This Team Is Better Than We Thought!

4-2!  4 and 2?!?  Had you told any fan of Virginia Tech basketball before the season that we would be 4-2 in the ACC after six games, they would have thought you were crazy or knew absolutely nothing about the game at all.  I mean seriously, this team had 2 conference wins last year.  Four wins in conference for the season maybe, but not in the first six games, not even close.  Yet here they are.

As I wrote in an earlier piece Why VT Men's Basketball Is Must See - Gobbler Country this team has been on the rise for quite a while.  What is making this record so special is that not only has it been quite a while since a Hokie team really played this brand of basketball, but it has been almost equally as long since most of us wanted to go and see them play on a nightly basis.  The other thing that is different is that even though other teams are starting to see them coming, they are still winning and winning the close games that they couldn't have dreamed of winning last year.  That means that this team has all the makings of being a Cinderella.

I'm not saying that it is time to put that glass slipper and run into prince charming's arms right yet, I mean we are still aren't half way into the conference season and there are some games coming up, especially against UNC, that will be great tests for any team.  What it does mean is that this team feels like they might just have a run in them.  They play close games, they are playing more solidly on the offensive side of the ball, especially when it comes to the 3 pointers, and they hustle like crazy.

The other thing that I believe is underrated is how Coach Williams talks about them at the end of games.  He gives them credit, when credit is due, but he doesn't try and blow smoke up their butts and call them world beaters either.  He is constantly saying where they need to be better as a team, while praising the individuals, which is a nice change of pace and shows how far and more importantly, how much better he thinks this team can really be.  It takes a little getting used to, especially when compared to the things that we had been hearing from the coaching staff's at Tech before Buzz took over, but it is much closer to what you would hear from Roy Williams or Coach K and the difference that you can see on the court from these guys from week-to-week has them on a path to things that I almost dare not say. (NCAA Tourney?)

So maybe we aren't Cinderella quite yet, but I think that Buzz has us shopping for shoes at Zappos rather than at Wal-Mart and that is definitely a move in the right direction.  Now, about that pumpkin...