Virginia Tech men's basketball routs Mercer 96-67 at Cassell Coliseum

Virginia Tech men's basketball won its second straight home game to open the season, beating Mercer 96-67 on Thursday night at Cassell Coliseum in front of 5,060 fans.

The Hokies improved to 2-0 and never trailed. They led by as many as 31 points, and the game had no lead changes.

Hansberry leads the way

Amani Hansberry led Virginia Tech with 23 points on 9-of-13 shooting, adding five rebounds, three assists and a block in 27 minutes. Ben Hammond scored 16 points with five steals and four assists. Jaylen Curry added 14 points and four assists, though he shot 4-of-15 from the field.

Isaiah Elohim scored 11 points on 4-of-6 shooting in 13 minutes. Butta Johnson went 3-of-5 from three for nine points. Tyler Johnson had a team-high nine rebounds, four of them offensive, and scored eight points off the bench.

Turnovers tell the story

Virginia Tech committed just four turnovers, while Mercer gave the ball away 18 times. The Hokies had eight steals and turned those turnovers into 28 points, compared with six for Mercer. Virginia Tech also scored 15 fast-break points to Mercer's two.

The Hokies shot 34-of-70 from the field (49 percent), including 8-of-22 from three, and made 20 of 26 free throws. They outscored Mercer 46-30 in the paint and won the rebounding battle 39-34, with 14 offensive boards.

Mercer's night

KJ Lamonte paced the Bears with 21 points and five assists, but he also had six of the team's turnovers. Karon Boyd scored 12 points and led Mercer with six rebounds. Derek Goodman added nine points.

Mercer shot 22-of-54 (41 percent) and 6-of-20 from three. The Bears trailed 47-24 at halftime and scored 43 points in the second half, compared with 49 for the Hokies. Mercer fell to 1-1.

Up next

Virginia Tech travels to face Iowa on Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2026, at 7:00 p.m. ET.