Top-Five Moments of BC's ACC Tournament Run

[andy_backstrom]

Top-Five Moments of BC's ACC Tournament Run​

Andy Backstrom (@andybackstrom)
Publisher

Boston College men's basketball entered the ACC Tournament having lost eight of its last 10 games to finish the regular season. The Eagles also had lost 14 straight contests in the month of March.

And they hadn't won an ACC Tournament game in four years.

But, when BC got to Brooklyn, it played its best basketball—first-year Eagles head coach Earl Grant's end-of-season goal.

The Eagles smacked Pitt by 20 points in the opening round, then upset fifth-seeded Wake Forest—perhaps spoiling the Demon Deacons' NCAA Tournament plans—before nearly beating fourth-seeded Miami and advancing to what would have been their first conference tourney semifinal since 2007.

It had the makings of a Cinderella story, and it helped reinvigorate a fan base that hasn't had much of a stake in tournament basketball for the greater part of the last 13 years.
Here are the top-five moments from BC's three-day run in the Barclays Center.

1. BC's 12-0 run to close the first half against Pitt​

The Eagles doubled Pitt star forward John Hugley—who posted a monster 32-and-13 double-double against BC in early January—but, initially, Hugley was navigating the trap to near perfection. Except, foul trouble forced Hugley to take a seat on the bench, and that's when the Eagles scored nine of their dozen points in a 12-0 run to end the opening frame. Senior center James Karnik capitalized the most, logging seven points in the process. BC took a 33-22 lead into halftime and never looked back, especially after a Femi Odukale flagrant one and technical gifted the Eagles with four free throws and another possession in the infant stages of the second period.

2. Brevin Galloway's go-ahead, off-balanced 3-pointer against Wake​

Brevin Galloway was as cold as can be from mid-January to mid-February. At one point, the College of Charleston grad transfer missed 20 consecutive shots from beyond the arc. But, over the final 10 games of the year, he averaged 10.2 points and shot an improved 31.7% from downtown. Galloway, who had midseason surgery on his left knee, also displayed significantly more mobility in the tail end of the season, diversifying his game with dribble-drive penetration. He came up huge for BC down the stretch of its ACC Tournament games. Particularly when he refused a ball screen and knocked down a go-ahead 3-pointer against Wake Forest with about two and a half minutes remaining in regulation.

Keep in mind, this came after BC used an 11-1 run to tie the game at 66-66, a stretch which followed an Eagles drought where they missed eight shots in a row. It ended up being the first time BC erased a 10-point, second-half deficit since 2019.

3. The Langford brothers deliver the upset victory over the Deacons​

DeMarr Langford Jr. and his older brother, Makai Ashton-Langford, turned the ball over on back-to-back possessions in the final minute of regulation against Wake Forest. Both redeemed themselves. First, Ashton-Langford drew an Alondes Williams charge to give the Eagles a chance to win the game before the buzzer. Then, in overtime, the graduate guard made a silk-smooth floater. And Langford sealed the deal with a turnaround jumper that was working for him all day. The brothers combined for 32 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists in the win.

4. James Karnik's poster dunk over Miami's Sam Waardenburg​

Karnik put together some memorable performances in 2021-22. He was pretty up and down throughout most of the regular season, however. But not in the home stretch. The 6-foot-9, 250-pound big man finished in double figures 10 of his final 11 games. He reached that mark in the quarterfinals versus Miami. One of his five baskets was a ferocious two-handed dunk through Miami five-man Sam Waardenburg. The play precipitated from a Quinten Post block on the other end. It was part of a 6-0 run that immediately put the Eagles back in the driver's seat after Miami had taken its biggest lead of the day.

5. Jaeden Zackery's icy game-tying 3-pointer against the 'Canes​

Jaeden Zackery was, by far, BC's most dependable 3-pointer shooter this season. The JUCO transfer made a team-high 52 triples and shot a blistering 47.7% from beyond the arc. He was 5-of-8 from deep in the ACC Tournament and a perfect 2-of-2 against Miami. Zackery's most clutch shot of the year came with 21.2 ticks remaining in regulation. Makai Ashton-Langford penetrated, drawing the attention of Miami's defense, and then swung the ball back out to a wide-open Zackery. The freshman fired and swished a 3-pointer to tie the game at 65-65. Although BC wound up losing to the Hurricanes in overtime—in heartbreaking fashion no less—it pushed the 'Canes further than pundits expected. All while playing its third game in three days.