Georgia Tech men’s basketball coach Josh Pastner liked some of what he saw at his team’s scrimmage Saturday.
He likely will get a much better idea when the Yellow Jackets privately scrimmage Mississippi State in Birmingham on Saturday. Pastner declined to discuss the scrimmage, citing NCAA rules.
“I still don’t have a clear view and won’t have a clear view until we play somebody else,” he said.
The good in last week’s scrimmage: Josh Heath had seven assists and two turnovers. Pastner said the number of assists to made field goals (35 to 51) was the scrimmage’s best stat because it shows ball movement and following his mantra of the go-to man is the open man.
He said Quinton Stephens shot the ball well, with 19 points on 5-of-14 shooting.
Ben Lammers also played well with eight points and 17 rebounds.
The are needing improvement included the number of turnovers (17) committed by the Gold team, which was beaten by the Blue 44-23 in the first half and 42-28 in the second half. Pastner tried different combinations of players on the teams in the halves.
The starters for Blue team in the first half were Justin Moore (2 points in 17 minutes), Jodan Price (8 points in 16 minutes), Stephens, Abdoulaye Gueye (10 points in 16 minutes) and Lammers.
The starters for the Gold team in the first half were Tadric Jackson (3 points in 15 minutes), Josh Okogie (8 points and 7 rebounds in 18 minutes), Sylvester Ogbonda (6 points and 6 rebounds in 18 minutes), Corey Heyward (4 points in 16 minutes) and Kellen McCormick (0 points in 16 minutes).
The starters for the Blue team in the second half were Jackson, Okogie, Heath, Gueye and Lammers. The starters for the Gold team were Moore, Price, Stephens, Ogbonda and Heyward.
Pastner is looking forward to Operation ACC, a media event in Charlotte on Wednesday, and said he’s not worried that the Jackets likely will be picked in the preseason poll to finish last.
“The poll in the end is what you do on the floor,” he said. “We just have to play with a great edge. Go with the process and just have to play the right way every time we step on the floor and let the results fall where they fall.”
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