Poteat's late three-point play send Virginia Tech past Miami 86-85

BLACKSBURG, Va. — Mylyjael Poteat scored a career-high 25 points and his three-point play with 2.7 seconds left carried Virginia Tech past Miami 86-85 on Saturday.

Poteat gathered a pass in the lane from Ben Hammond and drew a foul on Brandon Johnson on the game-tying layup before sinking the foul shot for the win. After a timeout, and faced with going the length of the court, the Hurricanes failed to get off a shot as time expired.

Tobi Lawal added 22 point for Virginia Tech (6-8, 1-2 ACC) which ended its four-game skid against the Hurricanes that dated to 2022.

Matthew Cleveland scored 21 points, Jalil Bethea 15 and Austin Swartz 12 for Miami (4-10, 0-3). Now a Miami starter, former Hokie Lynn Kidd scored seven points in his return to Virginia Tech. Kidd left the floor after the game and was not present in the handshake line between players and coaches.

The Hurricanes finished the first half shooting 57% (16 for 28) with Virginia Tech right behind at 55% (16 for 29). Lawal and Poteat each scored 10 points by the midway mark. Neither team fell off after the break as the Hokies finished at 54.2% (32 for 59) and Miami at 58.9% (33 for 56).

Ben Burnham's 3-pointer gave Virginia Tech its largest first-half lead at 28-23 with 11:38 left before halftime. Miami's largest lead before the break occurred when Matthew Cleveland's 3 made it 38-32 with 3:22 left before intermission.

Miami hosts Florida State on Wednesday. The Hokies head west to play Stanford on Wednesday.