McMahon shoots No. 16 Cardinals past No. 11 Hokies, 72-64
BLACKSBURG, Va. (AP) — Ryan McMahon knows No. 16 Louisville's offense is likely to change, and quickly, when he makes a 3-pointer.
How quickly?
"The next possession," he said Monday night after scoring 12 points in a span of 83 seconds in the second half as the Cardinals used a 14-3 run to pull away and beat No. 11 Virginia Tech 72-64 on Monday night. "(Christen Cunningham) and (Dwayne Sutton), they do a great job just when I hit one they keep going back to me until the well is dry."
McMahon had scored just three points when he made three free throws with 11:53 to play. He then added three 3-pointers, the last with 10:30 left after a 3 by Ty Outlaw for the Hokies, to bolster the Cardinals (17-6, 8-2 Atlantic Coast Conference). It is Louisville's 15th consecutive victory in the series.
"He does it in practice all the time, so it's not really a surprise when he makes one or two. You know the next one is going to go in and the next one," said Jordan Nwora, who along with Sutton added 15 points.
McMahon finished with 17 points, his second-highest total of the season.
"For Ryan to do what he did there in the middle of the second half just took some wind out of their sails," coach Chris Mack said
Kerry Blackshear Jr. scored 21 points and Nickeil Alexander-Walker 17 for the Hokies (18-4, 7-3), who lost for the first time in 12 home games. Virginia Tech has not beaten its old Metro Conference rival since Feb. 13, 1991.
The Hokies were coming off a record-setting game in which they allowed just nine field goals and 24 points in a 47-24 victory against then-No. 23 North Carolina State, but McMahon accounted for half that total with his blistering second-half display.
The Cardinals reached 24 points on McMahon's 3-pointer 7:18 before halftime.
Virginia Tech played without second-leading scorer Justin Robinson (14.4 ppg, left foot) and reserve forward P.J. Horne (undisclosed).
"I thought we hung in there pretty good tonight. We just had too many turnovers in the second half relative to what gives us out best chance to win," Williams said.
Ten of Virginia Tech's 13 giveaways came after halftime .
DIFFERENT LOOK
The Cardinals reached 24 points on McMahon's 3-pointer 7:18 before halftime.
BIG PICTURE
Louisville: With both teams playing their second game in three days, and the Hokies down to just six regulars, the Cardinals seemed to pay special attention to attacking to the offensive glass, but grabbed only four of those to three for Virginia Tech in the first half. Each team scored two points off those chances. Louisville grabbed 10 offensive boards to five for the Hokies overall and had 6 second-chance points to the Hokies 2.
Virginia Tech: Williams used backup point guard Wabissa Bede and fellow guards Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Ahmed Hill for 40 minutes each in Saturday afternoon's victory in Raleigh, North Carolina, and while Williams refused to blame their subpar shooting on tired legs and their fatigue showed, especially after halftime. Besides McMahon, the Cardinals finished allowed McMahon to get loose for three long 3s in a span of one minute as a 44-38 Louisville expanded quickly to 55-41 with 9:03 left. The Hokies committed 10 of their 13 turnovers after halftime.
UP NEXT
Louisville: The Cardinals plays their third consecutive ranked team as they visit No. 22 Florida State on Saturday.
Virginia Tech: The Hokies head south to face Clemson on Saturday.