ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. – Sophomore Nickeil Alexander-Walker once again dropped 20-plus points to lead No. 13 Virginia Tech to a 73-61 victory over Washington on Saturday night at the Boardwalk Classic inside Boardwalk Hall.
The sophomore finished with 24 points on 9-of-14 shooting for the Hokies (9-1), who boasted four players in double figures on the night. Washington (7-4) was led by Matisse Thybulle's team-high 16 points, which fell to Tech for the second consecutive year.
The Hokies started the game off hot, jumping out to a 27-12 advantage after a redshirt junior Kerry Blackshear Jr. jumper to force a Huskies timeout. The break in action would not stop Tech's momentum though, as it built upon its lead to as many as 21 points, following a 3-pointer by senior Justin Robinson at the 5:09 mark
Attacking Washington's zone from the inside and out, Tech scored 16 points in the paint while knocking down four triples to give it a comfortable 39-21 lead at halftime. But the Huskies came out firing after intermission.
Washington started the second half by making its first six shots, including four from downtown, to cut the deficit to singles digits at 48-39 with 14:59 remaining. But graduate student Ty Outlaw scored five straight points and Alexander-Walker followed with eight straight of his own to push Tech's lead back to double digits at 61-49 with under six minutes left.
The Huskies trimmed it to as close as nine down the stretch, but the Hokies would always have an answer never letting it get to a two-possession game.
(12/15/2018) 2018 MEN'S BASKETBALL BOARDWALK CLASSIC
NOTES
- Alexander-Walker posted his fifth game this season of 20 or more points, racking up eight in his young career. The Toronto native also chipped in three rebounds, three assists and two steals. Alexander-Walker earned Boardwalk Classic MVP honors for the VT-UW matchup.
- Robinson made some history in New Jersey, becoming the fourth Hokie in program history to own at least 1,200 points and 500 assists in a career. The guard joins Bimbo Coles, Malcolm Delaney and Jamon Gordon. Robinson registered 10 points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals.
- Blackshear and graduate student Ahmed Hill each had 10 points to round out the Hokies' four players in double figures.
- Sophomore P.J. Horne came off the bench and delivered six points, six rebounds and drew a charge.
STAT OF THE GAME
- Tech got to the charity stripe and made it count, making 81 percent of its free throws on 17-of-21 shooting. The Hokies have made at least 17 free throws in three games this winter and are a perfect 3-0 in those games.
TWEET OF THE GAME
That ball movement 😍🤤#getBETTER🦃(@HokiesMBB) pic.twitter.com/744ZrIXfDg
— ACC Digital Network (@theACCDN) December 16, 2018
WHAT IS NEXT
- The Hokies will come back to Blacksburg for a home contest at Carilion Clinic Court at Cassell Coliseum against North Carolina A&T (4-6) on Dec. 19 at 7 p.m. ET.