Mylyjael Poteat scored a career-high 25 points and delivered the go-ahead three-point play in the final seconds to lift Virginia Tech past visiting Miami 86-85 on Saturday in Blacksburg, Va.
The fifth-year forward was fouled on his game-tying layup with 2.7 seconds left and hit the ensuing free throw to give the Hokies a one-point edge. Matthew Cleveland’s half-court heave at the buzzer for the Hurricanes was well off the mark.
Poteat shot 10 of 16 from the floor and hit 5 of 7 free throws to eclipse his previous career-high of 19 points. Tobi Lawal added 22 points, six rebounds and five assists as Virginia Tech (6-8, 1-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) snapped its two-game skid.
Cleveland finished with 21 points for Miami (4-10, 0-3), which has lost its first two games since head coach Jim Larranaga resigned on Dec. 26. Jalil Bethea scored 15 points and Austin Swartz added 12 points, while Divine Ugochukwu paired seven points with seven assists.
The Hurricanes scored six straight to go up 82-76 with 3:17 left before Lawal’s layup closed the gap to two points with 42 seconds to go. Bethea missed a jumper on Miami’s ensuing possession, setting up Poteat’s winning play.
The Hokies finished 13 of 15 from the line, while Miami shot 11 of 17.
Virginia Tech held a 40-39 edge after a first half that featured five ties and eight lead changes.
The hosts controlled most of the game’s early minutes behind four made 3-pointers, including Ben Burnham’s deep ball that opened up a 23-18 lead at the 11:38 mark.
The Hurricanes soon warmed up after their cold start from beyond the arc, drilling three triples during an 11-2 run to surge ahead 38-32 with 3:22 left. Bethea and Cleveland punctuated the spurt with back-to-back treys.
Miami held a five-point lead until Lawal scored six straight for the Hokies to end the half, including a two-handed jam off of Ben Hammond’s alley-oop lob with 59 seconds remaining.
–Field Level Media
