Freshman John Petty hit six 3-pointers and scored 20 points as ninth-seeded Alabama held off eighth-seeded Virginia Tech 86-83 Thursday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh.

Fellow Crimson Tide freshman Collin Sexton overcame five turnovers to finish with a team-high 25 points, including a fadeaway jumper with 1:33 left that gave Alabama a 77-72 lead. Donta Hall added 10 points, hitting all five of his shots from the field.

Alabama (20-15) made 60 percent of its shots from the field to move on to play top-seeded Villanova in the second round of the East Regional on Saturday.

Justin Robinson scored 19 points for the Hokies (21-12), fouling out on a charge call with 48.0 seconds left that wiped out a bucket that would have pulled Virginia Tech within two points. Justin Bibbs added 17 and freshman Nickeil Alexander-Walker netted 15.

Virginia Tech lost despite canning 56 percent of its shots, including 9 of 18 3-point attempts. The Hokies lost three players to fouls in a physical second half, and they couldn't get critical stops in the final three minutes to earn what would have been their first NCAA Tournament victory since 2007.

Both teams shot at a blistering clip in the first half. Virginia Tech led 15-12 after less than five minutes on a 3-pointer by Alexander-Walker, one of seven 3-pointers the Hokies hit in the half.

The teams swapped the lead back and forth for most of the half. Virginia Tech grabbed a 29-27 lead on a 3-pointer by Chris Clarke with 7:59 remaining. Alabama responded with a 7-0 spurt, regaining a 36-34 edge when Petty canned a 3-pointer with 3:17 left.

The Hokies responded with a 9-2 run to take a 43-38 lead as Robinson drove for a pair of layups and fed Wabissa Bede for a layup off a steal. However, the Crimson Tide got the last shot of the half and made it pay off with a Petty 3-pointer off a Sexton assist, making it 43-41 at intermission.

--Field Level Media