Tech downs UVA in OT

CHARLOTTESVILLE — There’s something about this Virginia Tech men’s basketball team. Something intangible. Something incredible.

The Hokies don’t always play particularly well, but they find ways to win.

They did it again Thursday night at John Paul Jones Arena, overcoming two double-digit deficits in a 76-71 overtime victory over in-state rival Virginia.

And they did it without forward Jeff Allen, their third-leading scorer and top rebounder who was ejected with 13:41 left after a flagrant foul.

There was nothing pretty about the Hokies’ first road ACC win of the season, but style points don’t matter in a league as tough as the ACC.

“We’re not aesthetically attractive, but I convinced my wife to marry me, and look at me,” Tech coach Seth Greenberg said.

Hokies junior forward J.T. Thompson picked up the slack when Allen was ejected. Thompson, who had struggled significantly in his previous three games, tied his season high with 17 points and seven rebounds.

“I’m the guy that tries to bring energy and that’s what I did out there,” Thompson said. “I was trying to fly around everywhere, diving on the floor and everything. When I saw Jeff wasn’t coming back, I just knew I had to step it up out there.”

Thompson ignited a 24-9 scoring binge over the game’s final 8:02. He scored 11 points during that run and made some big defensive plays to hold off the pesky Cavs.

Virginia (12-6, 3-2) managed only three field goals over the final eight minutes, but one was the game-tying 3-pointer from sophomore guard Sammy Zeglinski with 1.3 seconds left in regulation.

Zeglinski’s shot gave the Cavaliers hope of holding off the Hokies (16-3, 3-2), but Tech outscored UVa 11-6 in overtime to wrap up only its second win in Charlottesville in the last 42 years.

“It’s a big win, this being a rivalry game,” said Hokies guard Dorenzo Hudson, who went 7-for-14 from the field and scored 18 points. “Plus it’s the ACC, and Virginia was tied for first place in the ACC, so that’s a big road win for us.”

Allen was ejected after being called for a flagrant foul near Tech’s bench. He grabbed a loose ball, swung the ball around and appeared to make contact with Virginia’s Jeff Jones.

The officials reviewed a replay of the encounter before throwing Allen out.

“He throws an elbow, so we ruled it a flagrant personal, which means it’s severe or extreme contact with an opponent during a live ball,” referee Karl Hess told a reporter after the game. “The penalty is the ejection of the offender.”

Hess said that Allen is eligible to play in Tech’s next game at Miami on Sunday.

“I spoke to Jeff and he said that he secured the ball, he chinned the ball and he didn’t even see Jeff Jones, who was a teammate of his in AAU, and that’s all I know,” Greenberg said. “I’ll look at it.”

When asked if he expects the school or league to take any action against Allen, Greenberg said, “I’m not going to answer any more questions about that. I didn’t see the play, and we’ll move on from there.”

Virginia stretched its lead to 10 shortly after Allen’s ejection and maintained that cushion until three minutes remained.

That’s when the Hokies started chipping away. Guard Malcolm Delaney made a pair of free throws and then connected on a layup. Thompson collected a missed shot and rebounded it into the basket. Hudson sank a 3-pointer from the right wing with 1:33 left.

Tech reclaimed the lead with 39 seconds remaining in regulation when Thompson hit a jumper off the glass to make it 63-62.

The Hokies seemed to have it in the bag when Delaney was sent back to the free throw line and made both of his shots with 10 seconds remaining.

But Zeglinski, who was trapped near the Cavaliers bench, put up a long 3 that went through with 1.3 seconds left to work the Wahoo faithful into a frenzy.

“I double-clutched on accident, so I felt it was lucky to have it go in,” Zeglinski said. “I thought we would have the momentum going into overtime, but we just could not get enough stops.”

While Virginia players and fans were going nuts over the game-tying bucket, the Hokies were on the other end of the court collecting themselves for overtime.

They thrive in overtime. They had already won two games in extra time this season, and one of those victories came without Delaney against Seton Hall in Cancun, Mexico.

So Tech’s players calmed themselves and finished the job. None were more valuable to the winning cause than Thompson, who scored eight of the Hokies’ 11 overtime points.

“He’s a tough matchup. He did the job as the game wore on,” Virginia coach Tony Bennett said. “He’s so active and plays so hard. You can see that, and he’s just kind of a workhorse for them.

“He certainly was a significant key to their victory.”

It was no surprise that defense fueled Tech’s comeback. The Hokies made some big stops at the end to keep them in the game.

“We just stuck with it. Coach had confidence in us, and we just kept emphasizing hard work and staying true to our defense,” said Delaney, who led all scorers with 27 points. “That’s what eventually won the game for us.”