BUIES CREEK, N.C. -- On Monday, Virginia Tech became the first ACC men's basketball team to visit Campbell University.

For a while, it looked like Tech might also be the first ACC men's basketball team to lose at Campbell University.

The Hokies didn't pull away until the final six minutes, but they were able to pick up a 71-60 victory.

"We couldn't hit a shot, couldn't get a stop" for most of the game, said Malcolm Delaney, who topped the 1,000-point milestone. "We just had an off game.

"We should've put them away."

The Hokies (3-0) had even more trouble pulling away from Campbell (3-1) than they did pulling away in their first two games from Brown and UNC Greensboro.

"Last six minutes, we were a little bit tougher than we were early on," Tech coach Seth Greenberg said. "I was really disappointed in our ability to maintain a presence guarding the basketball. We got stretched out way too far.

"We weren't as focused as I would have liked defensively."

Next up is 2009 NCAA tournament participant Temple (2-1), which will face the Hokies at the Palestra in Philadelphia on Friday.

"We've got to get better," Greenberg said. "I don't think they'll play four guards [like Campbell]. That's probably a good thing because we sure can't guard four guards."

Campbell led 46-45 with 11:11 to go, but Delaney made two free throws to give Tech the lead for good. After a steal by Erick Green, Campbell was called for an intentional foul when Delaney was driving to the basket. Delaney made one of two free throws, and Tech kept the ball. J.T. Thompson, who had 17 points, scored to extend the lead to 50-46.

"They needed somebody to step up. I felt like I did," Thompson said.

The Fighting Camels cut the lead to 52-51. They had a chance to regain the lead, but Junard Hartley missed two free throws with 6:20 left. Tech went on a 9-0 run to extend the lead to 61-51 with 4:18 to go.

Campbell coach Robbie Laing said his players missed point-blank shots late in the game because they were worn down.

"We got [late] stops," Delaney said. "We just stayed in front of the ball and didn't over-help. ... We tried to do too much [earlier]."

Delaney, who started the 9-0 run with a 3-pointer, had 15 points despite a sore ankle. The junior point guard now has 1,004 career points.

"I'd rather have gotten it in a better game, but I'm happy to be ... with all the other good players in Virginia Tech history to score 1,000," he said.

Campbell, an Atlantic Sun team which trailed 33-31 at halftime, shot 55 percent from the field in the first half.

Delaney and Allen got in early foul trouble, but Greenberg put them back in with his team up 19-17 with 7:23 left in the first half.

"We tried to stay away from fouling so much that we [weren't] playing defense," Delaney said.

Allen picked up two more fouls early in the second half, and had seven points in 19 minutes.

Greenberg tossed his jacket after a Campbell dunk with 4:47 left in the first half and scolded his players in a timeout. He explained later that he was upset that he had changed the defense in an earlier timeout and the players did not pay attention.

After a Campbell 3-pointer with 3:49 left in the half, he scolded them in another timeout.

"We had three straight possessions where we [were] mixed up," Delaney said.

Tech shot 52.2 percent from the field in the second half after shooting just 38.7 percent in the first half. Hartley said Campbell's zone defense left Tech "confused" and "unorganized."

"We were missing wide-open layups," Delaney said. "We've got to fix that."

VIRGINIA TECH (3-0)

Allen 3-6 1-1 7, Bell 2-5 2-2 6, Davila 2-3 2-4 6, Hudson 3-9 4-6 10, Delaney 3-13 6-8 15, Green 2-4 1-2 7, Witcher 0-0 0-1 0, Boggs 1-2 0-0 3, Thompson 8-12 0-0 17. Totals 24-54 16-24 71.

CAMPBELL (3-1)

Rodriguez 7-10 4-6 19, Kossangue 2-3 2-2 7, Dodson 2-8 2-2 6, Hartley 5-7 0-3 10, Merthie 1-5 0-0 3, Vejraska 2-7 2-2 7, Celestin 3-4 0-0 7, Reynolds 0-0 1-2 1, Taylor 0-0 0-2 0. Totals 22-44 11-19 60.

Halftime--Virginia Tech 33-31. 3-Point Goals--Virginia Tech 7-18 (Delaney 3-9, Green 2-3, Thompson 1-1, Boggs 1-2, Hudson 0-3), Campbell 5-11 (Kossangue 1-1, Merthie 1-2, Rodriguez 1-2, Celestin 1-2, Vejraska 1-4). Fouled Out--None. Rebounds--Virginia Tech 35 (Allen 9), Campbell 27 (Dodson 7). Assists--Virginia Tech 17 (Delaney 5), Campbell 12 (Hartley 6). Total Fouls--Virginia Tech 18, Campbell 21. A--3,205.