Blackshear’s putback lifts Hokies past No. 2 Virginia in overtime
CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA. » Kerry Blackshear Jr. turned a forgettable night into a most memorable one, and he and his Virginia Tech teammates likely kept No. 2 Virginia from ascending to No. 1 for the first time since 1983 with a 61-60 overtime victory on Saturday night.
Blackshear scored on a putback with 5.8 seconds left, just his third basket of the game, to give the Hokies the upset, ending the Cavaliers’ 16-game home winning streak and likelihood of replacing Villanova atop the Top 25 when it is released on Monday.
“It wasn’t really a motivation,” Blackshear said. “It was more that we know they’re a good team and we have to be us this time”
The Hokies (18-7, 7-5 ACC) failed to do that in losing 7852 to Virginia (23-2, 12-1) at Cassell Coliseum on Jan. 3, but exacted their revenge by closing off the middle to the Cavaliers and forcing them to try to win from outside. Virginia did hit 11 3-pointers, but needed 38 attempts (28.9 percent) to do it.
Hokies coach Buzz Williams said he, and Blackshear, will likely always remember the dramatic finish. The player wasn’t so sure.
“I will remember that I missed every shot before that more than (the finish),” he said after missing all six of his 3-point attempts and not scoring until just 3:53 remained in regulation. “I enjoyed the energy my teammates gave me the whole game. That was big for me.” (4) MICHIGAN STATE 68, (3) PURDUE 65 » Miles Bridges made a tiebreaking 3-pointer with 2.7 seconds left and finished with 20 points, helping Michigan State (24-3, 12-2 Big Ten) top Purdue (23-4, 12-2).
The Spartans have won eight straight, improving their chances of contending for a conference championship and earning a No. 1 seed for the NCAA Tournament.
The Boilermakers have lost two straight after winning a school-record 19 games in a row. (5) XAVIER 72, CREIGHTON 71» Quentin Goodin made two free throws with threetenths of a second left, allowing Xavier (23-2, 11-2 Big East) to hold off Creighton (18-7, 8-5).
Goodin got fouled by Ronnie Harrell Jr. after Harrell had made three straight free throws to give the Bluejays a one-point lead with 4.6 seconds left. Goodin took an inbound pass from Naji Marshall and drove the length of the court to the basket, with Harrell making contact in the lane and sending him to the line. (8) AUBURN 78, GEORGIA 61» Jared Harper scored 24 points and Auburn (223, 10-2 SEC), playing without top scorer Bryce Brown, showed impressive depth by beating Georgia (13-11, 4-8). BAYLOR 80, (10) KANSAS 64 » Manu Lecomte scored eight straight points for Baylor (1510, 5-7 Big 12) after Big 12 coleader Kansas (19-6, 8-4) had pulled within a basket, and the senior guard finished with 18 overall in the Bears’ upset victory.
The Jayhawks trailed 3020 at halftime after having more turnovers (nine) than made field goals (seven) before the break. They were down by as many as 13 points after that but got within 5856 with 7:14 left after consecutive jumpers by Lagerald Vick. (14) OHIO STATE 82, IOWA 64 » Keita Bates-Diop had 14 points and eight rebounds, and Ohio State (21-5, 13-1) beat Iowa (12-15, 3-11) for sole possession of first place in the Big Ten. ALABAMA 78, (15) TENNESSEE 50. » Donta Hall had 17 points and 11 rebounds and Collin Sexton scored 16 points to lead Alabama (1610, 7-5 SEC)to a victory over Tennessee (18-6, 8-4).
Hall made 8 of 10 field goals and blocked three shots. Tennessee had no answer to Sexton’s quick darts to the basket, and the freshman also had four assists. IOWA STATE 88, (17) OKLAHOMA 80 » Iowa State freshman Lindell Wigginton upstaged Trae Young by scoring 26 points and the Cyclones (13-11, 4-8 Big 12) upset Oklahoma (16-8, 6-6), handing the Sooners their sixth consecutive road loss.
Young had 22 points and 11 rebounds for the Sooners. OKLAHOMA STATE 88, (19) WEST VIRGINIA 85 » Kendall Smith and Cameron McGriff each scored 20 points and Oklahoma State (15-10, 5-7 Big 12) beat another ranked team on the road, topping West Virginia (18-7, 7-5).
The Cowboys, who won at then-No. 7 Kansas last weekend, trailed by eight points with 13½ minutes left. (21) NORTH CAROLINA 97, N.C. STATE 89 » Luke Maye scored 27 of his career-high 33 points after halftime to help North Carolina (19-7, 8-5 ACC) beat rival North Carolina State (16-9, 9-6).
Maye also had 17 rebounds and spent most of the second half as a one-man show for the Tar Heels. (22) WICHITA STATE 95, UCONN 74 » Landry Shamet scored 16 points in just 23 minutes as Wichita State (19-5, 9-3 American Athletic Conference) cruised to a win over UConn (12-13, 5-7). BOSTON COLLEGE 72, (25) MIAMI 70 » Ky Bowman stole a rebound under the basket, drew a foul and hit two free throws with 2.9 seconds left as Boston College (15-10, 5-7 ACC) scored the last nine points of the game to rally for a victory over Miami (186, 7-5).