It’s still a long shot, but Georgia Tech remains alive in the hunt for the program’s first NCAA berth since 2010.
“We’re still in the fight, still in the fight,” coach Brian Gregory said after his Yellow Jackets escaped a scare and defeated Boston College 76-71 on Saturday — Tech’s fourth consecutive win and fifth in its past six games.
“It’s exciting for these guys,” Gregory said. “I talk to our guys all the time … you just want it for our guys. Those five seniors have given a lot and have really matured and grown up, so you want them to taste that success and be a part of really important games in later February and March.”
Two of the seniors, guard Marques Georges-Hunt and Adam Smith, combined for 41 points as Tech never trailed (2-2 the only tie), building a 15-point first-half lead and holding off repeated attempts by a BC team winless in the conference to get the win.
The Jackets (17-12, 7-9) go to No. 11 Louisville on Tuesday and finish the regular season at home against Pittsburgh on March 5.
“That’s what people talk about. (The postseason is) the ultimate goal,” said Smith, who scored 18 points and had four assists and two steals, overcoming a 5-of-15 shooting day.
Here are five observations from the game:
Continuing his tear. Georges-Hunt made all seven of his shots from the field and scored 23 points in the win. The reigning ACC player of the week, who also grabbed five rebounds and had three assists and three steals in 38 minutes, Georges-Hunt has averaged 23.3 points per game over the past seven games, his hot streak coinciding with his team's turnaround. Asked what's different about the team now, Georges-Hunt said, "Playing with a lot more swagger. More confidence. Everybody is even more committed I believe, everybody's buying into the plan. It's proven we can compete with anyone, as long as we come to play."
Hot start. Tech, reminded by Gregory before the game that the opponent was hungry for its first league win, made nine of its first 10 shots from the floor en route to 48 first-half points, the high in an ACC game this season. After halftime, BC continued to play hard and things got a bit sloppy — Tech with 10 of its 17 turnovers in the second half. "I don't think it was the best-looking win, but, hey, we'll take it," Smith said.
Dipping down. Charles Mitchell had only two points and three rebounds in just 15 minutes. That dropped him to 10.2 points and 9.8 rebounds per game as he continues a season that could see him become the third Tech player — the first since Alvin Jones in 2000-01 — to average a double-double since Tech joined the ACC. Malcolm Mackey, who did it twice, is the only other Yellow Jacket to do it.
Reaching a high. The win was Tech's seventh in conference play, with two games remaining. That's the most league wins for the Jackets under Gregory, whose teams had twice won six conference games but never gotten to seven.
ACC makes it tougher. Gregory on trying to get out of the basement in the ACC: "You're gonna get your brains beat in. And the thing that's hard, is during the rebuilding process, you get knocked down all the time. The character of the kid has to be so strong because in this day and age, what's the thing to do, is just to get out of there. You're not tough enough. That's why a guy like Marcus? I love him because he's gotten his brains beaten in for three years now; we lost a million close games. … He's stuck with it and now he's having as good a senior year as anybody in our league right now. Unfortunately, we lost a couple of guys during that (rebuild), and it's a fine line that you're walking because of that. You need really strong-character kids."
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