Saturday Showcase as BC, Duke Face Off on ESPN

BOSTON COLLEGE VS. DUKE - ALL-TIME SERIES

This is the 33rd meeting between the Eagles and Blue Devils.
Duke holds a commanding 29-3 lead in the all-time series.
The Blue Devils have won the last nine and 20 of the last 21 games.
Duke earned an 80-65 win at Cameron Indoor Stadium last season.
BC's last win over Duke: an 89-84 home win on Dec. 9, 2017.
The Eagles are 2-11 against the Blue Devils at Conte Forum.

BOSTON COLLEGE AGAINST RANKED OPPONENTS

Boston College has 70 wins all-time against ranked opponents; 21 wins have come versus top 10 teams; seven versus top five foes.
This is the first nationally ranked opponent for BC this season.
Last year, BC was 0-3 against ranked foes, falling 89-78 at #21/22 Clemson, 76-66 to #4/3 North Carolina, and 80-65 at #9/10 Duke.
In 2022-23, Boston College was 3-5 against ranked teams.
It marked the first time since the 2008-09 season where BC earned three victories over ranked opponents.
BC's last win over a top five opponent came on Dec. 9, 2017, when Boston College downed #1/1 Duke, 89-84.
The last three wins over top five ranked opponents were against the No. 1 team in the country.

HIGH-PERCENTAGE VENNING

Over his last five games, Chad Venning is averaging nearly 16.0 ppg and connecting on 63% of his field goal attempts.
Venning tallied 17 points on 7-of-13 shooting on Jan. 11 against Syracuse.
He tallied a season-high 19 points on 8-of-15 shooting at Georgia Tech on Jan. 4.
Venning was 7-of-10 from the floor, good for 17 points in the comeback win over Miami on Jan 1.
He tallied a season-high 18 points against FDU on Dec. 28, connecting on 8-of-10 from the floor.
The grad transfer from Brooklyn has attempted at least 10 shots in nine games this season - BC is 6-3 in those games.
For his career, Venning has attempted at least 10 FG in 49 career games and is shooting .536% in those games.
Venning leads Boston College in FG%, connecting on 55.6% of his shot attempts, including 57.4% from inside the arc.
He ranks second in the ACC in overall field goal percentage; his .566 mark in ACC play is fourth-best in the league.

BEADLE'S BUZZER-BEATING BUCKETS

Seven of the 11 3-pointers from Joshua Beadle this season have come with 10 seconds or less on the shot or game clock.
Included in those seven was the gamewinning 3FG as time expired vs. Boise State in the Cayman Islands Classic title game.
The grad transfer guard has made 11-of-22 attempts from the perimeter this season at Boston College.
Entering this season, Beadle had made 9-of-49 (.184) from beyond the arc in 65 games at Clemson.

TODAY'S BOSTON COLLEGE NOTE(S) YOU CAN'T LIVE WITHOUT

The Jan. 13 loss at Notre Dame marked the second time this season that an ACC opponent was at least +20 from the free throw line.
In the ACC opener on Dec. 7, Wake Forest attempted 20 more free throws than Boston College in a 72-66 loss.
Since 2021-22, Boston College has been -20 in FT attempts four times in ACC play. The Eagles are 0-4 in those games.

ON THIS DATE: JANUARY 18

Boston College is 5-7 all-time, and 0-2 in ACC games, on the January 18 calendar date.
January 18 is also marks the dual celebration of National Thesaurus Day and National Winnie the Pooh Day.
Several historic events occurred on January 18 - 1644: the first reported UFO sighting in North America (Boston); 1896: the first college basketball game with five players on each side - the University of Chicago beat Iowa, 15-12; 1903: the first transatlantic radio transmission happened between Wellfleet, Mass. and England; 1958: Willie O'Ree of the Boston Bruins becomes the first African American to play in the NHL; 2022: The Bruins retire O'Ree's #22 jersey to the rafters
Notable January 18 birthdays: soccer manager Pep Guardiola; actor Kevin Costner; author AA Milne; medical pioneer Daniel Hale Williams; sound engineer Ray Dolby; baseball pioneer Curt Flood.

EAGLES AMONG THE ACC / NCAA LEADERS

Donald Hand Jr. ranks 15th in scoring (14.8), 12th in rebounding (7.0) and first in free throw percentage (.911).
Hand is one of three players to rank in the top 15 in scoring and rebounding in the conference.
Maxime Raynaud (Stanford) and Cooper Flagg (Duke) are the others.
Hand ranks second in the ACC and fourth nationally among major conference guards in rebounding.
His 91.1% proficiency mark from the charity stripe is tops in the ACC and ranks 21st nationally.
Hand ranks tied for seventh in the ACC - and 75th nationally - in double-doubles, with four.
Chad Venning sits in second in the ACC - and 50th nationally - in field goal percentage, connecting on 55.6% of his shots.
Venning is also fifth in the ACC - and 113th nationally - in blocked shots, averaging 1.4 swats per outing.
Venning's 24 total blocks is fourth-most in the ACC and is 98th-most nationally.
Jayden Hastings is ninth in the ACC in blocks, swatting 1.2 shots per game so far this season.

HAND MAKES HISTORY AS ACC PLAYER OF THE WEEK

After a career-high 29-point double-double outing on Dec. 28, Donald Hand Jr. was named the ACC Player of the Week.
Hand poured in 15 of his 29 points in the first half and scored eight of BC's final 10 points down the stretch vs. FDU.
It marked the first time in the history of the ACC that a father and son have each been named ACC Player of the Week.
Donald Hand Sr. won the award on Jan. 31, 2000 while starring as a guard at Virginia.
The ACC began its weekly awards program during the 1972-73 season.
It is the first ACC Player of the Week honor for a BC player this season and the first since Nov. 23, 2023 (Quinten Post).
Since joining the ACC in 2005-06, an Eagle has been selected ACC Player of the Week 18 times (10 different players).

COMEBACK KIDS VS. THE CANES

Boston College registered its largest home comeback win in program history against Miami on Jan. 1.
Trailing by 19 - 32-13 - with just under nine minutes to play in the first half, BC came back to win, 78-68.
The comeback began from there, as the Eagles closed the half on a 16-9 push to make it a 41-29 deficit at the break.
BC began the second half on an 8-2 push, getting within four - 43-39 with 17:04 to go - after a Chad Venning layup.
Roger McFarlane's 3FG with 8:52 to play gave Boston College its first lead of the day - 56-55 - capping another 10-4 push.
The Eagles outscored the Canes, 22-13 from that point on - and 49-27 in the second half - to secure the win.
Fred Payne (12), Joshua Beadle (11), and Elijah Strong (11) all tallied double-digits over the final 20 minutes.
The previous high for a home comeback was 18 points, set on Dec. 29, 2004 as the Eagles reversed course on Kent State.

DONALD HAND JR. - YEAR-OVER-YEAR IMPROVEMENTS

Donald Hand Jr. has shown a major statistical leap from a season ago.
Hand is averaging a +7.0 jump in scoring average and over a +5.0 jump in rebounding per game this season.
Using the metric PAR (points+assists+rebounds), he has seen nearly a +16 jump year-over-year and nearly a +10 increase when measured over 40 minutes.
Hand has already surpassed his 2023-24 totals in points, rebounds, assists.
After suffering a season-ending injury early in game two as a true freshman, Hand's first significant playing time post-injury came during the 2023-24 season.
On Dec. 30, Hand was named ACC Player of the Week.

HASTINGS MAKING AN IMPACT

Redshirt freshman Jayden Hastings earned his first collegiate start on Dec. 21 against SMU.
The 6-9 post player registered season-highs in scoring (nine points) and minutes played (29).
He made 3-of-6 shots from the floor and 3-of-4 from the charity stripe, to go along with five boards and a blocked shot.
In the comeback win over Miami on Jan. 1, he finished with six points, and a career-high nine boards in 22 minutes.
Hastings is averaging 3.3 points, 3.5 boards, and 1.2 blocked shots in 14 minutes per game this season.
He has seven games with at least two blocked shots - the most by a BC freshman since All-ACC and ACC All-Defensive selection Steffon Mitchell posted eight multi-block games during his freshman campaign in 2017-18.

FIVE'S COMIN'...

Fred Payne earned his first start on Jan. 1 vs. Miami, finishing with 15 points, six boards, three assists, and two steals.
He had scored in double digits on four occasions off the bench, including a career-high 18 points - including a key 3-pointer in the OT period - against Missouri State in the second round of the Cayman Islands Classic.
Boston College is 4-1 in the five games where Payne has tallied 10+; the lone loss, a 72-66 decision at Wake Forest.
On the season, Payne is averaging 6.4 points in under 15 minutes per game; a per-40 average of nearly 18.0 ppg.
He ranks second on the squad in 3-point percentage (.432) and is connecting on 87% from the charity stripe.
Nearly a year ago, Payne suffered what was a season-ending knee injury on Dec. 5, 2023 against CCSU.

CHARITABLE VENTURES

Donald Hand Jr. ranks nationally in free throws made (82; 43rd), attempted (90; 117th), and percentage (.911; 18th).
His .911 proficiency from the FT line in 2024-25 would rank first all-time in Boston College's single-season record book.
The current record - .894 - was set by BC Hall of Famer Troy Bell during his freshman season in 1999-2000.
Hand's .866 career FT mark (116-134) ranks third all-time at BC; Bell '03 and Jordan Chatman '19 share the record (.868)
Hand made 19-of-20 from the line through the first two games of the season, including 11-for-11 vs. The Citadel.
The last BC player to connect on at least 23 of 25 free throws over a three-game span was Olivier Hanlan in 2014-15.
Hanlan went 25-for-26 over a three game stretch, including a perfect 14-for-14 from the line at Pitt on Feb. 24, 2015.
Hand has had nine games with a perfect mark from the line and has made 30 consecutive free throws dating back to Dec. 21.

Saturday Showcase as BC, Duke Face Off on ESPN

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Joshua Beadle

Donald Hand Jr.

Jayden Hastings

Roger McFarlane

Fred Payne

Quinten Post

Elijah Strong

Chad Venning

Boston College Athletics

Saturday Showcase as BC, Duke Face Off on ESPN

Related News

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Joshua Beadle

Donald Hand Jr.

Jayden Hastings

Roger McFarlane

Fred Payne

Quinten Post

Elijah Strong

Chad Venning

Related Videos