Virginia Tech pulls away from Florida State

Hunter Cattoor scored 20 points to lead four Virginia Tech players in double figures as the Hokies beat Florida State 83-75 in a foul-plagued Atlantic Coast Conference game Tuesday night in Blacksburg, Va.

Sean Pedulla scored 19 points, Tyler Nickel had 15, and Lynn Kidd chipped in 12 as Virginia Tech (14-10, 6-7 ACC) snapped a three-game skid.

Jamir Watkins led all scorers with 26 points while Darin Green Jr. added 14 for the Seminoles (13-11, 5-8,), who fell to 2-5 over their last seven games.

The two teams combined for 47 personal fouls. Primo Spears fouled out for the Seminoles while four other FSU players, including Watkins and Green, finished with four each.

Three Hokies, including Pedulla, finished with four personals each.

The Hokies took advantage, going 28-of-32 at the free-throw line while Florida State shot 19 of 29.

The Hokies opened the second half on a 10-2 run to take a 49-41 lead fueled by Nickel's back-to-back 3-pointers. The Seminoles had that down to 52-51 after consecutive dunks by Cam Corhen. Virginia Tech responded and took a nine-point lead, 65-56, on Cattoor's fourth 3-pointer with 5:57 remaining.

The Seminoles trimmed the deficit to 71-66 with 2:18 remaining but the Hokies entered the final minute with a 77-66 cushion, which was their biggest lead of the game.

Virginia Tech sealed the win by going 6-of-6 from at the free-throw line while Watkins countered with a pair of 3-pointers. Watkins finished the game 7-of-9 from the floor overall and 3-of-3 from behind the arc as the Seminoles (53.3 percent) shot better than 50 percent from the floor for the third time in their last four games.

The two teams went into the break tied 39-39 as the Hokies outscored the Seminoles 7-4 over the final 2:21. The Seminoles also went through an early scoreless stretch that lasted more than four minutes, allowing the Hokies to take a 14-10 lead.

Despite their scoreless stretch, the Seminoles shot 50 percent from the floor in the first half. The Hokies shot 42.9 percent in the first half and finished the game with a 35-23 rebounding advantage.