CHARLESTON, S.C. — Bennett Stirtz scored 21 points, Daniel Abreu had 18 points and 10 rebounds and Drake beat Miami 80-69 on Thursday to begin the Charleston Classic.
It was Drake’s first victory against an ACC opponent since topping Wake Forest 77-74 in its second game of the 2017-18 season.
Stirtz was the only player for either team in double-figure scoring with 11 minutes remaining in the second half.
Nijel Pack became the first Florida State player to reach double digits when he made a 3-pointer with 6:54 remaining to pull within 56-47, but Stirtz answered at the other end with a three-point play to restore a 12-point lead.
Stirtz hustled in transition to throw down a putback dunk to give Drake a 65-54 lead. Mitch Mascari added a wide open 3-pointer with 2:02 left and he made a steal at the other end to seal it.
Mascari finished with 15 points for Drake (4-0).
Pack scored 17 points for Miami (3-1). Jalen Blackmon and Matthew Cleveland each added 12.
The Bulldogs entered ranked fourth in Division I in scoring defense, allowing opponents just 51.0 points per game. Miami entered averaging 98 ppg.
Both teams will play three games in four days. The second game of the tournament featured Oklahoma State and Florida Atlantic. Seton Hall, VCU, Vanderbilt and Nevada are on the other side of the bracket.
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