Boston College edges Georgia Tech in ACC Tournament

GREENSBORO, N.C. — Olivier Hanlan scored 25 points, including the go-ahead basket with 10.9 seconds left, as Boston College edged Georgia Tech 66-65 in the first round of the ACC tournament in Greensboro, N.C. on Tuesday.

Hanlan added eight rebounds and five assists before making a step-back jumper on the baseline to win it for Boston College (13-18), which plays fifth-seeded North Carolina in Wednesday’s second round. Patrick Heckmann had 19 points and Dimitri Batten added 10 for the Eagles, who have won four straight contests.

Former Tift County standout Tadric Jackson led the way with 16 points while Charles Mitchell scored 14 and grabbed 11 rebounds for Georgia Tech (12-19), which had a chance to win it, but Corey Heyward missed a driving layup in the final seconds. Robert Sampson chipped in with 12 points and Demarco Cox had nine to go along with nine rebounds for the Yellow Jackets.

Georgia Tech trailed by as many as seven in the first half, but grabbed 12 offensive rebounds to offset Heckmann’s 12 points and trailed only 35-34 at intermission. Cox converted a three-point play and Jackson drained a 3-pointer as the Yellow Jackets built an 11-3 run to take a 57-52 lead with 4:54 left.

Boston College, the 12th seed, scored the next five before Georgia Tech – seeded 13th – answered with six straight, capped by a corner 3-pointer from Sampson, for a 63-57 lead with 1:49 to go. The Eagles responded as Hanlan ended a 7-0 burst with a layup for a one-point lead with 41.4 seconds remaining, but Jackson made a short jumper in the lane to set up Hanlan’s heroics.