Associated Press

Iowa's Devan Bawinkel (left) looks to drive around Virginia Tech's Dorenzo Hudson during the first half of Tuesday's game.

Jeff Allen, backup player?

Virginia Tech men's basketball coach Seth Greenberg made a significant change to his starting lineup in Tuesday's 70-64 win at Iowa, opting to bring one of his best players off the bench.

Allen entered the game averaging 12 points and 8.6 rebounds, but the junior power forward sat for the first 5:45 of Tuesday's win. He also sat for the first 3:45 of the second half.

He had fouled out of the Hokies' previous two games against Temple and Delaware, and also got in foul trouble in last week's win at Campbell. Greenberg figured using Allen as a reserve could cut down on his chances of picking up early fouls.

Allen finished with just two fouls Tuesday. He scored 10 points and grabbed five rebounds.

"Every once in awhile you get lucky and you make the right decision," Greenberg said Wednesday. "It shortens the game for him with the officials. It gives him a chance to see how the game is being officiated.

"It's a decision that I made that's best for the team."

J.T Thompson started in Allen's place and scored eight points. Will Allen also come off the bench in Tech's next game, against Georgia on Sunday?

"I don't know," Greenberg said. "That's something we're going to meet about.

"Having him at the end of the game is good. If he picks up an early foul to start the game, it affects the way he defends."

The Hokies, who have played away from home the past four games, will bring a 5-1 record back to Cassell Coliseum on Sunday despite their offensive struggles. They began this week ranked last in the ACC in scoring offense, scoring margin, field-goal percentage and 3-point field-goal percentage.

Tech did better at Iowa (2-5). The Hokies shot 46.6 percent from the field -- hardly great, but their season high. They shot worse than 36 percent from the field in their previous two games.

"We got good shots and we had better ball movement," Greenberg said. "We posted the ball a little more."

Greenberg was happy that more of his players contributed offensively Tuesday. It was the first time this season that at least four Hokies scored in double figures and only the second time more than two Hokies did so. In addition to Allen's 10, Malcolm Delaney had 18 points, Terrell Bell scored a season-high 13 and Victor Davila had a season-high 10.

Bell was 6-of-9 from the field.

"Bell running the court, getting to the offensive glass, flying around -- the guy's being aggressive in the right areas," Greenberg said. "He was more active."

Freshman guard Ben Boggs (Hidden Valley) also helped out, making two 3-pointers and recording two steals.

Delaney is the ACC's leading scorer (21.2 ppg), but he is shooting just 38 percent from the field. He was 5-of-15 from the field Tuesday.

"He's got to shoot the ball better," Greenberg said. "He's drifting a little; we've talked about that. We're going to edit out all his shots this season and let him look at it a little bit, see the difference in his balance."

Freshman power forward Cadarian Raines, who has been sidelined with a fractured foot, did not end up making his Tech debut Tuesday. He will play Sunday, though. Greenberg said Iowa would not have been a good foe for Raines' debut.

"It wouldn't have been fair to him, with all those ball screens and him missing the whole preseason," Greenberg said. "When they play jump-shooters at [center] and he's got to be chasing people around all over the place, that's not an ideal situation for his first game."

VIRGINIA TECH (5-1)

Bell 6-9 1-2 13, Davila 3-5 4-4 10, Thompson 4-6 0-0 8, Hudson 2-7 0-2 5, Delaney 5-15 7-7 18, Allen 5-13 0-2 10, Green 0-0 0-0 0, Witcher 0-0 0-0 0, Boggs 2-3 0-0 6, Atkins 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 27-58 12-17 70.

IOWA (2-5)

Cougill 3-7 0-0 7, Cole 4-7 2-4 10, Tucker 9-18 0-0 24, Payne 2-6 2-2 8, Gatens 1-5 4-4 6, Bawinkel 2-3 0-0 6, Fuller 0-0 0-0 0, May 1-3 0-0 3. Totals 22-49 8-10 64.

Halftime--Virginia Tech 34-28. 3-Point Goals--Virginia Tech 4-15 (Boggs 2-2, Hudson 1-3, Delaney 1-7, Bell 0-1, Allen 0-2), Iowa 12-27 (Tucker 6-14, Bawinkel 2-3, Payne 2-3, Cougill 1-2, May 1-2, Gatens 0-3). Fouled Out--None. Rebounds--Virginia Tech 34 (Bell, Hudson 6), Iowa 27 (Gatens 6). Assists--Virginia Tech 13 (Delaney 5), Iowa 19 (Gatens 7). Total Fouls--Virginia Tech 12, Iowa 14. A--8,755.