Virginia Tech survives tough test against Winthrop

Jaydon Young hit two 3-pointers late in the second half and Virginia Tech held off Winthrop 58-52 on Monday in Blacksburg, Va.

The first trey gave the Hokies (3-0) a 50-42 lead with 4:59 remaining. Young struck again to make it 53-44 with 3:33 left.

Winthrop (2-1) rallied late, and K.J. Doucet’s 3-pointer pulled the Eagles within 55-52 with 59 seconds to go, but Brandon Rechsteiner hit two free throws with 23 seconds remaining and Winthrop got no closer.

Duke transfer Jaden Schutt led the Hokies with a career-high 17 points. Tobi Lawal added 10 points and 10 rebounds.

Winthrop was led by Kasen Harrison’s 19 points, while Doucet added 17 points and six boards.

Defense ruled most of the night as the Hokies shot 33.3 percent (19-for-57) from the field and the Eagles hit 34.5 percent (20-for-58). Virginia Tech won the rebounding battle 43-32 and had seven more second-chance points.

Schutt hit two 3-pointers early in the second half to give the Hokies a 29-27 lead. He added another trey with 16:38 left, and the lead was 32-28.

Both teams went long stretches without a basket, but Doucet’s driving layup pulled the Eagles within 35-34 with 11:46 remaining. Lawal’s layup and Ben Hammond’s 3-pointer from the right wing gave the Hokies their largest lead to that point, 40-34.

Winthrop stayed close and Harrison’s layup pulled them within 40-39 with 8:51 to go. The Eagles tied it briefly before five quick Virginia Tech points made it 47-42 with 6:13 remaining.

The first half featured seven lead changes.

Harrison’s jump shot gave Winthrop an early 11-7 edge before Virginia Tech’s Tyler Johnson scored the final four points of a 6-0 run.

With the Eagles trailing 21-17 late in the half, Kelton Talford hit a free throw, Doucet scored on a layup and followed with a 3-pointer and Harrison scored inside to cap an 8-0 run that put Winthrop ahead 25-21.

Doucet scored 10 points in the half and the visitors took a 25-23 lead into the locker room.

–Field Level Media