Jason Edwards scored 17 of his 19 points in the second half to help propel Vanderbilt to an 80-64 victory over Virginia Tech in the SEC/ACC Challenge on Wednesday night in Blacksburg, Va.
MJ Collins Jr. scored 15 points against his former team and Grant Huffman added nine points and four steals for the Commodores (8-1), who are off to their best start since the 2007-08 season.
It was a satisfying victory for Vanderbilt coach Mark Byington, who grew up nearby in Salem, Va., and was an assistant at Virginia Tech in the 2012-13 season.
Collins, who started 44 games the previous two seasons for Virginia Tech, made a feisty return to Blacksburg as he barked at his former teammates throughout.
Collins scored all of his points in the first half when he helped Vanderbilt take a five-point lead into halftime.
Jaden Schutt scored 15 points on five 3-pointers and Mylyjael Poteat added 14 points and seven rebounds to lead Virginia Tech (3-5).
It was the fifth straight loss for the Hokies, with each coming by double-digit margins.
A putback basket by Tyler Johnson less than five minutes into the second half reduced Vanderbilt’s lead to 45-43. But Virginia Tech failed to get any closer.
Edwards scored all but two of the points in a 9-0 run as the Commodores increased their advantage to 54-43 with 12:19 left.
Huffman helped seal the win as he made steals on consecutive possessions. He passed ahead to Tyler Tanner for a breakaway layup on the first steal and Huffman scored on a fastbreak layup on his second swipe to put Vanderbilt up 71-57 with 4:54 left.
In the seesaw first 10 minutes of the game, neither team led by more than three points until Collins heated up.
In a span of 53 seconds, Collins made a trio of 3-pointers to help Vanderbilt take a 26-16 lead, its biggest lead of the half.
Poteat scored 10 points in the final eight minutes of the period as the Hokies reduced the deficit to 39-34 at the break.
–Field Level Media
