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Instant Takeaways From Virginia Tech's 88-54 Rout of Coppin State
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- Instant Takeaways From Virginia Tech's 88-54 Rout of Coppin State
Virginia Tech Athletics
BLACKSBURG - Virginia Tech men's basketball rolled to an 88-54 win over Coppin State Tuesday at Cassell Coliseum. Here are my three immediate takeaways from Tuesday's season-opening rout:
No. 1: Jaylen Curry shined for Virginia Tech, though turnovers are an area for improvement.
The Oklahoma State transfer, who spent one season with the Cowboys after two years at UMass, recorded a team-high 19 points in Tuesday's opener on 6-of-9 shooting from the field, including a 3-of-6 mark from beyond the arc. Curry committed a game-high six turnovers, however, accounting for half of Virginia Tech's 10 turnovers on the night.
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Curry averaged 10.1 points per game last season at Oklahoma State, highlighted by a career-high 30-point performance. While Tuesday's outing didn't quite reach those heights, it served as a promising introduction to ACC basketball for the Hokies' newest offensive contributor.
"He's a good basketball player," Young said. "I don't know in 41 years of coaching that I've had a point guard with one assist and six turnovers. That's disgusting. He made three [3-point] shots. He's a good player, but we've got to have better point guard play.
"We will, and he understands. But just atrocious, a couple of the turnovers. He gets loose and just not as tight as a Virginia Tech point guard must be."
As a team. Virginia Tech was an even 13-of-28 (46.4%) from deep. Four Hokies buried two or more 3-pointers, paced by guard Ben Hammond's four.
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No. 2: Speaking of Hammond, the guard was a force on both sides.
Hammond was a defensive pest throughout the evening, pickpocketing the ball on seven sequences. His seven steals set a new career-high and were only two short of the single-game program record for steals (eight). It's the third game in the last two seasons (Syracuse and Virginia in 2025-26; six and five steals, respectively) where he's ended the game with at least five steals.
"I would just say my anticipation," Hammond said on his ability to garner steals. "Just seeing a lot of basketball, seeing a lot of plays, knowing what's really coming next."
Hammond finished the night with a team-high 20 points on 6-of-14 shooting from the field, knocking down four of his nine attempts from beyond the arc and drawing a team-high five fouls. It's his sixth time scoring 20 or more points in the last 19 games, dating back to December 2025.
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Per Tech Sideline, it was the first time since Jamon Gordon against Illinois in the 2007 NCAA Tournament that a player finished with seven steals.
No. 3: Virginia Tech was stellar defensively and on the glass despite recording just one block.
Virginia Tech was outnumbered in blocks 5-1 on Tuesday, but its 38-29 difference on the boards partially made up for its deficiencies in swatting away shots. Crucially, Hokies limited the Eagles to a 2-for-12 (16.7%) clip from 3-point range.
That, in turn, enabled Virginia Tech's offense to flow at a reasonable pace. Alongside Curry and Hammond, senior forward Amani Hansberry posted 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting, tacking on nine rebounds and four assists while burying his two 3-pointers.
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"We're going to do a better job of giving Hansberry the ball," Hansberry said. "He's got to have more touches. He made the most of his touches."
Junior guard Tyler Johnson produced a similiar do-it-all day, finishing with 13 points, seven assists, two assists a block and a steal on 3-of-6 shooting, playing the joint-fourth most minutes behind Hammond (33), Hansberry (28) and Curry (27). That aforementioned trio combined for 55 of Tech's 88 points.
"... Tyler, to his credit, he banged that three down the first half," Young said. "He shot his fouls well. You know what you're getting. He's a junkyard dog and tough."
Coppin State was held to a drab 36.5% from the field, and its 24 turnovers were nearly double that of Virginia Tech's 14. Young thought several of the Eagles' turnovers were self-inflicted miscues rather than of the Hokies' doing.
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"I don't know that we forced 24; they kicked several to us," Young said. "Not going to happen very often. Certainly not in our league. It's not going to happen Thursday against Mercer. We're going to have to play better basketball."
Virginia Tech continues its season with a Thursday, Nov. 5, home clash with Mercer. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. ET on ACC Network Extra. It's the second matchup between the two programs and the first since 1973-74 (Virginia Tech won, 75-65).
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/virginiatech as Instant Takeaways From Virginia Tech's 88-54 Rout of Coppin State .
