ACC tournament roundup: Cal tops Va. Tech in 2 OTs

Field Level Media|published: Wed 12th March, 03:12 2025

NCAA Basketball: ACC Conference Tournament First Round - Virginia Tech vs California

Mar 11, 2025; Charlotte, NC, USA; California Golden Bears guard Andrej Stojakovic (2) handles the ball defended by Virginia Tech Hokies guard Brandon Rechsteiner (7) during OT at Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

Andrej Stojakovic scored 29 points and 15th-seeded Cal, playing in its first Atlantic Coast Conference tournament, scored the first eight points of the second overtime session to defeat 10th-seeded Virginia Tech 82-73 in a first-round game Tuesday in Charlotte, N.C.

Rytis Petraitis added 16 points for the Golden Bears (14-18), who won for the second time in their last nine games. They lost in quadruple overtime Saturday at Notre Dame. Cal meets No. 7 seed Stanford, which received a first-round bye, in the second round Wednesday night.

Brandon Rechsteiner racked up 19 points, Tobi Lawal had 17, Mylyjael Poteat added 13 and Jaydon Young posted 12 for Virginia Tech (13-19).

Rechsteiner's 3-pointer put the Hokies up 65-61 in the first overtime before Petraitis notched the next four points. Lawal made a pair of free throws with 48 seconds remaining before Stojakovic matched those with 27 seconds to go, tying the score at 67.

Syracuse 66, Florida State 62

JJ Starling finished with 27 points and five rebounds to help the 14th-seeded Orange hold off the No. 11 seed Seminoles.

The Orange (14-18) advanced to the second round and will play the No. 6 seed SMU Mustangs (22-9) on Wednesday night. Syracuse has won back-to-back games for the first time since Jan. 7 and 11.

The loss finished the season for the Seminoles (17-15) and marked the end of longtime coach Leonard Hamilton's career. Former FSU player Luke Loucks will take over as coach next season.

Notre Dame 55, Pittsburgh 54

Tae Davis made a free throw with 0.5 second remaining and the No. 12 seed Fighting Irish slipped by the 13th-seeded Panthers in the first game of the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament in Charlotte, N.C.

The winning opportunity came after Notre Dame's Markus Burton missed a shot. Davis collected the rebound, was fouled and made the first free throw. Davis had a team-leading 11 points and Burton, the ACC scoring leader at 22.2 points per game, and Nikita Konstantynovskyi both posted 10 points for the Irish (15-17). Notre Dame, which has won three games in a row, takes on fifth-seeded North Carolina in the second round Wednesday. The Tar Heels beat the host Fighting Irish 74-73 on Jan. 4.

Jalan Lowe's 17 points and Cameron Corhen's 10 paced Pitt (17-15), which lost five of its last six games.

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