Wake Forest edges Virginia Tech in final seconds
WINSTON-SALEM – Time dwindling under 10 seconds and the score tied, the nervous energy of Joel Coliseum grew louder.
Nate Calmese provided the loudest moment.
Wake Forest’s senior point guard buried a go-ahead 3-pointer with six seconds left. That pushed the Deacons to an 81-78 victory against visiting Virginia Tech on Saturday afternoon.
It was a possession that started with about 50 seconds left. Wake Forest (10-5, 1-1 ACC) missed two shots but a loose-ball offensive rebound extended the possession.
Virginia Tech (12-3, 1-1) defended what the Deacons wanted; Calmese buried the step-back 3-pointer to ignite the home crowd of 8,460.
Wake Forest fouled with a three-point lead twice in the final seconds, not allowing the Hokies a chance at a game-tying 3-pointer. Calmese added a couple of free throws with 3.1 seconds left for the final margin.
Wake Forest pushed its lead to 58-50 with 10:30 left. That was the most separation for either team in what was a back-and-forth start to the second half.
The Hokies responded with a 12-0 run, scoring on each of the next five possessions.
That set the tone for the rest of the game. The score was tied six times in the last 6½ minutes.
Wake’s lead was four at halftime, 36-32. That was after the Deacons had two runs of 9-0, in between a 10-0 run by VT.
The Deacons’ defense threw VT out of sorts in the first half. The Hokies entered the game with the fifth-best turnover rate in the country (KenPom); they committed 12 turnovers before the game was 12-minutes-old.
Wake Forest scored 13 points after those turnovers. The Deacons’ offense was limited by a 2-for-12 from 3-point range.
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