Georges-Hunt lifts Georgia Tech past Eagles, 74-71

ATLANTA (AP) With top scorer Trae Golden sitting out with a groin injury, Georgia Tech turned to Marcus-Georges Hunt to take the game-winning shot.

No problem. Georges-Hunt said he has made the shot many times - in practice.

Georges-Hunt scored 15 points, including a go-ahead 3-pointer with 0.7 seconds remaining, and Georgia Tech beat Boston College 74-71 on Thursday.

Georgia Tech coach Brian Gregory said he drew up the play usually designed for Golden in a timeout.

''Coach told me to relax,'' Georges-Hunt said. ''I was already relaxed.''

Olivier Hanlan led Boston College with 21 points, including a jumper with 3 seconds remaining to give the Eagles a 71-70 lead.

Georges-Hunt took the inbounds pass, dribbled toward the right wing and launched the go-ahead 3-pointer over Lonnie Jackson, who was called for a foul.

''I tried to contest the shot, and he made it,'' Jackson said. ''I don't know if I even touched him. ... He just made an incredible shot.''

Georges-Hunt also sank the free throw.

''He was very coachable,'' Gregory said of Georges-Hunt. ''I told him to make it and he did.''

It was Georges-Hunt's second go-ahead basket in the final 20 seconds. His layup with 19 seconds remaining gave Georgia Tech a 70-69 lead.

Daniel Miller led Georgia Tech (13-12, 4-8 Atlantic Coast Conference) with 18 points as the Yellow Jackets completed a sweep of their two-game season series with the Eagles. Kammeon Holsey had 15.

The Yellow Jackets snapped a two-game losing streak.

''The guys kept fighting,'' Gregory said. ''The guys stuck together and we made the plays in the last 8 minutes that we needed to make to win the game.''

Ryan Anderson had 13 points for Boston College (6-18, 2-9), which has lost four straight and seven of eight.

''That's the third or fourth game that came down to the last possession that we came out on the short end,'' said Boston College coach Steve Donahue.

The Eagles lost despite making nine of 17 3-pointers and shooting 50.9 percent from the field overall.

The game was scheduled for Wednesday night and postponed due to the winter storm which covered Atlanta in snow and ice. Georgia Tech's classes were called off Wednesday and Thursday.

''It really helped out,'' Georges-Hunt said. ''I got to relax some. No school, so that's a plus. We had a lot of walk-throughs.''

Robert Carter Jr. had 10 points for Georgia Tech. Carter missed 10 games following surgery to repair torn meniscus in his left knee. He shared the ACC lead with his average of 9.3 rebounds per game when he hurt the knee. The sophomore forward had five points in 16 minutes in his return against Virginia on Saturday, and was more effective against the Eagles.

Golden led the Yellow Jackets with a career-best 24 points in their 68-60 win at Boston College on Jan. 21.

The Yellow Jackets led 16-13 before the Eagles took the lead with a 9-0 run that included two 3-pointers by Hanlan. The long-range shots were the difference in the first half as Boston College made 5 of 11 3-pointers to lead 35-34 at the break. Georgia Tech made only one of eight 3s in the half but stayed close with 13 points from Miller.

A three-point play by Holsey, followed by a 3-pointer by Corey Heyward, gave Georgia Tech a 58-55 lead, but turnovers on bad passes on back-to-back possessions by Miller helped the Eagles answer with eight unanswered points. Patrick Heckmann sank two straight 3-pointers in the Eagles' surge.

Joe Rahon's drive past Chris Bolden pushed Boston College's lead to 69-64. After a basket by Holsey trimmed the lead to three points, Georges-Hunt sank two free throws with 1:09 remaining, leaving Boston College with a 69-68 advantage.

Following a Boston College timeout, Miller blocked Rahon's shot on a drive. Georges-Hunt then drove down the baseline for the go-ahead layup.

Despite warnings to stay off the roads, the attendance was 3,104.