Hurricanes Hold Off Boston College, 73-64

CHESTNUT HILL, MASS. (AP) – Reggie Johnson scored 12 of his 15 points in the second half to help Miami hold off a Boston College charge in a 73-64 win Wednesday night, sweeping the season series.

The Hurricanes (17-11, 5-8 Atlantic Coast Conference) led by as many as 22 points in the first half. They were up by 18 before Reggie Jackson and Joe Trapani led a pair of Eagles comebacks to get within six points on three occasions, the last time with 22.7 seconds left.

Johnson converted back-to-back three-point plays when BC (16-11, 6-7), which got as close as five points, at 61-56 with 3:38 left, made its first run. He hit two more baskets and two free throws later in the half.

Malcolm Grant added 15 points for Miami, including a bomb with 3 minutes left.

For the Eagles, Trapani scored 13 of his 16 points in the second half, and Jackson had 13 of his 15 after the break. Trapani also had 11 rebounds.

The loss deals a serious blow to BC’s chances for an NCAA Tournament bid. Considered to be firmly on the bubble coming in, the Eagles needed to at least win their two remaining home games in their to avoid having to go deep into the ACC tournament to reach the NCAA’s in coach Steve Donahue’s first year.

The Eagles took almost five minutes to hit their first field goal but trailed only 12-10 before Miami went on a 22-2 run to blow the game open.

BC shot 30 percent from the floor in the half, and were a woeful 1-for-9 from 3-point range. The Eagles turned the ball over eight times and were outrebounded, 21-10.

The first time the teams played, a 72-71Miami win on Jan. 15, the Hurricanes also outrebounded the Eagles, but only by a 37-32 margin.

Tonight’s Starters
For the first time this season, Miami went with the starting five of Durand Scott, Malcolm Grant, Garrius Adams, Adrian Thomas and Julian Gamble. These starters got the Hurricanes off to a strong start and Miami led by 21 points at halftime.

Road Warriors
Tonight’s win over Boston College marks the third-straight road win for the Hurricanes and their second-straight in ACC play. Miami heads directly to Tallahassee from Chestnut Hill to shoot for four in a row.

Keep it Down
The Hurricane defense kept the Eagles to just 17 first-half points — a season low for both Boston College and any Miami opponent this season. The Hurricanes shot better than 50 percent from the field and beyond the arc in the opening half, while holding Boston College to 30 percent shooting in the opening stanza — including just an 11.1 percent mark from downtown (1-9).

From Downtown
With three three-pointers tonight, Malcolm Grant extends his three-point streak to 15-straight games for the second-longest active streak in the ACC. In addition, with 135 career threes Grant is just one trey away from entering Miami’s top 10 in career threes in just his second season as a Hurricane. With one three-pointer, he will move into a tie for 10th place with assistant coach Jake Morton.

Adrian Thomas hit a pair of threes to increase his career total to 183 — fifth place on UM’s career three-pointers list — and extends his three-point streak to 13 straight for the third-longest active streak in the ACC.

Paint Production
The Hurricanes outscored the Eagles, 30-16, in the paint — including 15 points from Reggie Johnson.