One of the least effective defensive performances in Georgia Tech’s recent history was more than enough for the Yellow Jackets to fall Wednesday to Florida State.
Often giving only token resistance, Tech lost 88-77 to the Seminoles, their third consecutive defeat, all by double digits. FSU’s 88 points were the most allowed by Tech this season. The Jackets showed character by fighting back from a 14-point halftime deficit, but could not get closer than seven points after halftime.
Tech (10-10 overall, 3-4 ACC) shot free throws well (24-for-30) and rebounded exceptionally well (16 offensive rebounds to FSU’s 20 defensive rebounds), but were done in by turnovers (16) and its general shortcomings when FSU (15-5, 4-4) held the ball.
Five observations from the game
1. Trouble stopping the ball
Tech played probably its worst half of defense Wednesday, allowing Florida State too shoot 62.1 percent from the field (18-for-29) in taking a 50-34 halftime lead. One thing worth noting is that the Seminoles weren’t necessarily getting open shots by getting the Jackets scrambled with ball movement. Of the 18 first-half baskets, only six were assisted. Nor were they scoring on putbacks, a preferred method of production for the Seminoles.
Rather, Florida State beat Tech defenders time after time on the dribble for layups and dunks. Off misses and turnovers, the Seminoles scored in transition. On multiple occasions, Florida State players scored after Tech baskets, when the Jackets should have ostensibly been set in their defense, by just dribbling upcourt and never getting stopped on the way to the basket. Coach Josh Pastner said it was the worst instance this season of the Jackets not playing team defense.
“I always talk about five guys have to guard the basketball,” Pastner said. “It can’t be one guy. We’ve got to have the floor shrunk and compact and the opponent has to see bodies and (Wedneday), we were leaving guys on an island, and that’s just bad defense.
It was the most points that Tech has given up in a first half this season by 14 points. Tech defended better in the second half, but Florida State still shot 56.0 percent from the field. It was the highest rate against Tech since North Carolina shot 62.3 percent against the Jackets in February 2015, according to sports-reference.com.
2. Turnovers costly again
For the third consecutive game, the Jackets cut themselves off at the knees with turnovers. Tech gave away 16 possessions out of 72 (22.2 percent) by turning the ball over. The Jackets threw passes off target, mishandled the ball and miscommunicated with each other, giving the Seminoles assistance that they did not need.
Ten of the turnovers were committed in the first half, when Florida State took a lead that proven unassailable. The Seminoles scored 17 points off turnovers in the first half and 24 for the game.
“We’ve got to stop turning the ball over,” Pastner said.
Tech now has turned the ball over 49 times in the past three games, double-digit losses to Virginia, North Carolina and Florida State that would have been more competitive had the Jackets not been as careless with the ball and given themselves more shots at the basket.
Pastner said that, in coming games, he will simply take any player out of a game after he turns the ball over to try to hammer home the message.
“That’s our biggest Achilles heel right now,” Pastner said. “These turnovers are killing us.”
3. Mann on men
Florida State guard Terance Mann looked like a world-beater Wednesday, scoring a career-high 30 points on 10-for-13 shooting from the field with a 10-for-12 effort from the free-throw line. He was potent on the dribble in the halfcourt, at one point exploding past Josh Okogie down the line for a dunk and an and-one foul.
Down 14 at the half, Tech closed the margin to seven points on multiple occasions, but Mann was often the one to answer with baskets to ward off the Jackets.
“He was a monster (Wednesday),” Okogie said. “He got them going. Every time we would try to fight back, he would weather the storm, attacked the basket, was able to get to the free-throw line and he made plays.”
Okogie shared the stage with Mann, finishing with 16 points and setting career highs for total rebounds (16) and offensive rebounds (nine). He tied his career assist high with five. Okogie didn’t have a great shooting night (4-for-13 from the field) but played with typical zeal.
“I made kind of a special effort to get on the glass (Wednesday),” Okogie said. “I was able to grab a couple rebounds.”
4. Up-and-down night for Alvarado
Point guard Jose Alvarado had another growing pains sort of night. He had one assist against four turnovers, seeming to underestimate the reach and quickness of Florida State’s players. He also took ill-advised shots on drives to the basket against the likes of 7-footers Christ Koumadje and Ike Obiagu (from Greenforest Christian Academy in DeKalb County).
“My teammates, they’re giving me the ball, they’re trusting me and I’ve got to make sure I’m trustworthy,” Alvarado said.
But he also led Tech with 23 points, tying his career high, scoring 19 of them in the second half. He was 4-for-9 from 3-point range, hitting a big 3 at the 13:00 mark to cut Florida State’s lead to 58-51. And while his forays at the basket often ended with shots with little chance of going in, he drove hard to the basket off a screen from center Ben Lammers to score on a layup with a foul (he missed the free throw) to reduce the Seminoles’ lead to 72-64 with 5:59 to play. After Mann scored to push the lead back to 10, Alvarado drove hard at Koumadje, scoring, drawing the fifth foul on Koumadje and making the ensuing free throw.
“He’s a tough, hard-nosed young man,” Pastner said. “He takes some bad ones, but he’s going to make some. It’s just part of the maturation process.”
5. Productive in limited opportunities
Forward Abdoulaye Gueye and Lammers were a combined 9-for-12 while the rest of the team was 15-for-46. They also went to the free-throw line a combined 11 times, making nine of them.
Tech would seem to have done well to have gotten them the ball more in scoring position. Part of the challenge is that both are unselfish players. Part of it Wednesday was that Pastner did call plays for them to get the ball, but the plays weren’t always executed. Gueye also only played 23 minutes because of foul trouble.
“They found me sometimes, but there were other times I might have been open for a shot or two,” Lammers said. “But at the same time, it’s basketball. Some games you get the ball more than others.”
As Pastner indicated prior to the game, Lammers and Okogie got more time to rest. Pastner took Lammers out at the 16:05 mark of the first half and kept him on the bench for almost four minutes of game time. He didn’t come out again until 1:56 remained in the second half and the game was out of reach. He played 34 minutes, his lowest load in the past nine games. Okogie played 36 minutes, but Pastner pulled him strategically just before television timeouts to elongate his rest.
Lammers scored 13 points but claimed only two rebounds, his lowest total since the start of his junior season.
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