Virginia @ Boston College preview

Last Meeting ( Jan 9, 2019 ) Virginia 83, Boston College 56

No. 18 Virginia has barely been tested in ACC play thus far and it will try to remain perfect in the league when it visits Boston College on Tuesday. The Cavaliers have held their first three conference opponents to an average of 40 points while defeating them by an average of 16.3 to move into an early tie atop the ACC with No. 2 Duke.

The most lopsided of those three conference victories was a 65-39 rout of Virginia Tech on Saturday in which the Hokies shot 27.1 percent from the field and sophomore guard Kihei Clark scored a career-high 18 points for Virginia. "We tried to open the court a little more and let him attack and make some decisions and he was really good," coach Tony Bennett told reporters of Clark, who also had a game-high six assists. The Cavaliers are the second straight ACC power on Boston College's slate after the Eagles were dismantled by Duke 88-49 last Tuesday at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Just one Boston College player - freshman forward CJ Felder (13 points) - scored in double digits as the Eagles saw a four-game winning streak come to an end.

TIME: 7 p.m. ET. TV: ACC Network

ABOUT VIRGINIA (11-2, 3-0 ACC): Senior guard Braxton Key had 18 points and 10 rebounds Saturday for his second double-double of the season in his best effort since returning from a wrist injury. Senior forward Mamadi Diakite tops the team in scoring (13.2) despite being held to six against Virginia Tech. Clark ranks third on the scoring list at 9.8 and ranks fourth among ACC players with 5.9 assists per contest.

ABOUT BOSTON COLLEGE (8-6, 2-1): The Eagles shot 33.9 percent from the floor - including 3-of-18 from long range - and recorded a season-low eight assists in the loss to Duke. "We did a really poor job today of keeping the floor spaced and then making plays for other people," coach Jim Christian told reporters. "We tried to do way too much finishing plays, and they did a great job recovering and blocking shots or forcing us to miss." Leading scorers Derryck Thornton (13.3) and Jay Heath (12.0) combined for just 14 points while senior forward Steffon Mitchell missed all six of his shot attempts.

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Eagles senior F Nik Popovic, who averages 11.8 points and 5.9 rebounds, has missed five straight games with a back issue.

2. Cavaliers sophomore G Kody Stattmann reached double figures for the first time in his career with 10 points against Virginia Tech.

3. Diakite scored 18 points to lead Virginia to its sixth straight win in the series last season, an 83-56 victory at Chestnut Hill, Mass.

PREDICTION: Virginia 66, Boston College 45