Boston College’s Olivier Hanlan is fouled by Georgia Tech’s Chris Bolden during Thursday’s game. (AP)
“By then,” teammate Ryan Anderson said, “I knew anything this dude throws up is going in today.”
Pretty much.
Hanlan set an Atlantic Coast Conference tournament record for freshmen with 41 points, and the Eagles routed Georgia Tech 84-64 on Thursday in the first round.
The ACC’s rookie of the year had the highest-scoring game in the tournament by any player regardless of class since 1970 and broke the old mark of 40 set two years ago by North Carolina’s Harrison Barnes.
“My teammates were finding me in spots,” Hanlan said. “I was just trying to get to the wing because they were guarding me pretty well whenever I attacked. So I was just trying to spot up and get my feet under me and hit shots.”
Mfon Udofia had 10 points for Georgia Tech.
The opening game of the tournament matched two of the youngest teams in the league.
Eleven of the 14 players on BC’s roster are freshmen or sophomores while the Yellow Jackets start three freshmen around Udofia, the lone senior on their team — and the rookies certainly stole the show in this one.
These young Eagles — the preseason pick to finish last in the league — finally figured out how to win down the stretch.
They came to Greensboro on a three-game winning streak and claimed their second win over Georgia Tech in a six-day span.
Maryland 75, Wake Forest 62
GREENSBORO, N.C. — Dez Wells scored 14 of his 21 points in the second half and Maryland beat pesky Wake Forest in the first round of the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament.
Alex Len and Seth Allen added 11 points for the seventh-seeded Terrapins (21-11).
They struggled for about 30 minutes against a Wake Forest team they previously beat twice by a combined 36 points.
But they held the Demon Deacons without a field goal for a critical 8½-minute stretch while using a late 24-8 run to pull away for their seventh straight win in the series.
Maryland will face No. 2 Duke, the tournament’s second seed, in the quarterfinals tonight.
NC State 80, Virginia Tech 63
GREENSBORO, N.C. — Richard Howell scored 22 points with 12 rebounds while Lorenzo Brown led the defensive effort on league player of the year Erick Green to help North Carolina State beat Virginia Tech in the first round of the ACC tournament.
C.J. Leslie scored 15 points for the fifth-seeded Wolfpack (23-9), who shot 52.8 percent (28 of 53) and took control with an 11-0 second-half run. N.C. State led by 17 points after that spurt and never let the 12th-seeded Hokies (13-19) get the margin under double figures again.
Brown had nine points, 12 assists and seven rebounds, but did his best work as a nagging defense presence against Green — the nation’s leading scorer at 25.4 points per game.
Green finished with 15 on 5-for-19 shooting for one more frustrating ACC tournament performance in the senior’s final game.
The Wolfpack advanced to Friday’s quarterfinals to face fourth-seeded Virginia.
Florida State 73, Clemson 69
FSU pushes past Clemson 73-69 in ACC 1st round
AARON BEARD,AP Basketball Writer
GREENSBORO, N.C. (AP) — Michael Snaer hit four free throws in the final 22.4 seconds to help reigning champion Florida State hold off Clemson 73-69 on Thursday night in the first round of the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament.
Snaer finished with 10 points for the sixth-seeded Seminoles (18-14), who let a 14-point lead with 3 minutes left slip to a single bucket late. But his last two free throws with 6.9 seconds showing made it a two-possession game and helped FSU hang on.
Okaro White scored a career-high 24 points for FSU, while Terrance Shannon added 12 — including six straight to spark a 14-3 second-half run that helped the Seminoles take control after trailing by 10 in the first half.
Florida State advanced to Friday's quarterfinals to face third-seeded North Carolina.
Jordan Roper scored 18 to lead the 11th-seeded Tigers (13-18), who lost their seventh straight to close their worst season in nine years.
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