Virginia Tech absolutely demolished Mercer, taking a 96-67 win at Cassell Coliseum, and pushing their early season record to a clean 2-0. Senior forward Amani Hansberry was the undisputed star, leading the charge with a game-high 23 points on a super efficient 9-of-13 shooting, plus he snagged five rebounds. This dude was on fire.
Hokies Offense Is Clicking Early
Hansberry wasn’t the only one lighting it up. Junior point guard Ben Hammond put up 16 points, showing off his sticky hands with five steals and dishing out four assists. He’s been a menace on defense, already racking up 12 steals in just two games. Talk about making an impact! Senior guard Jaylen Curry added 14 points, and Isaiah Elohim chipped in with 11. The Hokies shot a respectable 49% from the field and hit 8 of 22 from downtown for 36%. Plus, their free throw shooting got a major boost, hitting 20 of 26 (77%) after struggling at 65% in their opener. Head coach Mike Young has to be stoked about that kind of improvement.
Bench Power and Improved Ball Security
Speaking of improvement, the team’s ball security was a night and day difference. After turning it over a worrying 14 times against Coppin State, they slashed that down to just four turnovers against Mercer. That’s the kind of discipline that wins games. And the bench depth is looking solid too. Junior guard Tyler Johnson came in and made a real impact, scoring 8 points and pulling down a game-high 9 rebounds. Coming off the bench in both games so far, the 6-foot-5 junior has already piled up 21 points and 16 rebounds. That kind of energy and production from the second unit is huge for a long season.
What’s next for the Hokies? They’re hitting the road for a tough one, heading to Sioux City, Iowa, to face the Iowa Hawkeyes on Tuesday. Can they keep this momentum going against a Big Ten opponent away from home? We’ll see if this early season form holds up!
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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