebound. She was fouled by a defender and knocked down two free throws with just under eight seconds to go to put the Hokies up by five and put the game out of reach.

Tech got a stop on the next possession, and ended the game on two Azana Baines free throws.

“We’ve been in that situation many times before,” Kitley said. “We know how it feels to come out on both sides of winning and losing, and I don’t think any of us doubted for a second that we weren’t going to finish.”

The win is Virginia Tech’s first in the tournament since the 2006 season, where it was also a seven seed, and gives the Hokies their ninth all-time tournament win.

“I’ve always said this school is a sleeping giant, and when I first came in it was about finding the right players, ” Brooks said. “When you get the kids that we have now, we knew they were going to elevate our program. This is exactly what we’ve envisioned, and we knew getting kids like we have now can take us a long way.”

With one game down, the Hokies play Baylor on Tuesday after the Bears demolished Jackson State, 101-59. The Big 12 Champions, Baylor is looking to defend its National Championship from 2019.