Hokies Are No Joke to Trojans

Dell Curry, a 6-5 senior by way of Grottoes, Va., began play Monday averaging 32.5 points a game, rated as the fourth-best shooting guard in the nation by The Sporting News and a member of the 10-man Playboy preseason All-America team.

By late Monday night, he proved that the high acclaim awarded him was no Hokie Hoax.

Unknown for the most part outside of the Metro Conference, where he is a two-time all-conference selection, Curry didn’t look especially sharp down thestretch, but he scored 21 points in the first half and finished with a game-high 27 to lead Virginia Tech past USC, 90-81, before a Sports Arena crowd of 3,225.

“We come out here and people always say, ‘What’s a Hokie?’ ” he said of the school’s nickname. “We hear that all the time. Come to think of it, I don’t even know myself.”

The question, “Who is Dell Curry?” was answered by the end of the first half as Virginia Tech took a 50-40 lead, thanks to 10-of-14 shooting from the field by Curry. The Hokies hit 58% of their field-goal attempts as a team.

He was not shut down altogether in the second half, but USC did a much better job of keeping him in check. He scored only four points in the first 13 minutes, and the Trojans took advantage to pull within one, 71-70.

But Curry got a little help from his friends, namely forwards Bobby Beecher (nine second-half points to finish with 13) and Keith Colbert (eight for a career-high 22). The Hokies didn’t play the likes of Louisville and Memphis State last season and finish 20-9 for nothing.

“I was forcing my shots in the beginning (of the half),” Curry said. “But then I was able to get back in the game because we were protecting a lead, and I was able to concentrate on ball-handling and being more selective with my shots.”

Added Virginia Tech Coach Charles Moir: “I thought Bobby Beecher did a heckuva job for us near the end. He was playing with four fouls, but he got the job done . . . Colbert also was outstanding. He kept us in the game in the second half, when Curry was not getting many points. Dell had a great first half, and I think he just got tired.”

But while he wasn’t much in the second half, Curry was still hurting the Trojans with his rebounds. A team-high eight was second only to the Trojans’ Derrick Dowell, who had 12 along with 20 points.

Freshman Tom Lewis scored 19 points for the second consecutive game to aid USC’s cause, while another freshman, Greg Kimble, added 12.

The Trojans (1-1) take their first trip of the season, and it’s a big one, with a game Friday against Syracuse at the 33,000-seat Carrierdome and next Monday against Penn at Philadelphia.