Tyyler Thornton scored a career-best 13 points and Austin Rivers hustled for a clinching three-point play that carried the sixth-ranked Blue Devils to a 60-56 victory over cold-shooting Virginia Tech in the ACC quarterfinals Friday night.

See video higglights from Duke's 70-65 overtime win over Virginia Tech at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham.

Updated 10:41 p.m.

BLACKSBURG, Va. --  Quinn Cook got into the lane to the right of the Virginia Tech basket midway through the second half and found a Hokies’ defender between him and the basket.

Mason Plumlee stood behind that defender and gave a quick point to the ceiling of Cassell Coliseum. Cook lofted the ball over the rim to Plumlee, who finished for an emphatic alley-oop. With that, Duke was up 17 points against the Hokies and in a similar situation to Saturday, when the Blue Devils took their foot off the gas late against St. John’s.

There was no such let-up Thursday.

BLACKSBURG, Va. — His team down by five at halftime at Virginia Tech on Thursday night, North Carolina coach Roy Williams walked into the Tar Heels locker room and told his players to stop pouting. They’d suffered a 33-point loss at Florida State just days before and now they were losing again.

Williams wrote words on a board: “Poise. Toughness. Confidence.”

“I challenged them,” he said. “I said don’t be giving me and woe-be’s, don’t be giving me any feel sorry for yourselves. Let’s play. I wasn’t going to feel sorry for us at all.”

No. 8 UNC folded in the second half of that loss against the Seminoles on Saturday. Here on Thursday night, though, the Heels used a 19-0 second-half run to fuel an 82-68 victory against the Hokies.

CHARLOTTE -- Clemson used a spectacular third quarter to outscore Virginia Tech 21-0 and capture the ACC football championship 38-10 before a record crowd of 73,675 at Bank of America Stadium.

The victory sends Clemson to the Orange Bowl, via the ACC’s automatic bid into a BCS game. It appears likely the Tigers (10-3) will be paired against West Virginia of the Big East when bids are awarded Sunday evening.

This will be Clemson’s first appearance in the Orange Bowl since the Tigers’ national championship in 1981

BLACKSBURG, Va. -- Too many key penalties and no tailback Giovani Bernard in the second half added up to a 24-21 North Carolina loss to Virginia Tech at Lane Stadium.

Bernard suffered what North Carolina termed a "mild’’ concussion in the second quarter and never returned to the game. He finished with 10 rushes for 47 yards.

"It hurt us tremendously. Gio is a phenomenal back,’’ said one of Bernard’s backups, Ryan Houston. "He can break so many big ones, and we needed that tonight.’’

Updated 7:25 p.m.

DURHAM – Duke coach David Cutcliffe has told his told players these are the games, the close ones, that are most telling. He tells his Blue Devils he loves close games, because you’re right there, one play away from victory.

Saturday afternoon at Wallace Wade Stadium, the Blue Devils needed a play against No. 15 Virginia Tech, one that could be the biggest highlight under Cutcliffe’s four-years.

Virginia Tech's David Wilson (4) scores his third touchdown against Appalachian State during the first half at Lane Stadium, in Blacksburg. DON PETERSEN - AP

Updated 5:56 p.m.

BLACKSBURG, Va. - Appalachian State quarterback DeAndre Pressley said it was by far the worst game he had ever played, but a 66-13 thumping by 13th-ranked Virginia Tech on Saturday didn’t diminish his confidence.

Ranked No. 2 in the nation in the Football Championship Subdivision poll, Appalachian State entered Lane Stadium with hopes of duplicating the season-opening magic it delivered in a 34-32 win at Michigan in 2007.

GREENSBORO -- Virginia Tech’s seniors, who have never been to the NCAA tournament, played Thursday night like they’re desperate to get in.

Senior guard Malcolm Delaney scored 15 points and senior forward Jeff Allen added 14 in a 59-43 defeat of Georgia Tech in the final first-round game of the night at the ACC tournament at the Greensboro Coliseum.

BLACKSBURG, Va. – As Duke’s players exited the floor at Cassell Coliseum on Saturday night, Virginia Tech’s students were rushing on to celebrate one of the school’s biggest basketball wins ever.

Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski had warned that the Blue Devils would be playing teams desperate for wins over the last few games of the regular season.

Top-ranked Duke led by five with 5 minutes, 20 seconds remaining, but Virginia Tech scored nine straight points and won 64-60. Terrell Bell hit a tying 3-pointer and then made two free throws with 4:19 left to give the Hokies the lead for good.