ACC Weekend Hoops: BC beats Gamecocks, Miami falls to No. 1 Duke

BC Stays Hot, Beats South Carolina: Joe Trapani had a season-high 23 points as Boston College won for the eighth time in nine games with an 85-70 victory at South Carolina on Saturday at Columbia.

Trapani had three of his team's 13 3-pointers. The 6-foot-8 senior also had his way underneath with the Gamecocks' young lineup, continually outracing them for easy buckets.

Boston College (11-3) came South prepped for a sturdy test against a Southeastern Conference opponent. Instead, the Eagles' experienced lineup was no match for South Carolina (8-3), which started three freshman and a sophomore.

Biko Paris added 18 points and Corey Raji had 16 points and 12 rebounds for Boston College.

Bruce Ellington had 21 points to lead South Carolina, which has lost three of its past four games.

The Eagles were picked 10th in the Atlantic Coast Conference, yet already own a conference win at Maryland and figure to carry a lot of momentum into league play when it resumes next week.

Pack's Tracy Smith Returns in Style Against San Diego: Tracy Smith was so anxious to return to the NC State lineup in Saturday afternoon's 76-54 victory over San Diego, he had to be restrained by a game official.

Technically, Smith's return was delayed at the 15:12 mark of the first half because San Diego's Darian Norris had to attempt the first of his two free throws before Smith, who was waiting impatiently at the scorer's table, could be signaled into the game.

But you get the idea: He was ready to play.

"I was anxious to get in there," Smith said. "I kind of forgot that you have to wait until he shoots the first free throw. I just wanted to get in."

Smith's Wolfpack teammates were just as eager to get the ball in his hands, as Richard Howell quickly passed the ball to Smith in the lane on the Pack's first possession with Smith in the lineup. The preseason first-team All-ACC pick uncharacteristically pumped his fist in excitement as he was fouled while making a short jumper in the lane.

Nolan Smith Leads No. 1 Duke to 74-63 Win Over Miami: Nolan Smith scored a season-high 28 points to help No. 1 Duke beat Miami 74-63 on Sunday night in the Atlantic Coast Conference opener for both teams.

Reserve guard Andre Dawkins added 16 points for the Blue Devils (13-0, 1-0), who have won 23 straight games dating to last season's run to the ACC and NCAA tournament championships. Kyle Singler added 14 points on a night when the Blue Devils didn't shoot all that well but still maintained a comfortable lead for much of the game.

Smith had a run of 13 straight points in the first half that gave Duke its double-digit lead, though the Hurricanes (11-4, 0-1) played the reigning national champions basically even the rest of the way.

Reggie Johnson tied his career high with 22 points despite battling foul trouble much of the game for Miami, which shot 37 percent and missed 14 of 17 3-point attempts.

North Carolina Routs St. Francis, Pa. 103-54: John Henson scored 13 points, one of eight North Carolina players in double figures in a 103-54 rout of St. Francis (Pa.) on Sunday.

Leslie McDonald and Reggie Bullock added 12 points apiece for the Tar Heels (10-4). They won theirBoston College Stays Hot, Tops South Carolina 85-70 third straight and wrapped up the nonconference schedule by hitting the 100-point mark for the second time this season.

Tyler Zeller and Dexter Strickland scored 11 points each while Henson also had six of North Carolina's season-high-tying 10 blocked shots. The Tar Heels shot 59 percent (39 of 66).

Cavaliers Open 2011 with 64-50 Win Over LSU: KT Harrell scored 15 points and sparked a big second-half run Sunday night and Virginia beat LSU 64-50 to end its two-game losing streak.

Harrell and Mustapha Farrakhan each had six points in the 18-3 run for Virginia (9-5). It spanned 6 1/2 minutes and came after the Tigers had taken their first lead at 29-28. When Will Regan finished the burst with a tip-in, Virginia led 46-32 with 10:37 to play.

The Tigers (8-7) scored 10 of the next 12 to get within 48-42, but Harrell's two free throws and a layup by Akil Mitchell made it 52-42. Two 3-pointers by Will Sherrill gave the Cavaliers a 58-47 lead, and LSU never recovered in its fourth loss in five games.

Record-setting victory for Virginia Tech: Five Hokies scored in double figures led by Erick Green’s game-high 17 points to help Virginia Tech dismantle visiting Mount St. Mary’s, 99-34, Sunday afternoon at Cassell Coliseum in its final game before continuing ACC play this upcoming weekend.

The Hokies shot a school-record 69.2 percent from the floor as all 10 players that saw the court for Tech scored. They also registered their second-greatest margin of victory (81, vs. Washington & Lee, 1/9/59) and greatest margin at Cassell, while they also held the Mountaineers to just 17 percent shooting, the lowest ever for a Tech opponent.

Jackets Drop Double-OT Heartbreaker to Charlotte, 86-83: Derrio Green scored 21 points, including a key 3-point basket during a 9-0 run in the second overtime to lead the Charlotte 49ers to an 86-83 win over Georgia Tech on Sunday night.

Green also had a pair of free throws in overtime and four straight foul shots late in regulation to tie it at 66 for Charlotte (8-6), which won its fourth straight come-from-behind victory late in a game.

Demon Deacons Fall To Gonzaga 73-63: Three Demon Deacons scored in double-figures but it wasn't enough as a hot-shooting Gonzaga team held on for a 73-63 victory Sunday afternoon at the Joel Coliseum in Winston-Salem.

The win was the sixth-straight for the Bulldogs who improve to 10-5 on the season while the loss drops the Demon Deacons to 6-8 on year.