Pack’s hot shooting hand lifts No. 23 Miami past Va Tech, 92-83

CORAL GABLES, Fla. (AP) — Nijel Pack had five perfect minutes, and Miami remained perfect at home because of them.

Pack scored all 17 of his points in a six-shot barrage late in the second half that lifted the 23rd-ranked Hurricanes to a 92-83 comeback win over Virginia Tech on Tuesday night.

“We made some good decisions,” Miami coach Jim Larrañaga said. “We scored the ball very, very well during those last four or five minutes.”

Norchad Omier led Miami with 21 points, while Isaiah Wong had 18 and Jordan Miller finished with 14 for the Hurricanes (17-5, 8-4 Atlantic Coast Conference).

Hunter Cattoor and Sean Pedulla each scored 20 for Virginia Tech, while Grant Basile each added 17 and Justyn Mutts finished with 10 for the Hokies (13-9, 3-8).

“I thought it was an outstanding college basketball game,” Larrañaga said.

The Hurricanes improved to 12-0 at home this season, and 5-0 in games immediately after a loss. The last time Miami lost on its home floor was Feb. 26 — to Virginia Tech, which hasn’t won a true road game since.

But for much of Tuesday night, the Hokies looked like they’d end that streak with another victory in Coral Gables. They led by five with 8:20 left, when Miami — led by Pack — hit its best stride of the night.

Pack was scoreless for the game’s first 32-1/2 minutes. But his 3-pointer with 7:35 left tied the game at 68 and started an absolute barrage from the sophomore guard from Indianapolis.

He made six consecutive shots in a span of 5:07, five of them 3-pointers, the last of them putting Miami up 84-76 with 2:28 remaining.

“Once you get it going, a guy like him who shoots so well, you can keep it going for a long time,” Larrañaga said.

It seemed to inspire Miami on the defensive end as well. Virginia Tech shot 29 for 44 — a 66% clip — over the first 35 minutes, then missed its final seven shots from there as the Hurricanes did just enough to prevail. The last shot was a dunk try by Mutts that was blocked by Omier, and Wooga Poplar finished off the win with a dunk on the other end.

“I’m tired of watching Miami play. I admire them. They’re really good,” Virginia Tech coach Mike Young said. “If you’re not playing with great poise and great attention to detail … they were quite obviously better down the stretch than we were.

BIG PICTURE

Virginia Tech: The Hokies have now lost eight of their last 10, after an 11-1 start to the season. They’re 0-3 on the road against ranked teams. … Virginia Tech was outscored 22-4 in fast-break points.

Miami: Former Hurricanes football players David Njoku (Cleveland) and Braxton Berrios (New York Jets) were at the game. … Miami shot 58% and Omier had eight rebounds for the Hurricanes.

POLL IMPLICATIONS

It was a needed win for Miami, which has been slipping in the AP Top 25 – and now faces ACC leader Clemson in a game that the Hurricanes may need to stay in the rankings.

UP NEXT

Virginia Tech: Host No. 6 Virginia on Saturday.

Miami: Visit No. 20 Clemson on Saturday.