Reggie Jackson scored a game-high 25 points on 10-of-16 shooting and had five rebounds and four assists as Boston College overcame a poor start to defeat Virginia, 63-44, at John Paul Jones Arena on Saturday afternoon.
"We knew we had to get a win, a big win," Jackson said. "They beat Virginia Tech down here and they're a tough team. We just wanted to get a win to stay alive for a tournament possibility. We just came out ready to play."
Corey Raji scored 17 points and had eight rebounds for Boston College (17-11, 7-7 ACC). Joe Trapani finished with 12 points and four rebounds and John Cahill, Gabe Moton and Dallas Elmore each scored three points for the Eagles.
BC made 24-of-47 shots (51.1%) and 9-of-23 three-pointers (39.1%) while totaling 28 rebounds, 13 assists, four steals, three blocks and 10 turnovers.
"I was very proud of our guys, especially after our Miami game and how things settled in there," said Boston College head coach Steve Donahue. "Obviously to come on the road and beat a very good team, I thought we played very well."
Assane Sene and Mustapha Farrakhan each scored 10 points to lead Virginia (14-14, 5-9 ACC). Joe Harris was held to five points but collected a game-high 10 rebounds for the Cavaliers.
"I was doing what I always do, playing hard," said Sene. "I know my role on this team. Offensively we just weren't making shots, and that happens. Sometimes you make shots, sometimes you don't."
Virginia connected on 17-of-53 field goals (32.1%) and made only 4-of-21 shots beyond the arc (19%). The Cavaliers amassed 27 rebounds, eight assists, five steals and one block and turned the ball over seven times.
"We certainly struggled offensively and we've had games like this before where we weren't able to hit the shots or have enough guys scoring, but this was one of the first games where I felt like we really got outplayed defensively," said Virginia head coach Tony Bennett.
Boston College fell behind early and was held scoreless for nearly five and a half minutes before a Jackson dunk, cutting the Eagles’ deficit to 7-2 with 14:33 left in the first half.
"When you're hot, you're hot," Sene said. "We all know each other, so they know when you are hot. If you are, they are going to keep giving you the ball, even if you don't ask. I think that was the case this morning, because I was really focused on finishing."
The Eagles trailed, 21-13, with 7:35 left in the half, but Jackson led BC on an 18-7 run to close out the half and take a 31-28 lead into the break.
"Our defense just wasn't there, that's not the way we play defense," Sene said. "Games like this are good for us because we're going to come back tomorrow morning and work on things we didn't do well. Days like this happen though, sometimes you come and execute well, or play good defense, sometimes you don't."
Donahue’s team didn’t miss a beat in the early stages of the second half, using an 18-6 run to take a commanding 49-34 advantage with 9:49 left in the game, a lead they would not relinquish.
"I just thought it was a very good team effort," Donahue said. "It didn't start off great, yet they fought through some things. It is great when your defense is a catalyst in that as well."
Boston College returns to the court on Tuesday night when it faces ACC rival Virginia Tech in Blacksburg. Virginia hosts N.C. State in its next game on Tuesday.