Still winless in 2024, Georgia Tech remains on the road at 9 p.m. Tuesday when it squares off against Clemson inside Littlejohn Coliseum.
The Yellow Jackets (8-8, 1-4 ACC) have been oh so close to getting over the proverbial hump in the new year, but they are now riding a five-game losing streak. Those five losses have been by an average margin of 7.8 points, which should give coach Damon Stoudamire’s squad solace that it can play toe-to-toe with anyone. Moral victories, of course, don’t do much in the way of climbing the ACC standings.
“We’re trying to learn how to win together. Nobody’s won here together,” Stoudamire said. “There’s been some success amongst us, but nobody’s won here together. When you’re bringing a group like that in, I do feel like there’s some growing pains at times. I think that we’re almost there and I think that there will be some light at the end of the tunnel and I think that it’ll happen soon.
“I am excited about the way we’ve been able to really compete and kind of hold our own so to speak, but we got to do a better job of closing. I think we’re really close. I do. We just gotta keep plugging away. That’s the biggest thing.”
Stoudamire and Tech are looking to rebound from an 84-79 loss at No. 11 Duke on Saturday. The Jackets played quite well despite the defeat – they shot 54.5% from the floor, made 11 3-pointers and won the rebounding battle.
But ultimately, Duke’s ability to control the offensive glass and go 20 of 28 from the free-throw line helped the Blue Devils prevail. Tech led by three with less than seven minutes to play and then was down just one with 2:18 remaining. The Jackets had two missed shots and a turnover (one of 14 for the game) over their next three possessions from there to fade away into the evening.
“Obviously, they beat us earlier in the year. I think they’re a really talented team,” Duke center Ryan Young said Saturday about the Jackets. “They made a lot of tough shots and shot the ball very well. I think they’re really well-coached and play hard.”
Tech next faces a Clemson team (12-4, 2-3 ACC) that was 11-1 going into 2024, but lost consecutive games at Miami, against North Carolina and at Virginia Tech, respectively, before topping Boston College on Saturday. The Tigers had been ranked in The Associated Press Top 25 before falling out at the start of this week.
With an NCAA NET ranking of 27, the third-best mark in the ACC, Clemson shoots 37% from 3 and 76.6% from the line. It’s also among the top 20 teams nationally in assist-to-turnover ratio.
“Really physical team, man. That’s the thing that stands out with me. Physical, veterans. They got an older crew,” Stoudamire said. “(Senior center PJ) Hall’s a really good player. It starts with him. Their guards are some of the best in the league. But the physicality of the game we gotta match that in order to be successful Tuesday evening.”
Hall, a 6-foot-10, 238-pound center is averaging 19.4 points and 6.5 rebounds per game while shooting better than 53% from the floor. Guard Joseph Girard, formerly a four-tear starter at Syracuse, is scoring 15.5 points per game and 3.5 assists per night.
Clemson coach Brad Brownell said Monday he has been impressed with the play of Tech freshmen Nait George and Baye Ndongo and with the Jackets as whole.
“There’s a noticeable difference in Georgia Tech now and Georgia Tech in November and early December,” he added. “It’s not even close.”
Tech, now 12-33 in its last 45 ACC games and 7-21 in its last 28 road games, has lost three straight to Clemson and hasn’t won at Littlejohn Coliseum since March 6, 2020.
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