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THE FLATS – Fifty-two percent field-goal shooting, 48-percent shooting from downtown, and a 15-0 second-half run led Georgia Tech men’s basketball to a hot start to its preseason exhibitions as it routed Georgia College 98-76 on Sunday afternoon at McCamish Pavilion.
Thanks largely to terrific ball movement (21 assists on 35 made field goals), the Yellow Jackets were led by six double-digit scorers on the afternoon, topped by junior Bubba Parham‘s 15 (5-for-5 from three), while the Bobcats were led by junior guard Jordan Thomas (26 points). Also reaching double digits for Tech offensively was Jose Alvarado (14), Khalid Moore and Evan Cole (13) and Moses Wright (12).
Cole finished with a double-double, leading Tech with 11 rebounds as the Jackets showed real prowess down low. The Jackets won the rebounding game overall 51-26, while also getting 16 second-chance points on the day as well.
The Yellow Jackets are back in action next Sunday at 1 p.m. Eastern time with another exhibition game against Alabama in Tuscaloosa.
Junior Evan Cole (3) finished Sunday’s exhibition with a double-double, hauling in 11 rebounds to go along with his 12 points on 4-of-7 shooting
Post-Game Notes
- TEAM NOTES
- Georgia Tech starting lineup: Jose Alvarado, Shembari Phillips, Khalid Moore, Moses Wright, James Banks III
- Tech’s starting five in the game combined to hit 19-of-32 shots from the floor. Wright was 5-of-6, Moore was 3-of-4, Banks was 4-of-6 and Alvarado was 6-of-10.
- All 10 of Georgia Tech’s available scholarship players competed in the opening half. Michael Devoe, who missed the first three weeks of preseason practice rehabbing a toe injury, was held out as a precaution. Jordan Usher, a transfer from Southern California, is not eligible to play until Dec. 18 vs. Ball State.
- All 10 scholarship players scored at least one field goal, and five players reached double figures in scoring.
- Georgia Tech knocked down its first six field goal attempts in the game and finished the first half at 58.8 percent, and 52.2 percent for the game from the floor.
- Tech connected on 11 three-point field goals in the game, made by five different players. The Jackets hit double digits in threes twice last season – 12 in the opener vs. Lamar and 11 at Virginia Tech. Against Georgia College, their threes were split nearly evenly by half, five in the first, six in the second.
- All five of Tech’s non-scholarship players saw action in the final 1:18 of the game. Junior guard Malachi Rice was the only one to make the scoring column, hitting a pair of free throws.
PASTNER’S KEY METRICS
- Assists to made field goals: Tech assisted on 21 of its 35 field goals (exactly 60 percent) and eight players had at least one. The Jackets finished last season at 57.4 percent overall (46th in the nation) and 56.4 percent in ACC games. Tech’s nightly goal is 60 percent.
- Free throws made to opponents’ attempts: Tech went 17-of-26 from the free throw line, while Georgia College was 7-of-9, accomplishing its nightly mission of making more free throws than the opponent attempts. The Jackets are 39-17 under Josh Pastner when attempting more free throws than the opponent.
- Turnovers: Tech averaged 14.3 turnovers per game in ACC play, and only forced 11.3, last year. Target each night is to commit 11 or fewer, which Tech met only three times all season (all in the last four games). More telling for Tech under Josh Pastner is that when Tech has committed fewer turnovers than its opponent, it is 22-15. When it has committed more, it is 23-30.
- Guard rebounding: Tech’s players outside of Banks, Cole and Wright collected 14 of the Jackets’ 33 defensive rebounds.
INDIVIDUAL NOTES
- VMI transfer Bubba Parham immediately demonstrated why he was such a dangerous shooter in the Southern Conference, draining all five three-point field goals he attempted. He led the Jackets with 15 points.
- Evan Cole, who is James Banks’ backup at the center position, posted a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds. The 6-10 junior has one double-double, officially, in his career (10/10 vs. Wake Forest as a freshman).
- Freshman Asanti Price went just 1-for-9 from the floor (a three-pointer), but posted Tech’s top plus/minus figure in the game (+24). He had four assists, a blocked shot and two rebounds in 23:58, leading the Jackets in minutes.
Georgia Tech fired on all cylinders against Georgia College, shooting a blistering 48 percent from downtown.
