Hokies Break Record with UNC, Duke Wins

(This article originally appeared on www.hokiehaven.com.)

Seth Greenberg's Hokies pulled off the second leg of the Tobacco Road Two-step Saturday capping one of the most impressive weeks in Virginia Tech basketball history with a 94-88 win over the top-ranked North Carolina Tar Heels. Coupled with Tech's 69-67 win at Duke last Saturday, that added another notch to the Hokies' already loaded belt, and entered them firmly in to the ACC title discussion.

The pair of wins was significant for Virginia Tech not merely this season, but when viewed in a historical context:

-Virginia Tech had been 6-32 vs. Duke and 10-55 vs. UNC all-time
-Virginia Tech had been 1-28 vs. the two giants since 1967
-The win is Virginia Tech's second all-time over a then No. 1, the other was over Memphis State on January 10th, 1983
-Virginia Tech is now just three wins away from posting their highest win total since 1996
-The win gives Virginia Tech a chance to win four straight conference games for only the second time since 2000
-The Hokies now have nine wins in 10 games the for first time since 1995-1996
-The Hokies won their first 10 home site games for the first time since 1987-1988 and have yet to lose at home this season

The wins bolster Virginia Tech's impressive NCAA tournament resume. Wins over Iowa, Seton Hall, Wake Forest and now the ACC's two premier programs has Tech projected as a mid-high seed in most projections. Somehow, the Hokies are just now cracking the AP top-25, and even now at a grossly underrated #23.

With two ACC dragons now deposed, at least temporarily, the landmines for this year's Hokies may come where they are least expected. Already in this campaign, Tech has showed a propensity for playing its best basketball against its best competition, and a subpar game against lesser opponents. If Tech can continue parlaying their vast experience into mental strength, they will be in a position to rise to the occasion against the ACC's top opponents. If the record is 8-2 or better by mid February, a week long stretch that includes @ North Carolina, @ NC State and league-leader Boston College in the Cassell Center will go a long way to deciding if this year's Hokie edition contains the stuff of champions, and will add a few more bullet points to the above list.