Karnik Sets Career High, Boston College Downs Virginia Tech 68-63
Boston College earned their third ACC win of the season on Saturday 68-63. Center/forward James Karnik was unstoppable, shooting 10/12 for a career high 26 points while also scoring his 1,000th career point. Guard Makai Ashton Langford continued his strong play with 18 points.
The Eagles fell behind early, with some sloppy play and turnovers, but rallied to come back from an early eleven point deficit. Keve Aluma (21 points) hit some big shots early for the Hokies, but BC started hitting shots and VT had no answers to Karnik who dominated offensively. A 5-0 run to end the half, on a three by Ashton Langford and a pair of free throws by Karnik , shrunk the VT lead to 33-31.
Boston College continued to shoot well in the second half. Karnik tied the game at 33, and then gave BC their first lead with a dunk. BC built up a five point lead, but with Quinten Post in for Karnik the offense went cold. BC went almost four minutes without a bucket, and VT rallied to tie the game.
But BC continued to do the little things, including playing well on the boards, forcing tough shots and making the hustle plays. TJ Bickerstaff had a pair of big rebounds, while Jaeden Zackery hit a contested layup to put the game away.
In the span of a week, Boston College has won two impressive conference games (Clemson & VT). This was Boston College's first home win since early December, and was special to do it in front of one of Conte Forum's biggest most vocal crowds of the season. This win again showcased a team heading in the right direction. Well coached, persistent, and doing lots of the little things to win games. Ashton-Langford has become BC's most consistent shooter, and Jaeden Zackery overcame a shaky first half to make some big shots down the stretch.
Boston College improves to 8-9 (3-4 ACC) on the season. They have a quick turnaround with a game against Wake Forest on Monday in Winston-Salem, a 6pm start on the ACC Network.
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