Jan. 6, 2015
Coach Gregory interview (audio) | Complete Game Notes | WatchESPN Link
THE FLATS – Looking to even its Atlantic Coast Conference mark following a double-overtime loss to open its conference slate, Georgia Tech returns home to face Syracuse in a nationally televised game at 7 p.m. Wednesday night at McCamish Pavilion.
Tech, in its fourth season under head coach Brian Gregory, is 9-4, 0-1 in the ACC, after suffering an 83-76 loss in double-overtime Saturday at 14th-ranked Notre Dame. The Yellow Jackets had completed their non-conference schedule with a 9-3 record against the 33rd-toughest schedule in the nation.
Syracuse, 10-4 overall and 1-0 in the ACC, survived a second-half rally by Virginia Tech to beat the Hokies, 68-66, Saturday in Blacksburg, Va., in its conference opener. The Orange are 2-3 away from the Carrier Dome this season, having lost to California in the 2K Classic, Michigan in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge and at Villanova. Syracuse has been one of the nation’s best defensive teams, holding its opponents to 58.4 points per game, 37.4 percent from the floor and 28.5 percent from three-point range.
Wednesday’s game will be televised nationally on ESPNU and will be streamed live on WatchESPN. The Georgia Tech IMG Radio Network, with flagship station WCNN (680 AM/93.7 FM) will also carry the game. Tech’s radio coverage can be heard in satellite radio nationally (Sirius Ch. 92, XM Ch. 193).
Following Wednesday’s game, Tech goes back on the road to visit Wake Forest in a 12 noon regionally-televised game Saturday in Winston-Salem, N.C.
STARTING FIVE FOR WEDNESDAY’S GAME
• Wednesday will mark Georgia Tech’s first game vs. Syracuse on its campus. The Jackets have faced the Orange twice before in Atlanta, in the 1985 NCAA Tournament at the Omni and the 2001 Delta Air Lines Classic at Philips Arena, and won both games.
• Tech moved up from No. 34 to No. 32 in the CBS Sports RPI rankings after its loss at 14th-ranked Notre Dame, which was No. 70 at the time of the game. The Jackets are 4-2 vs. teams currently in the top 100, having defeated Georgia, Rhode Island, Vanderbilt and Charlotte.
• Tech is bidding to open its ACC schedule 1-1 for the second time in four seasons under head coach Brian Gregory. The Yellow Jackets lost their first two conference games last season and their first five in 2012-13.
• Tech enters Wednesday’s game ranked fourth nationally in rebound margin and 18th in three-point percentage defense. Syracuse is ranked No. 34 in scoring defense and No. 24 in field goal percentage defense.
• Marcus Georges-Hunt is five points shy of 900 for his career. At 895 points, he is bidding to reach the 1,000-point plateau sometime this season. He would be the 43rd Tech player to reach that milestone.
SERIES NOTES VS. SYRACUSE
Georgia Tech won the first meeting between the two teams as members of the Atlantic Coast Conference, 67-62, on March 4, 2014, the only regular-season meeting in 2013-14.
•Three of the first four games in the series were played on neutral courts, the first of which had the highest stakes, a second-round NCAA Tournament game at the Omni in Atlanta in 1985. The Orange were led at the time by guard Pearl Washington.
•The most recent meeting between the two teams before Syracuse joined the ACC occurred in the championship game of the Legends Classic in Atlantic City in 2010, and 9th-ranked Syracuse survived a 32-point effort by Brian Oliver (who later transferred to Seton Hall) to win, 80-76.
•Tech’s only other trip to the Carrier Dome came in December of 2003, when the Orange, led by freshmen Carmelo Anthony and Gerry McNamara, routed the Jackets and Chris Bosh, 92-65, and eventually won the national championship.
•Syracuse has never played on Tech’s campus, but the Yellow Jackets did host the 13th-ranked Orange in a Delta Air Lines Classic for Kids game at Philips Arena in 2001. Jim Boeheim missed the game due to prostate surgery and the Yellow Jackets won by 16. Tech also played Syracuse at the Omni in the 1985 NCAA Tournament.
ABOUT GEORGIA TECH MEN’S BASKETBALL
Georgia Tech’s men’s basketball team is beginning its fourth year under head coach Brian Gregory. The Yellow Jackets have 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 (@GTMBK).
For more information on Tech basketball, visit Ramblinwreck.com. Tickets for men’s basketball can be purchased here.
