Georgia Tech Travels to Face Clemson

Complete game notes   |  Coach Pastner audio  |  James Banks III audio

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THE FLATS  –  Georgia Tech continues its 40th season of Atlantic Coast Conference basketball Wednesday evening with a 9 p.m. regionally-televised contest against Clemson at Littlejohn Coliseum in Clemson, S.C. It is the Yellow Jackets’ second stright road game after opening the ACC schedule with two at home.

Tech (10-6, 2-1 ACC), in its third season under head coach Josh Pastner, is 2-2 on the road this season, having evened its mark Saturday with a 73-59 vctory at Syracuse. The Yellow Jackets also won at Arkansas, 69-65, on Dec. 19, following losses at No. 5 Tennessee and Northwestern in November. Tech opened its ACC schedule with a 92-79 win over Wake Forest and a 52-49 loss to No. 9 Virginia Tech.

Clemson (10-6, 0-3 ACC), in its ninth season under head coach Brad Brownell, is 7-2 at home this season. The Tigers opened their ACC schedule with road losses to No. 1 Duke (87-68) and Syracuse (61-53) and a home loss to No. 4 Virginia (63-43). In non-conference play, Clemson has beaten Georgia and South Carolina.

Wednesday’s game will be broadcast live on the ACC’s Regional Sports Network (Fox Sports South in Georgia), and will be streamed live on ACC Network Extra, available through the ESPN app. Radio coverage is provided on the Georgia Tech IMG Sports Network, airing in Atlanta on 680 AM and 93.7 FM the Fan. The Tech broadcast is available on satellite radio (XM ch. 385, internet ch. 976).

STARTING LINEUP

• Taming the Tigers – Georgia Tech is looking to snap a three-game skid in its series with Clemson, and end a 13-game losing streak to the Tigers on the road. The Yellow Jackets last defeated Clemson at Littlejohn Coliseum on Feb. 8, 2005.
• A Tech win at Clemson would give the Yellow Jackets a 3-1 ACC start for the second straight year.
• A Tech win at Clemson also would give the Jackets two ACC road wins in a row for the first time since Feb. 17 and Feb. 27, 2016 (Florida State and Boston College).
• Tough at home – Tech is 13-7 against ACC teams at home under Pastner, 5-4 against top-25 ACC teams.
• Tough slate – January shapes up as a rugged month as Virginia Tech, Syracuse, Clemson, Duke and North Carolina all made the NCAA Tournament field last season. Duke is currently No. 1 in the nation, while Virginia Tech and North Carolina are ninth and 13th, respectively. Clemson and Syracuse were ranked in the top 25 to begin the season.
• Guard your yard – Georgia Tech ranks fourth in the ACC in scoring defense (No. 17 nationally), No. 3 in field goal percentage defense (No. 8 nationally) and No. 2 in three-point percentage defense (No. 4 nationally). The Jackets are also third in blocked shots and in fourth in steals.
• Below average – Wake Forest is the only team to exceed its season scoring average against Tech this season – breakdown by game: Lamar 81.8 (69), Tennessee 85.5 (66), East Carolina 71.1 (54), UTRGV 70.2 (44), Prairie View A&M 69.2 (54), Northwestern 73.5 (67), St. John’s 83.9 (76), Florida A&M 63.2 (40), Gardner-Webb 82.9 (79), Arkansas 81.8 (69), Georgia 79.2 (70), Kennesaw State 62.5 (57), USC Upstate 70.9 (63), Virginia Tech 81.1 (52), Syracuse 70.9 (59).
• 50 (per) Cent – Georgia Tech has shot well above 50 percent four times in its last five games (44.7 percent vs. Virginia Tech the exception). The Jackets have connected on a collective 55.3 percent on those five games, 36 percent from three-point range.
• Who’s hot – Georgia Tech has deployed six different starting lineups this season, and 10 Yellow Jackets have started two or more games.
• Longer bench – Tech has deployed at least eight players for significant minutes in each of its games so far, including nine in two of its ACC games to date. Tech’s bench has played 33.1 percent of available minutes, 115th in the nation according to KenPom.com (national average is 31 pct.). Tech reserves are outscoring there opponents 26.2 to 15.9 per game).

James Banks III anchors the nation’s 17th-best scoring defense.

SERIES VS. CLEMSON

• This is the oldest and longest-running series the Yellow Jackets have with an ACC member. The 132 all-time meetings are more than 30 greater than Tech has played with any other ACC opponent, and longest with any opponent save Georgia (195 meetings). The series dates back to the 1912-13 season, when John Heisman coached the Tech basketball team.
• Clemson is one of two permanent home-and-away opponents on Tech’s schedule each year (Notre Dame is the other).
• Clemson has won the last three meetings, including a 72-70 win in Atlanta and a 75-67 win in Clemson during the 2017-18 regular season.
• The Yellow Jackets trail 47-34 to the Tigers since joining the ACC.
• Tech is 1-3 under head coach Josh Pastner against Clemson, and 4-14 vs. Tiger teams coached by Brad Brownell.
• Tech is just 16-44 all-time in games played at Clemson, including an 8-37 mark in Littlejohn Coliseum. The Jackets have lost 13 straight games on the road in the series, and 12 in a row at Littlejohn, dating back to their last victory on Feb. 8, 2005 (70-62). Tech was Clemson’s first opponent in Littlejohn Coliseum back on Nov. 30, 1968. The Tigers won, 76-72.
• Tech actually won four of the first five meetings with Clemson at Littlejohn Coliseum under Paul Hewitt, but the Tigers have won the last 12 in a row there, 13 in a row if you count a 2016 victory at Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville when Littlejohn was undergoing renovations.
• Tech’s 111-108 win against the Tigers at Littlejohn Coliseum on Jan. 24, 2001 is the highest-scoring regulation game Tech has had with any ACC opponent. The Jackets defeated Florida State by the same score in Tallahassee (in two OTs) on Feb. 11, 1999, and lost to Wake Forest in the 2007 ACC Tournament, 114-112 in double-overtime.
• The Yellow Jackets have won three of four ACC Tournament meetings with the Tigers, including a 69-61 semi-final decision on the way to the 1993 conference title in Charlotte.

ABOUT GEORGIA TECH MEN’S BASKETBALL

Georgia Tech’s men’s basketball team is in its third year under head coach Josh Pastner. Tech has been a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference since 1979, won three ACC Championships (1985, 1990, 1993), played in the NCAA Tournament 16 times and played in two Final Fours (1990, 2004). Connect with Georgia Tech Men’s Basketball on social media by liking their Facebook Page, or following on Twitter (@GTMBB) and Instagram.

For more information on Tech basketball, visit Ramblinwreck.com. Tickets for men’s basketball can be purchased here.