GREENSBORO, N.C. (Sporting Alert) — Olivier Hanlan connected on a jumper with 12 seconds left and Boston College squeezed out a 66-65 victory over Georgia Tech in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament first round opening game on Tuesday.
Hanlan, who went 8-of-19 from the floor and hit all eight of his free throws, finished with 25 points, eight rebounds and five assists in the win for the Eagles (13-18).
Patrick Heckmann added 19 points and five rebounds and Dimitri Batten chipped in with 10 for the 12th-seeded Boston College, which advanced to face No. 19 North Carolina on Wednesday in the tournament’s second round.
Tadric Jackson paced Georgia Tech with 16 points and five rebounds, with Robert Sampson adding 12 points and seven boards in the defeat.
Demarco Cox scored nine points scored and collected nine rebounds for the Yellow Jackets (12-19), who dominated on the board.
Georgia Tech out-rebounded Boston College 43-26 in the game, while both teams scored 31 points in the second half.
The Eagles, who scored the game’s first seven points, led 35-34 at halftime.
There were 14 lead changes in the contest, including three in a frantic final minute.
Hanlan’s layup gave Boston College the lead with 39 seconds remaining, but Jackson hit a jumper to put the Yellow Jackets back on top with 28 seconds left. Hanlan then answered back with his own jumper, which turned out to be the game-winner with 12 seconds left.
GAME INFORMATION
Score: Boston College 66, Georgia Tech 65
Records: Boston College (13-18), Georgia Tech (12-19)
Location: Greensboro Coliseum, Greensboro, NC
BC Starters: Batten (G), Hanlan (G), Brown (G), Clifford (C), Heckmann (G)
Georgia Tech Starters: Jackson (G), Cox (F), Jorgenson (G), Stephens (F), Sampson (F)
TEAM LEADERS
Boston College
Points: Olivier Hanlan, 25
Rebounds: Olivier Hanlan, 8
Assists: Olivier Hanlan, 5
Georgia Tech
Points: Tadric Jackson, 16
Rebounds: Charles Mitchell, 11
Assists: Travis Jorgenson, 3
In the second first round game in the ACC tournament, Jalen Hudson scored a game-high 32 points, including the go-ahead bucket with 13 seconds left and Virginia Tech edged Wake Forest 81-80.
Hudson, who shot 10-of-18 from the floor, 2-of-3 from three-point range and 10-of-10 from the free throw line, also pulled down five rebounds in the win for the Hokies (11-21), who had three defensive stops in the last six seconds.
“I’ve said since Thanksgiving that Jalen was our most talented player, but he didn’t play hard enough to be that every game,” Virginia Tech head coach Buzz Williams said.
“When he plays hard, he’s really good, and when he doesn’t play hard, he’s just a 6-foot-4 guard (who) doesn’t play hard.
“He’s growing up like the rest of the freshmen are.”
Ahmed Hill scored 12 points for Virginia Tech, which shot 48.4 percent from the field and was 42.1 percent from behind the arc.
Codi Miller-McIntyre netted 23 points and 11 assists with one turnover to lead the way for Wake Forest (13-19).
Devin Thomas added 22 points and nine rebounds for the Demon Deacons, with Cornelius Hudson finishing with 14 points and Konstantinos Mitoglou ending with 11 points and seven boards in the defeat.
Virginia Tech will now play the sixth-seeded Miami (FL) on Wednesday night in the second round.
