Virginia Tech powers into Charleston finals
CHARLESTON, S.C. – No. 16 Virginia Tech accomplished something it hadn’t in coach Buzz Williams’ five seasons – reaching an in-season tournament championship game.
If the Hokies are as locked-in defensively Sunday as in beating Northeastern 88-60 at the Charleston Classic on Friday, they could also leave with Williams’ first tournament title.
“None of us here have been able to do it, so this means a lot,” said Hokies guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker, who scored 20 points.
They will face No. 23 Purdue for the title Sunday night. Northeastern will play Davidson for third place.
Virginia Tech (3-0) took control for good with a 23-2 surge the last seven minutes of the opening half falling behind Northeastern (2-2) 24-23.
The Hokies turned up the pressure which got their offense going.
No. 2 Kansas 89, Louisiana-Lafayette 76: Lagerald Vick hit seven 3pointers and had a career-high 33 points, Dedric Lawson and Udoka Azubuike came alive late and secondranked Kansas beat pesky LouisianaLafayette.
Vick also had nine rebounds for the Jayhawks (3-0) while topping his 32point outburst earlier in the week against Vermont.
Lawson added 19 points and Azubuike had 17 points and eight rebounds.
Justin Miller scored points in the first half.
No. 4 Virginia 97, Coppin St. 40: De’Andre Hunter scored 20 points, and Virginia opened with a 21-5 run to beat Coppin State.
Hunter was outscoring the Eagles for most of the first half after hitting two early 3-pointers for the Cavaliers (3-0).
No. 7 North Carolina 108, Tennessee Tech 58: Luke Maye had 15 points to help North Carolina beat Tennessee Tech.
Sterling Manley added 13 points for the Tar Heels (4-0), who shot 55 percent vs. an overmatched opponent.
No. 12 Kansas St. 95, Eastern Kentucky 68: Xavier Sneed scored 16 points to lead five Kansas State players in double figures, and the Wildcats beat Eastern Kentucky in the Paradise Jam tournament.
Dean Wade and Cartier Diarra added 14 points each, and Kamau Stokes and Barry Brown Jr. had 10 points apiece for the Wildcats (3-0), who advance to Sunday’s semifinals at the University of the Virgin Islands’ Sports and Fitness Center.
No. 13 Oregon 80, No. 15 Syracuse 65: Bol Bol had 26 points and nine rebounds, and Oregon beat Syracuse in the consolation game of the 2K Classic.
Payton Pritchard added 18 points for the Ducks (3-1) and Kenny Wooten had all 22 of his 12 in the first-ever meeting between the ACC and Pac-12 programs.
No. 17 Mississippi St 79, Long Beach St 51: Quinndary Weatherspoon scored 21 points, Tyson Carter added 17 and Mississippi State beat Long Beach State.
Mississippi State went on a 32-4 run over 15 minutes spanning the end of the first half and beginning of the second half.
No. 22 LSU 74, Louisiana Tech 67: Ja’vonte Smart scored 16 points, and his late 3-pointer put No. 22 LSU ahead for good in a back-and-forth victory over Louisiana Tech.
The Bulldogs tied it at 62 on a jumper by Daquan Bracey with 2:29 remaining, but Smart hit his 3 on the next possession for the Tigers (4-0). LSU increased its lead to eight points on a layup by Kavell Bigby-Williams and three free throws by Skylar Mays.
No. 23 Purdue 79, Davidson 58: Carsen Edwards had 29 points and Purdue beat Davidson to reach the final of the Charleston Classic.
The Boilermakers (4-0) will take on No. 16 Virginia Tech for the eight-team tournament title Sunday night.
Pac-12 men
Colorado 79, Omaha 75: Tyler Bey and Lucas Siewert each scored 16 points and McKinley Wright IV hit two free throws with seven seconds left to help Colorado hold on for a victory over Omaha.
State game
GCU men 69, Arkansas State 72: Senior power forward Michael Finke’s 15 points led GCU as six players scored in double digits in a blowout win over Arkansas State at GCU Arena.