Virginia Tech leads start to finish in victory over Boston College

Tobi Lawal scored 16 of his 20 points in the second half as Virginia Tech held off Boston College for a wire-to-wire 72-63 victory on Tuesday in Blacksburg, Va.

Neoklis Avdalas scored 14 of his 15 points in the first half to get the Hokies (19-11, 8-9 Atlantic Coast Conference) off to a quick start. Virginia Tech overcame the nemesis Eagles, who had won six of the previous seven meetings.

Amani Hansberry contributed 11 points and seven rebounds and Ben Hammond also logged 11 points for Virginia Tech, which needed the win badly as it is on the wrong side of the selection bubble on most NCAA Tournament projections.

The Hokies built a 19-point lead in the first half and led 35-24 at the break. However, Virginia Tech committed four turnovers in the first two minutes of the second half and continued its lackluster play, allowing the Eagles to cut the deficit to six points on four occasions.

Lawal rose to the challenge, scoring 11 points in a span of 5:02 as the Hokies hiked their lead to 67-52 with five minutes left.

Boden Kapke scored a career-high 25 points and grabbed eight rebounds to pace Boston College (10-20, 3-14), which lost for the 10th time in its past 11 games.

Fred Payne added 16 points and 12 rebounds for the Eagles, who are in danger of failing to qualify for the ACC tournament for the second straight year. The top 15 finishers in the 18-team league qualify for the event next week in Charlotte.

Virginia Tech dominated the opening minutes, with Avdalas draining two 3-pointers and Hansberry working inside for a pair of layups as the Hokies jumped to a 14-4 lead.

Later in the half, the 6-foot-9 Avdalas showed his versatility during a 13-point burst, starting the spree with a 3-pointer and finishing it with a low-post scoop shot.

Hansberry and Tyler Johnson also made triples in the run, which gave Virginia Tech its biggest lead of the game, 30-11.

Boston College scored the final six points of the half to cut the deficit to 11.

Late in the second half, Hammond hit a 3-pointer and two free throws to help the Hokies wrap up the win.