Forward Charles Mitchell recorded his third consecutive double-double and was one of six Georgia Tech players in double figures in Thursday’s 107-77 win over Green Bay in the NIT Season Tipoff game at McCamish Pavilion.
Mitchell scored 15 points and had 12 rebounds as the Yellow Jackets improved to 3-0. Adam Smith and Quinton Stephens each scored 14, Marcus Georges-Hunt and Josh Heath scored 13 and Nick Jacobs scored 12 to help the Jackets top the 100-point mark for the second time.
The Jackets shot 72 percent in the first half and took a 56-30 lead at the break. Their percentage dropped in the second half but they still made 56 percent for the night.
This is the fourth consecutive season in which the Jackets have started the season by winning their first three games. They’ve never been 4-0 under coach Brian Gregory.
Here are five things we learned from Thursday’s game.
Tech's perimeter game is greatly improved. The Jackets made the first eight shots they took, and four of those were 3-pointers. Graduate transfer Smith and senior Georges-Hunt were expected to contribute from the outside and held up their end of the bargain. Smith made four and Hunt made two. Stephens added two, and Jorgenson, Tadric Jackson and Heath each had one. After making only 2 of 19 of their 3-pointers Monday against Tennessee, the Jackets made 11-of-21 against Green Bay.
Slimmed-down Mitchell is effective. Much has been made of the 20-plus pounds that were shed by Mitchell over the offseason. The new look has played well, as the senior has posted a double-double in each of the first three games. He's made 21-of-30 from the floor this season (70 percent) and is averaging 16 points and 11.6 rebounds.
Nick Jacobs was worth the wait. The South Atlanta High School product and former teammate of Utah Jazz standout Derrick Favors had to sit out last season after transferring from Alabama. He has proved to be quite adept at scoring under the basket and scored 12 against Green Bay. Jacobs shot 5-for-7 from the field and added eight rebounds. He is averaging 15.6 points through the first three games.
No Love for Green Bay guard. The Jackets did a nice job preventing Green Bay's Carrington Love from getting the ball and getting good shots. Guards Heath and Jorgenson helped limit Love to seven points. Love had scored 54 points in the first two games, including 32 against Stanford. He didn't get his first basket until 1:45 left in the first half and that came after he stole the ball from Georges-Hunt and drove for a layup.
One shot per possession, please. After getting out-rebounded by Tennessee, the Jackets dominated the boards against the smaller Green Bay team. They had 20 defensive rebounds in the first half and outrebounded the Phoenix 51-31.
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