October 9, 2001

The Virginia Tech men's and women's basketball teams get ready for their second season in the BIG EAST Conference starting this Friday night as the athletics departments holds its annual Midnight Madness festivities at Cassell Coliseum, commemorating the first day of basketball practice allowed by the NCAA. Doors to the coliseum open at 10:45p.m. and admission is free. Coupons for free T-shirts will be handed out to the first 500 fans.

The event starts with players from both teams signing autographs for approximately 30 minutes. At 11:30 p.m., the Tech cheerleaders will be on the court tossing out mini-basketballs and performing for fans. Following the cheerleaders performance, there will be a slam dunk competition for students from the Virginia Tech Department of Recreational Sports with members of the Hokie men's and women's basketball teams serving as judges.

Other activities planned for the evening include performances by the High Techs and giveaways to fans including several CD prize packs . Highlighting the evening will be a hot shot contest which will have fans pairing up with the men's and women's basketball players to win prizes including a pizza party for five from Pizza Hut, a $25 Bookstore gift certificate and a Virginia Tech Hokies t-shirt.

At 11:58, each member of the respective basketball team will be introduced, and at midnight, men's head coach Ricky Stokes and women's head coach Bonnie Henrickson will address the crowd. After midnight, each team will warm up and then proceed to hold two five-minute scrimmages sandwiched around a performance by the High Techs.

Fans planning to attend the event are encouraged to bring a canned food item. The student-athlete advisory committee is holding its annual canned food donation as part of the Montgomery County Emergency Assistance Program.

The Tech men's basketball team finished 8-19 in its inaugural season in the BIG EAST. The women's team finished 22-9 to record their fourth straight 20-win season. The Hokies finished in the top four of the BIG EAST and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Women's Tournament.