Tech, Georgia open college basketball seasons

Georgia and Georgia Tech will start their men’s basketball seasons tonight.

Georgia Tech will play an exhibition game against Le Moyne, a Division II college in Syracuse, N.Y., at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Alexander Memorial Coliseum. Admission is $5.

“It’s a chance for our guys to see somebody different. They’re legitimately to the point where they’re just tired of beating each other up,” coach Paul Hewitt said Wednesday. “We’ll work on some things, get some film we can look at.”

Hewitt said he wants to take a good look at his top seven or eight players but get everyone some minutes.

Le Moyne is coached by Steve Evans, who was one of Hewitt’s assistants at Siena.

Tech’s women will play an exhibition at 2 p.m. Sunday against the Peach State Elite, a team of former college players. Admission is free.

Those are the only exhibitions before the Nov. 14 season-opening doubleheader: The women host Troy at 6 p.m., and the men host Winston-Salem State at 8:30.

Georgia’s men play host to Albany State at 7:30 p.m. today at Stegeman Coliseum in its first and only exhibition game. Admission is free.

The regular season begins Nov. 14 when USC-Upstate comes to visit.

The Bulldogs will look for leadership and scoring from a core group of returnees — led by seniors Corey Butler and Terrance Woodbury — and several high-profile signees. Freshman Dustin Ware and Zac Swansey are battling to start at point guard.

The most acclaimed of the newbies won’t be playing tonight, however. Trey Thompkins, a 6-foot-9 power forward from Lithonia, has a sprained ankle. He’s expected to play in the season opener. Also, freshman guard Ebuka Anyaorah of Suwanee is out for the season following surgery to repair a stress fracture in his leg.

“I think we’ll be very young but very talented,” Georgia coach Dennis Felton said. “I think we’ll be the kind of team that will learn a lot and improve as we go along.”

— Chip Towers and Larry Hartstein