In the challenging environs of North Carolina’s Smith Center, Georgia Tech was unable to score a win in its ACC opener Saturday in Chapel Hill, N.C. The Yellow Jackets will try again Wednesday at No. 24 Pittsburgh. At the Petersen Events Center, their home since 2002, the Panthers have an all-time winning percentage of a mere .871.
And if it doesn’t happen Saturday, the Jackets can try for their first ACC win against No. 4 Virginia on Saturday at McCamish Pavilion. It’s a rather brutal start for a team that, coming off a season that never got on track, could use a little bit of scheduling help.
“The only problem with that is, you can look at every kind of bucket of games and say, ‘Holy cow, if we can get through that …’” coach Brian Gregory said. “That’s the way the season is. That’s the league.”
It is indeed the way of the ACC, but perhaps especially so. After Virginia, there’s a road trip to defending ACC champion Notre Dame on Jan. 13 before the Jackets get more of an even match — Virginia Tech at home Jan. 16 — before another bear, powerhouse Louisville at home Jan. 23.
The six-game opening stretch includes four teams that finished in fifth place or better in the ACC last season. No other team in the league plays more than three such teams. North Carolina and Louisville don’t play any.
It’s conceivable that the Jackets, who are improved and are trying to make that case to a skeptical fan base, could play well and still be 1-5 after the Louisville game.
Gregory allowed that “we haven’t been dealt the easiest hand to start with, but you’ve got to play them. They’re not going to change them.”
It goes with Gregory’s history with ACC openers. Tech’s conference-opening opponents: 2012, Duke after a 32-win season; 2013, Miami on its way to the ACC championship; 2014, at Maryland after a 25-win season; 2015, at Notre Dame on its way to the ACC title and the regional finals; 2016, at North Carolina, the preseason favorite to win the ACC. The Jackets have lost all five and have lost 10 ACC openers in a row.
“You’ve got to have a short-term memory,” said guard Adam Smith, who dropped 20 points on the Tar Heels. “We just played Carolina on Saturday. It didn’t go the way we wanted, but you’ve got to move on because Pitt is tough.”
Tech will indeed be hard-pressed to depart Pittsburgh with a win. Point guard James Robinson is one of the best in the country and leads the NCAA in assist-turnover ratio at 6.1/1. Forwards Jamel Artis and Michael Young average a combined 32.5 points per game, one of the more potent tandems in the conference.
They’re 12-1 with an eight-game winning streak, seven by double-digits.
“They’re back to the Pitt of old,” Gregory said. “Quality guard play. Toughness. They defend well. They rebound exceptionally well. They really move the ball side to side and really force your defense into some tough situations.”
Fortunately for Gregory, Tech knows a little bit about tough situations.
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