BLACKSBURG, Va. — MJ Collins Jr. dropped 15 points in his return to Blacksburg while Jason Edwards added a game-high 19 to guide Vanderbilt to an 80-64 win over Virginia Tech on Wednesday night.
Edwards scored 17 of his 19 in the second half to eclipse 15 points for the eighth time this season. Collins Jr.’s 15 matched his season high. Grant Huffman and Tyler Tanner added nine points apiece with Huffman nabbing four steals to match a career best.
The Dores used an 11-0 run, all courtesy of Collins Jr., to build a 26-16 lead midway through the first half. The Hokies closed the deficit to 39-34 at half by capitalizing on a handful of Vandy turnovers down the stretch.
Vanderbilt (8-1) pulled away in the second half, blitzing the Hokies with a 7-0 run over 59 seconds with 14 minutes to play. The Dores never looked back, pushing the lead out to 17 with 4:05 to go and cruising to their eighth victory of the season.
Virginia Tech (3-5) was paced by Jaden Schutt with 15 points. Mylyjael Poteat added 14 and Ben Burnham 10 for the Hokies. Tech held a 37-27 margin on the glass.
The Commodores recorded 10 steals and scored 28 points off 15 Virginia Tech turnovers. Vandy also held a 49-20 edge in bench scoring and a 36-28 advantage in the paint.
Vanderbilt continues its road trip with a visit to Fort Worth, Texas, on Sunday to face TCU in the USLBM Coast-to-Coast Challenge in Dickies Arena. Tipoff is set for 11:30 a.m. CT on ESPNU.
