Alexander-Walker’s 18 points helps Hokies beat Eagles in OT

BOSTON (AP) — Nickeil Alexander-Walker nailed a tiebreaking 3-pointer with 1:57 left in overtime and finished with 18 points, Justin Bibbs also scored 18 and Virginia Tech beat Boston College 85-80 on Wednesday night despite blowing a seven-point lead in the closing 64 seconds of regulation.
Kerry Blackshear Jr. led the Hokies (16-6, 5-4 Atlantic Coast Conference) with 20 points and eight rebounds. Virginia Tech has won three straight.
Jerome Robinson paced the Eagles (13-9, 3-6) with 32 points and Ky Bowman scored 22 with nine rebounds and eight assists. BC lost its third in a row.
Alexander-Walker’s 3 from the left wing pushed the Hokies ahead 82-79. Blackshear then had a basket in the lane, pushing their lead to five.
With BC trailing 71-64 with 1:04 to play, Jerome Robinson nailed five free throws in one possession after he was fouled attempting a 3-pointer and Chris Clarke was whistled for a technical by referee Ted Valentine as the pair walked up the floor.
After Bibbs missed a driving shot on Virginia Tech’s ensuing possession, Robinson was fouled and hit both ends of a 1-and-1 with 22.7 seconds left to tie the game at 71.
Justin Robinson missed a shot in the lane in the closing seconds before Jerome Robinson’s 3 from the left wing rimmed out as the buzzer sounded, sending it to OT.
After having its 11-point lead sliced to 48-47, Virginia Tech had gone on a 14-3 run over a 4:38 stretch midway into the second half.
Clarke, Alexander-Walker and Hill each nailed a 3-pointer in the key run.
The Hokies led by five at halftime and pushed it to 42-31 by scoring eight of the initial 10 points, capping the spree with Robinson’s two free throws after a technical was called on Eagles coach Jim Christian.
BIG PICTURE
Virginia Tech: The Hokies are climbing up the league standings, building on their upset over then-No. 10 North Carolina at home last week, which triggered a two-game winning streak.
Boston College: The Eagles need to start handling the ball better. They had 16 turnovers after 17 in their last game, at Syracuse, and 16 in the one before. . Steffon Mitchell was back in the lineup after leaving the last game with a concussion.
LONG-RANGE MATCHUP
The game featured two of the top three teams in the conference in 3-point shots made. Virginia Tech came in leading the league, averaging 9.24 per game and BC was third at 8.71.
NICE CLOSE
The Hokies went just 5 of 19 on treys in the opening half, but nailed their final two — coming in the last 43 seconds — to give them a 34-29 edge at intermission.
UP NEXT
Virginia Tech: Hosts Miami on Saturday.
Boston College: Concludes a two-game homestand Sunday against Georgia Tech.