CORAL GABLES, Fla. — Nijel Pack was ice cold to start Tuesday night.
The Hurricanes point guard did not score for the first 32 minutes against Virginia Tech, but he caught fire when Miami needed him most.
Pack drained five second-half 3-pointers to vault the No. 23 Hurricanes over the Hokies, 92-83, at the Watsco Center in Coral Gables. Miami (17-5, 8-4 ACC) has won 11 straight home games.
Pack started the game slowly, but teammates Isaiah Wong, Norchad Omier and Jordan Miller helped carry Miami early in the game. Wong had 16 first-half points, and Omier sunk his first eight shot attempts. But the Hokies (13-9, 3-8) kept pace with their second-best shooting game of the season, ending the contest with a 56.9 shooting percentage.
The Hurricanes cooled off in the middle of the second half, and Virginia Tech went on a 9-2 run in the middle of the second half as Miami went without a point for 2:58. The scoring drought caused the Hurricanes to fall behind by five points. Miami soon tied the game back up Pack’s first three.
Neither the Hurricanes nor the Hokies could get a decisive edge over the other, and the game featured 17 lead changes. The last came on a Pack layup with 3:37 left in the game, and the Hokies never got back ahead of Miami.
Four Hurricanes finished Tuesday’s game in double digits. Omier led Miami with 21 points and eight rebounds, while Pack had 17 points, Wong had 18 and Miller had 14.
Pack’s five threes in the second half helped give Miami the momentum it needed to close out the Hokies and get back in the win column following a heartbreaking loss to Pittsburgh on Saturday. The Hurricanes will try to keep their winning momentum on the road against Clemson on Saturday.
