The Virginia Tech Hokies' NCAA Tournament hopes literally came down to hundredths of a second and the tip of a finger.
The Hokies defeated the Florida State Seminoles 52-51 in the second round of the ACC Tournament in a wild turn of events in the final minute of action. They will move on to the Semifinals to face the Duke Blue Devils.
With the Seminoles clinging to a one-point lead, Jeff Allen stole the ball from Michael Snaer to give his team one more chance with 17 seconds left in the game. The Hokies took advantage, temporarily. As expected, they put the ball in the hands of Malcolm Delaney, who drove to the baseline before kicking the ball out to sophomore Eric Green. Green made a long two-pointer to give the Hokies a 52-51 lead with 4.7 seconds remaining.
And then, craziness. Derwin Kitchen sprinted down the court with the ball and made a jumper at the buzzer from the right corner to seemingly give Florida State the win. The Greensboro Coliseum erupted. The crowd went wild. The players celebrated on the court. Until the referees reviewed the replay, that is. In as close a call as will ever be made, the officials correctly ruled that the ball was still touching Kitchen's fingertips as the clock read 0:00. Virginia Tech was declared the winner.
A tearful Seth Greenberg spoke after the game about how proud he was of Green and the rest of his team. They deserved the win. And they probably deserve to go to the Big Dance.