AJC > Sports > Columnists > Archives > 2008 > February > 02 > Entry
DEL.ICIO.USEarlier losses leave Tech no wiggle room
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Mark Bradley
Georgia Tech isn’t the team it was a month ago, but what happened back then still counts. The Jackets have left themselves much ground to cover and only so many games to get there.
“What we’d done the last two weeks was nothing more than small steps,” Paul Hewitt said Saturday, his team having fallen to Maryland. “It’s disappointing to lose a chance to build on what we’d done.”
At the rate Tech is traveling, it could be a pretty tough out come March. But the Jackets lost so many in November and December that they’d put themselves in the distressing position of having to take every remaining home game just to get to 15 victories. On curious cue, they responded to their first three-game winning streak of the season by …
Losing at home.
If it wasn’t a bad loss in and of itself — Maryland has a nice team and a coach who has won an NCAA title — it was, in the grand scheme, a crusher. Here it is February, and the Jackets again have more losses any other ACC team. Their not-bad RPI (No. 54 as of Monday) will avail them nothing if their actual record doesn’t support it.
Saturday offered an opportunity to consolidate recent gains, to nose two games above .500 for the first time all season, to rise to 4-3 in ACC play. Saturday brought the chance to show that Tech, for all its early failings, has become one of the five best teams in the nation’s proudest conference. Instead it reverted to distressing habit. It simply failed to guard anybody.
“Today we played very poor defense,” said Hewitt, sugarcoating nothing. Maryland made 64.3 percent of its first-half shots, which wasn’t that difficult given that 13 of its 18 baskets were dunks or layups.
In a game they needed in the worst way, the Jackets began in the worst way. They fell behind five seconds in. They trailed by 10 points after four minutes. “The game’s 40 minutes,” Maryland coach Gary Williams would say, “but sometimes you can win them in the first half.”
Knowing what was happening, Hewitt called two timeouts in the first eight minutes and kept jerking guys in and out — only one starter, the singularly tenacious D’Andre Bell, played more than half the first half — but nothing clicked until the game was all but gone. Tech made run after impassioned run in the second half, same as against Kansas and Florida State and North Carolina on this floor, but the end was also the same. That’s five homecourt losses on the season, the four most recent by an aggregate 10 points.
“If we’d won,” Hewitt said, “it would have been nothing but luck.”
And that, pending a bold and sustained reversal, would seem to be the story of this odd team. Tech has left too much to chance, too much undone. It’s chasing the season in the same way it has chased too many games. It keeps dropping hints that it has enough resources to be better, but it has also dropped 10 of its first 20 games.
Credit Hewitt for not allowing this season to spiral beyond all hope of rescue. Over the three-game run, Tech moved the ball in its sets better than at any time since this coach arrived from Siena, and it finally started to defend to Hewitt specifications. But when you win three straight and you’re still only 10-9, your problem isn’t so much the future as the past. You’re trying to outrun what you’ve done. Or, more to the point, what you’ve failed to do.
A case can be made that a 10-10 team doesn’t even belong in any rational NCAA discussion, but there’s a counterargument: Namely, that the Jackets have shown enough against a strong schedule to suggest that this should be one of the 65 best squads in the land. There’s still a chance they could play themselves into the Big Dance, but that chance took a major hit Saturday.
Ten regular-season games remain, six on the road. Tech surely needs to win seven of those 10. A team that represents a school steeped in mathematics must know how cold those numbers look.
Permalink | Comments (20) | Categories: Mark Bradley, Tech / ACC
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By John
February 2, 2008 9:11 PM | Link to this
No more room for errors? Geesh. We won 2 on the road and everyone thought we were going to the Final Four! Did you all forget we lost to Winthrop and UNCG? Those weren’t flukes. We really aren’t good and Hewitt isn’t either.
I had to laugh at the poll a few days ago. We won 2 on the road and everyone was voting for Hewitt to stay. How funny. We are 10-10 and 3-4 in the ACC - what part of that are you people not getting. Add 3 games coming up as all losses and we will be 10-13 and 3-6 in the ACC (U Conn a non-conf game). Will you finally realize then that this season was over 2 1/2 months ago when we lost to Winthrop on Nov 18th! I realized it back then and wrote just that in here. No one obviously was paying attention. Get real people!
By Walter
February 2, 2008 9:43 PM | Link to this
Am I the only one annoyed by that bright message board at floor level (UGA-UK game on CBS)? It’s purpose seems to be to encourage fan noise or to distract attention from the game action.It’s the only one I have seen that has this effect. Get rid of it!!
By stings to lose
February 2, 2008 9:50 PM | Link to this
Tech did not play poor defense all day…sometimes they played no defense!
Starting the game while asleep can be damaging to one’s coaching career!
By HelluvaEngineer
February 2, 2008 10:17 PM | Link to this
This game is not that much of an aberration in terms of how Paul Hewitt’s teams defend. It was not just today, but all of Hewitt’s tenure (sans his one exceptional year) that have continually shown Tech’s inability to defend. Teams shoot a staggering FG% against GT. I want to credit the opponents for ball movement, guard penetration, and creating high percentage shots, but it’s not just that. Tech is often times befuddled by what defense they are in, and who they are matching up with. Their transition defense is absolutely nothing, and teams have consistently had a high share of their points come from uncontested layups in transition.
I’ve said it once, I’ll say it again: Hewitt is a specatcular recruiter, which is of course an asset. But the fact that he gets nothing out of his talent more than offsets any advantage gained in recruiting. Too bad, because he’s so likeable. But it’s time to begin anew and fire Paul Hewitt
By HelluvaEngineer
February 2, 2008 10:17 PM | Link to this
This game is not that much of an aberration in terms of how Paul Hewitt’s teams defend. It was not just today, but all of Hewitt’s tenure (sans his one exceptional year) that have continually shown Tech’s inability to defend. Teams shoot a staggering FG% against GT. I want to credit the opponents for ball movement, guard penetration, and creating high percentage shots, but it’s not just that. Tech is often times befuddled by what defense they are in, and who they are matching up with. Their transition defense is absolutely nothing, and teams have consistently had a high share of their points come from uncontested layups in transition.
I’ve said it once, I’ll say it again: Hewitt is a specatcular recruiter, which is of course an asset. But the fact that he gets nothing out of his talent more than offsets any advantage gained in recruiting. Too bad, because he’s so likeable. But it’s time to begin anew and fire Paul Hewitt
By GT55
February 2, 2008 10:55 PM | Link to this
I’ve said it till I’m sick, FIRE HEWETT
By Greg
February 3, 2008 7:23 AM | Link to this
There’s a very good reason Tech lost. Maryland is a better team, both talent-wise and coach-wise. I doubt Tech will crawl out of the bottom third of the ACC while PH is coaching there.
By Andy
February 3, 2008 8:16 AM | Link to this
John, Show up once after a win, jerk.
By jack
February 3, 2008 8:17 AM | Link to this
After watching 25 years of Indiana basketball, I may be a little spoiled….but Paul Hewitt has to be the worst coach on a college sideline. In the two years as a season ticket holder, I have yet been to a game where “Coach” had a timeout remaining at the end of a game or where he has not tried to set a substitution record. His kids never get into a flow, because they are always coming out of the game. Also it is a joke to watch him pout outside of the players at each time out when he should be actually coaching. He is a terrible coach!!
By JimO '70
February 3, 2008 8:39 AM | Link to this
i have to agree with most of the comments here. however, i cannot understand why an intenational foul wasn’t called on osby.
how many times do you hear the announcers say if you pull on the jersey it is an intentional foul. that was blatant. osby did it so matt could not try a three point shot, which is one of the reasons the rule was put into effect.
Intentional personal foul: Here’s the tricky one. According to the rule book, “an intentional foul shall be a personal foul that, on the basis of an official’s observation of the act, may be purposeful or reactionary and is not based solely on the severity of the act. Examples include, but are not limited to:
a. Causing excessive, non-flagrant contact with an opponent while playing the ball. b. Contact which is not a legitimate attempt to play the ball or the player, specifically designed to stop or keep the clock from starting. c. Pushing or holding a player from behind to prevent a score. d. Fouling a player clearly away from the ball who is not directly involved with the play, specifically designed to stop or keep the clock from starting. e. Contact with a player making a throw-in.”
BUT, we should not have been in that situation to begin with - UMd was having a field day with wide open back door cuts.
By Alien
February 3, 2008 10:13 AM | Link to this
Granted, Tech played a terrible first half against Maryland. However, the second half was much better and they could have won had the officials called an intentional foul when Causy’s jersey was grabbed as he raced down court. If that wasn’t intentional I don’t know what is. Had it been called Causey would have made two free throws and gotten the ball back with still enough time to win the game.
By John
February 3, 2008 10:18 AM | Link to this
Andy, I did. After we won 2 on the rode and I answered the poll still saying Hewitt should be gone whether we would make the NCAA tourney or not. Naturally, my knowing we will not. My opinion hasn;t changed since Nov 18 when I wrote in here the season is over. When will you, Andy, realize it is finally over? After the last game? If you are GT, you should be fairly bright and able to realize this sooner.
By Ben
February 3, 2008 10:47 AM | Link to this
So if by some miracle Tech ends up 10-6 in the ACC, are you still going to be saying the season was over in November?
By mowreck
February 3, 2008 10:48 AM | Link to this
Personally, and this is probably just me, but I think our free throw shooting hurts us way more than our defense.
By jc
February 3, 2008 1:08 PM | Link to this
you guys are ridiculous. cph is a good coach, a good recruiter and a great role model these kids. you nerds live in a fairy tale thinking its so easy to be at the top of the acc year in year out. this is not UNC or duke where you can recruit whoever you want and get constant fan support. i hope cph knows most fans support him, only the nerds who just complain all the time are calling for him to be fired. this guy has done a great job for the program and needs to be appreciated. yes they have underachieved this year. hes also overachieved half the years he has been here too. dont listen to the nerds coach - all they do is complain.
By ben
February 3, 2008 2:10 PM | Link to this
The thing you have to like about Hewitt’s teams is even after being outcoached and outplayed for 39 minutes, somehow that frenetic style translates to still being in the game. Couldn’t pull out the miracle finish today, the refs helped see to that, but we were right there at the end. That kind of loss doesn’t disturb me near as much as the losses to teams like UGA.
By John
February 3, 2008 5:53 PM | Link to this
10-6 in the ACC. Now that is rich.
By Curt Moore
February 3, 2008 11:05 PM | Link to this
The amazing thing for me is the poor free throw shooting. It’s not only this year but every year of PH’s reign. Add to that the inconsistent play and unfortunately you must make a change in the management of the GT basketball program.
By Ty
February 4, 2008 12:40 AM | Link to this
JC, you are Right!!
Lest everyone forget, Tech had two High-Round Draft Picks last year … and Causey & Miller (who everyone wrote off in December . . are progressing well). Let’s be honest, Hewitt is developing a team and runs a tough program (I’m willing to bet there are more Tech players active in the NBA vs. Duke these days).
In the end, it’s tough to beat any team when you have to spot the opponent 8 points for “official control” of the game (I mean, COME ON . . is not the Osby grab of the jersey the DEFINITION of the intentional foul!!!!).
I think we’re nuts to consider Hewitt as “gone” … rather, I’d like to see him call the Conference to task for the ‘game control’ exercised by the leage… and lest you forget, I haven’t checked, but am willing to bet that their TOTAL loss differential to FSU, Miami, Indiana, Kansas, UNC, and MD COMBINED is less that 16 points … the team is ‘on the cusp’ . . but, unfortunately, must be 6 points better to overcome the ‘status quo’ of ACC officiating.
Let him stay, boys . . Paul Hewitt is a fighter and a class coach…. just unfortunate that most ACC games are “pre-ordained” (hmmmm, I wonder if there’s a ‘race-thing’ working here ….. again, I still can’t understand how the same officail makes the ‘phantom’ call on Morrow vs. Osby (despite 3 reviews by announcers, they STILL couldn’t find any contact) and the “non”-intenational jersey grabbing to force two free throws vs. a 3 point try……).
I, for one, am ready for Paul to point the finger at the ACC offices and cry “foul” (and put them on the spot to “call the damn game vs. orchestrate the outcome!!!!!”
And, finally, before the cries of racism or bias begin . . understand my opinion extends to most ACC games . . seems to be lots of ‘coincindental’ officiating at critical moments in every key game!!!
Okay, I’m out …
P.S. GO GIANTS … .AWESOME SUPER BBOWL PERFORMANCE!!!
By charles
February 4, 2008 3:56 AM | Link to this
I agree. You have to be a fan in the down years too. Don’t be a bandwagon fan and support the team all the time, it’s not as if they aren’t playing hard. The season isn’t over until it’s over.