Mike Young Offers Candid Take After Virginia Tech’s Loss to Stanford
Virginia Tech men’s basketball suffered a frustrating road loss to Stanford on Wednesday night, squandering a halftime lead in their first ACC West Coast trip of the season. Despite a strong opening half, the Hokies couldn’t sustain their performance and fell 70-59.
Virginia Tech entered the game without freshman point guard Ben Hammond, sidelined by injury. However, the team showed resilience early, playing solid defense and shooting well to take a 30-25 lead into halftime. But the second half told a familiar story for the Hokies this season: defensive lapses, offensive struggles, and a failure to execute down the stretch.
Mike Young on the Hokies’ Second-Half Collapse
Following the game, head coach Mike Young didn’t shy away from critiquing his team’s performance.
“There’s got to be a greater level of toughness and a greater level of urgency,” Young said. “The team that plays the hardest typically gets fouled more, the team that plays hardest typically rebounds more, and that has got to get better. We’ve been on the road now at Duke and here. Let’s go to Cal on Saturday and put some things together and win.”
The Hokies, who struggled to rebound and maintain defensive intensity against Stanford, now sit with a losing record in non-conference play. Despite this, they’ve shown flashes of competitiveness in ACC matchups, including close losses to Pittsburgh and Duke.
While Hammond’s absence was a factor, Young stressed that improved toughness and effort from all five players on the floor is key to turning things around. With a game against California looming on Saturday, the Hokies aim to regroup and put together a complete performance on both ends of the court.
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