BOSTON — Chad Venning was pivotal in Boston College’s 78-68 victory against Miami, as he scored 15 of his total 17 points in the initial half. Fred Payne also contributed significantly with 15 points in the contest, which marked Miami’s first appearance after the resignation of their long-time coach, Jim Larrañaga.

The 75-year-old Larrañaga, who stepped down recently, has been replaced for the rest of the season by Bill Courtney, the associate head coach and a close friend of Larrañaga for nearly thirty years.

During the game, Boston College faced an early challenge, finding themselves down by 19 points in the first half. Miami started strong, getting the first eight points of the match and building a lead of 20-6, thanks in part to Paul Djobet’s eight points. By halftime, Miami held a 41-29 advantage.

However, Boston College came out with renewed energy to start the second half, initiating a 10-2 run that trimmed Miami’s lead to just four points. The Eagles took their first lead of the game at 8:52 remaining when Roger McFarlane hit a 3-pointer. Just moments later, Payne’s own 3-pointer ignited a decisive 9-0 run, allowing Boston College to secure the lead for the rest of the match.

Even as Miami fought back and reduced the deficit to four points on two occasions within the last four minutes, Joshua Beadle responded each time with critical 3-pointers, restoring a seven-point lead for the Eagles. Beadle ended the evening with 13 points, while teammates Elijah Strong and Donald Hand Jr. contributed 11 and 10 points, respectively, for Boston College, which now holds a record of 9-5 overall and 1-2 in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

For Miami, a struggling team this season, senior Matthew Cleveland scored 21 points, marking his third consecutive game as the team’s leading scorer. Lynn Kidd also had a notable performance, totaling 14 points and eight rebounds, while Djobet added 10 points to the scoreboard. Miami’s shooting woes were evident, as they connected on only 1 of 14 attempts during a key stretch in the second half and finished the period with a shooting percentage of 28.6%.

Both teams will be traveling for their next contests on Saturday. Miami is set to face Virginia Tech, while Boston College will go up against Georgia Tech.