ND storms back, stuns Va. Tech
NEW YORK — Bonzie Colson banked in a goahead, 3-point heave that barely beat the shot clock with two minutes remaining, and Notre Dame rallied from 21 down in the second half to stun Virginia Tech, 71-65, last night in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament.
Matt Farrell scored 22 points for the 10th-seeded Fighting Irish (20-13), who overcame a dreadful start in extending their late push to reach the NCAA Tournament.
Finally healthy after injuries to Colson and Farrell nearly wrecked a promising season, Notre Dame advanced to play Thursday night in the quarterfinals against fifth-ranked and second-seeded Duke, the defending tournament champion.
Do the Irish need to win at least that one, too, in order to make the field of 68?
Hard to say, but they sure woke up the echoes on this snowy night in Brooklyn.
With the Irish stars struggling to make shots, seventh-seeded Virginia Tech (21-11) was cruising along with a 47-26 lead with just under 14 minutes remaining when Farrell drained his second consecutive 3.
That started a ferocious surge that got a feisty Notre Dame squad back into it. The game got a little testy as the Irish picked up the intensity and the Hokies went cold on offense.
A technical foul on Virginia Tech swingman Chris Clarke for shoving Farrell led to four Notre Dame free throws that trimmed it to 54-50 with 7:45 to go. Colson kissed three fingers on each hand and gestured to the crowd after his desperation shot from the right wing gave the Irish a 60-59 edge.
They extended their advantage at the free throw line.
Colson, back recently from a broken foot, finished with 12 points on 4-of-14 shooting. Rex Pflueger had 14 points and nine rebounds, and T.J. Gibbs added 13 points and seven assists.
Justin Robinson and Justin Bibbs each scored 15 for the Hokies.
Louisville 82, Florida State 74 — Quentin Snider scored 19 points, Ray Spalding had 18 and the Cardinals built a huge lead before knocking off the Seminoles in a game with substantial NCAA implications.
Deng Adel added 15 points and eight rebounds for the ninth-seeded Cardinals (20-12), who won for the first time in ACC postseason play and advanced to face top-ranked Virginia in the first quarterfinal today.
Trent Forrest and PJ Savoy each had 14 points off the bench to pace No. 8 seed Florida State (20-11), which trailed by 26 with 11 minutes remaining.
A furious rally by the Seminoles whittled the margin to eight with 3:26 to play, but Louisville regrouped and hung on behind Snider. The senior point guard had six assists and five rebounds without committing a turnover in 35 minutes.