Boston College Men's Basketball Comes Up Short Against Virginia Tech

The Eagles kept it close with the Hokies, but could not overcome a 19-point first-half deficit.

Boston College Men's Basketball (BCMBB) via X

The Boston College Eagles (10-20, 3-14 ACC) men’s basketball team suffered its second straight road loss 72-63 to the Virginia Tech Hokies (19-11, 8-9 ACC) on Tuesday night. 

The Hokies jumped out to a 9-2 lead over the Eagles within the first three minutes of the contest. Hokies forward Tobi Lawal led the stretch with four points. 

To open the game, Boston College made just one of its first four shot attempts, a jumper by guard Donald Hand Jr., who returned to the starting lineup after playing off the bench the last two games. 

Virginia Tech extended its lead into double digits 14-4 with 15:09 to go with a three-pointer from guard Neoklis Avdalas.

Avdalas’ hot start led the Hokies’ early success. The freshman knocked down four of his five three-point attempts to help Virginia Tech maintain its lead 20-11 with 10:25 to go in the first half.

Down the stretch of the first, Virginia Tech narrowly outscored Boston College 15-13 and went into halftime with a 35-24 advantage. The Eagles ended the half on a 6-0 run, but could not get the deficit back into single digits. 

Three-pointers were the biggest difference in the first. Out of the Hokies’ 12 made baskets in the half, seven of those were from behind the arc while the Eagles made just two three-pointers out of nine attempts. 

Early in the second half, Boston College got within seven points 36-29 after a jumper by guard Fred Payne and three-pointer by big man Boden Kapke with 17:18 left in regulation, but Virginia Tech quickly got back into double digits. 

Although the Eagles never had a lead in the contest, they stayed within reach for a majority of the game. Boston College got within six points twice around the midway point of the second half, the first 48-42 with 11:55 to go after a dunk from Aidan Shaw and the second 50-44 with 11:44 left after a jumper by Payne. 

Six points was the closest Boston College could get. The Eagles got within six one more time in the game 67-61 with 1:19 left after a layup by Kapke, but it was too little, too late for Boston College. 

Virginia Tech maintained control of its lead for the remainder of the game and won 72-63. 

In total, the Eagles shot 42.2 percent from the field in the contest and 22.7 percent from behind the arc. Virginia Tech shot 43.4 percent from the field and 45.8 percent from three-point range. 

Next up, Boston College returns to Conte Forum to host the Notre Dame Fighting Irish on Saturday afternoon for its regular season finale. Tipoff is set for noon ET on ESPNU.