Tyler Nickel shares his thoughts following blowout victory vs. Wofford

The Virginia Tech Hokies and sharpshooter Tyler Nickel created some serious separation in the second half against the Wofford Terriers on Sunday night and they coasted to a 98-76 blowout victory. The Hokies had four players score in double- figures and they torched the nets from three-point range, hitting 10 of their 10 attempts (50 percent).

Following the win, Nickel spoke with the broadcast crew about the game and the Hokies’ outlook moving forward.

Tyler Nickel played a critical role in the win

He showed a bit of diversity in his game on Sunday, by not only shooting threes but taking the ball to the hole. Nickel was able to get to the free throw line, connecting on five of his seven attempts.

“Definitely. I think I’ve always been a pretty versatile guy as far as being aggressive on the offensive end,” Nickel said. “I think tonight, I had a lot of opportunities to attack in transition in the half-court off of offensive rebounds. And also, just like I said, just guys finding me in rhythm. So, a lot of credit goes to my teammates.

How fun is it to play with the team when they get out and run in transition?

“It’s super fun,” he responded. “I mean, all these guys, we want to play as a team. We want to share the wealth and we’ve got so many guys that can make plays and make shots that it’s just a fun group to play with.”

What does he have to do to be playing his best basketball when the Hokies begin ACC play?

“Really I would just say staying in rhythm, Just mentally stay up,” the Virginia native said. “Stay stable. I think a lot of the game especially in somebody that can score the ball is mentally, you can’t be too high or too low. You’ve gotta stay consistent, focused, and locked in with your work and mentally.”

Tyler Nickel finished his high school career as the all-time leading scorer in Virginia High School League–pouring in 2,909 points in 202 games. For his career, he averaged 28.5 points per game for East Rockingham High School in Elkton, Virginia. Nickel was also named the Virginia Player of the Year in 2022.

During his time there, the sharp shooting small forward led East Rockingham to an 87-15 overall record, earning first team all-state honors all four years.

Coming out of high school, he was ranked as a four-star recruit and the No. 84 overall prospect in America, according to the On3 Industry Rankings for the 2022 cycle.