The Virginia men’s basketball team defeated Boston College, 66-51, Saturday afternoon at Conte Forum in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, overcoming junior guard Justin Anderson’s rare poor shooting display on the strength of balanced offense and a decisive push late in the second half.
Led by junior guard Malcolm Brogdon — who scored a team-high 20 points and grabbed five rebounds — the No. 2 Cavaliers (17-0, 5-0 ACC) extended the program’s best start since 1980-81 while improving to 6-0 in true road games on the season.
Neither team led by more than five points in the first half, but Virginia entered the break up 27-24 after freshman guard Marial Shayok’s 3-pointer broke a 22-22 tie with 3:35 to play. Junior forward Anthony Gill closed the first-half scoring with two free throws after Eagles junior guard Olivier Hanlan hit two at the line 31 seconds before the horn.
The game remained up for grabs in the opening minutes of the second half, when Boston College (8-8, 0-4 ACC) reclaimed the lead and pushed it to five points at 38-33 with 14:30 to play after back-to-back layups by Hanlan and senior guard Patrick Heckmann.
Virginia freshman forward Isaiah Wilkins pushed back with a mid-range jump shot from the right wing, igniting a 10-0 Cavalier run capped by senior forward Darion Atkins’ inside bucket with 8:34 to go.
Hanlan knocked down two free throws to cut the Eagle deficit to five, but sophomore point guard London Perrantes answered with a 3-pointer off Brogdon’s set-up for his first basket of the game.
The Virginia lead hung between five and seven points until Perrantes scored five unanswered to spot the Cavaliers a 58-48 edge with 4:07 to play. Virginia held on from there, scoring eight of the game’s last 11 points.
Gill collected an 11-point, 10-rebound double-double, and Perrantes scored eight points and dished out six assists. Anderson finished 0-8 from the field with no rebounds, contributing most noticeably on the defensive end and at the foul line, where he shot 8-9.
Seven Cavaliers scored five points or more as Virginia made 18-21 free throws to compensate for a 21-49 performance from the field.
Hanlan paced Boston College with 18 points and six assists, as Heckmann scored 15 on 6-11 shooting.
Virginia hosts Georgia Tech this Thursday at John Paul Jones Arena. Tip-off is scheduled for 8 p.m.
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