Amani Hansberry scored 15 points to go with nine rebounds, and Christian Gurdak scored four of his 12 points in the final four minutes to help Virginia Tech beat California 78-75 on Saturday in Blacksburg.
Gurdak’s layup gave the Hokies a 68-67 lead with 3:52 to play, and he added two free throws to make it 70-67. Cal pulled within a point four times, the last at 76-75 after a pair of free throws by former Hokie John Camden, a transfer from Delaware, with eight seconds left.
Jailen Bedford made the second of two free throws for the Hokies with three seconds to play. Cal’s Justin Pippen missed a left-wing 3 at the buzzer to end it.
Bedford finished with 13 points for Virginia Tech (13-4, 2-2 Atlantic Coast Conference), which snapped a two-game skid. Jaden Schutt and Neoklis Avdalas added 11 points apiece. Tobi Lawal scored 10 points before fouling out.
Dai Dai Ames was 8-of-12 shooting and scored 21 points to lead five in double figures for Cal (13-4, 1-3).
Cal jumped to a 29-18 lead, but Tech closed the first half on a 19-3 run to tie it at 37.
No. 6 Duke 82, No. 24 SMU 75: Isaiah Evans scored 21 points and had a critical 3-pointer with 1:15 left for the Blue Devils (15-1, 4-0 ACC) at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Evans slipped to the left side for the 3-pointer off a feed from freshman star Cam Boozer to make it 76-70. It was a repeat of the play that sent Duke past Florida when he hit a late 3 in December.
Patrick Ngongba II tied his career high with 17 points for Duke. Jaden Toombs scored 23 points on 10-for-12 shooting for SMU. The Mustangs (12-4, 1-2) were playing without leading scorer Boopie Miller because of illness.
No. 20 Louisville 75, Boston College 62: The Cardinals (12-4, 2-2) overcame the visiting Eagles (7-9, 0-3) for coach Pat Kelsey’s 300th win as Sananda Fru had 19 points and 13 rebounds and missed just one of his nine field-goal attempts.
The Cardinals struggled early without their top two scorers. Freshman Mikel Brown Jr. (16.6 ppg) missed his sixth straight game with a back injury and leading-scorer Ryan Conwell (19.9 ppg) was scratched before tipoff with a back injury. London Johnson, 21, a 6-foot-3 guard who played three seasons in the NBA G League, was available to play, although he did not enter the game. He has two seasons of eligibility.
Boston College, which led by 10 with 2:49 until halftime, got 22 points from Fred Payne and 12 from Landstown High graduate Donald Hand Jr.
North Carolina State 113, Florida State 69: The Wolfpack (12-5, 3-1) took a huge lead early on the Seminoles (7-9, 0-3) in Tallahassee and prevailed. Paul McNeil Jr. scored 21 points, making five of NC State’s season-high-tying 19 3-pointers on 35 tries, and Darrion Williams added 20 points and 10 rebounds.
The Wolfpack scored the first 11 points of the game and led 56-31 at the half. Thomas Bassong scored 14 points to lead FSU.
Miami 91, Georgia Tech 81: The Hurricanes (14-2, 3-0 ACC) overcame the Yellow Jackets (10-7, 1-3) as Tre Donaldson scored a career-high 27 points and had 10 assists, leading Miami to its eighth consecutive win.
Donaldson, a transfer from Michigan who also played for Auburn, scored seven straight Miami points down the stretch. He made two free throws with 2 1/2 minutes remaining and followed that up with a jumper and a wide-open 3-pointer that gave Miami an 88-79 lead with 39 seconds left.
Kowacie Reeves Jr. scored 23 for Georgia Tech.
Syracuse 83, Pittsburgh 72: Donnie Freeman and JJ Starling combined for 41 points for the visiting Orange (11-5, 2-1). Freeman had 22 points and five rebounds in his third game back from a six-week absence with a foot injury. Brandin Cummings led the Panthers (7-9, 0-3) with 29 points.
https://www.pilotonline.com/2026/01/10/hokies-find-way-back-overcome-cal/
