For the fourth straight meeting, No. 21 Virginia Tech was bested by Boston College on Wednesday night in Chestnut Hill, losing 70-65 in overtime.
The Hokies (11-2, 1-1 ACC), seeking a 2-0 start in the ACC for just the sixth time in 19 seasons, were lackadaisical and lifeless in the practically empty Conte Forum. Though they led for the entire first half, the Eagles (7-6, 1-1 ACC) stormed back with a 7-0 run with 13 minutes remaining in regulation. From there, they kept Tech at bay.
With 4:19 left in regulation, BC led VT by nine, 57-48. But the Hokies ripped off an 11-0 run to retake the lead with 49 seconds to play. Darius Maddox, Justyn Mutts, Sean Pedulla and Grant Basile all contributed to the scoring run. However, Boston College trailed by two, 59-57, with under a minute to go, and Makai Ashton-Langford hit a layup to send the game to overtime.
From there, it was all Eagles. They outscored Tech 11-6 in the overtime period while the Hokies were 3-of-10 in the final five minutes. There were chances to get stops but BC got an offensive rebound from Devin McGlockton to reset the shot clock with 53 seconds to play. 17 seconds later, Ashton-Langford drained a 3-pointer from the logo to essentially seal the game.
Surprisingly, Virginia Tech marginally shot better than Boston College, making 40.9% vs. 40.3%. Tech was better on the glass, too, grabbing 45 rebounds (16 offensive) to 40 (17). But despite entering the game ranked fourth in D-I in turnover percentage, Mike Young & Co. had their most turnovers of the season with 15. The previous high was 14 vs. Minnesota.
Mutts had five of those while Pedulla had four, both of which tied the respective player's season-high. The Hokies didn't take care of the ball at all and ball movement was lacking; they finished with 12 assists.
On top of that, they had just one point off the bench - a free throw from Mylyjael Poteat. It's the fewest in a game this season, surpassing five against College of Charleston.
Pedulla and Mutts scored 18 points each while Maddox and Mutts each grabbed eight rebounds. In all, four Hokies scored in double figures with Basile (13) and Maddox (10).
Hunter Cattoor, who had five and five, was injured in the second half when he fell awkwardly on his left forearm. He did not return to the game. On the Virginia Tech Sports Network, Young said Cattoor will be evaluated before he flies to his hometown of Orlando for Christmas break.
Ashton-Langford had a game-high 21 points (8-of-15) and finished with seven rebounds. McGlockton had 18 points and seven boards, too. BC point guard Jaeden Zackery had six points, five rebounds, five assists and no turnovers.
Wake Forest is up next for Virginia Tech on New Year's Eve (12 p.m. ET, RSN). The Demon Deacons are no pushover, however, after beating Duke on Tuesday night.
Box Score: Link