By Andy Demetra | Voice of the Yellow Jackets
Pride, solemnity and uncertainty hung in the air in Locker Room 3 of the Spectrum Center in Charlotte.
The final buzzer had just sounded on Georgia Tech’s 78-70 loss to top-ranked Duke in the quarterfinals of the ACC Tournament. As he stood before his players, head coach Damon Stoudamire expressed his gratitude for the way they battled – not just that afternoon, but throughout the season. He urged them to remember the sting of that loss – the Yellow Jackets should expect to compete for ACC Tournament championships in the future.
And even though his speech had a note of finality to it, Stoudamire told his players, somewhat parenthetically, that the season may not be over yet.
As they officially learned on Sunday, that locker room huddle in Charlotte wouldn’t be their last.
Thanks to a strong end to the season, Georgia Tech (17-16, 10-10 ACC) has earned itself more season, scoring an invitation to the 2025 NIT. They’ll try to take full advantage of that opportunity starting Tuesday when they face Jacksonville State (22-12, 12-6 Conference USA) in the first-ever meeting between two schools separated by less than 100 miles.
Let the postseason begin again. Enjoy the top notes from my chart before the Jackets and Gamecocks tip off at McCamish (7 p.m. ET, Georgia Tech Sports Network):
Damon Stoudamire’s Yellow Jackets have earned a longer season after finishing the ACC strong. (photo by Danny Karnik)
They surpassed preseason expectations despite losing two starters to injuries, succeeding with a lineup that consisted of eight scholarship players.
Georgia Tech and JSU may as well be staring into the mirror when they square off on Tuesday. After getting picked eighth in the preseason Conference USA poll, the Gamecocks finished 12-6 in league play, including an eight-game win streak from mid-January to mid-February, before falling to Liberty in the C-USA Tournament championship game. For a second straight game, the Yellow Jackets will face a conference player of the year in 6-6 redshirt senior Jaron Pierre Jr., who ranks fourth in the nation in scoring (21.5 ppg) and has made Jacksonville, Ala., a consistent stop for NBA scouts. His shot rate trails only Notre Dame’s Markus Burton and Stanford’s Maxime Raynaud for the highest among Tech’s opponents this year.
| Jaron Pierre Jr. vs. Markus Burton | ||
| Pierre | Burton | |
| PPG | 21.5 | 21.3 |
| % of Shots Taken | 32.30% | 36.00% |
The New Orleans native is a multifaceted scorer who can lace threes – he buried a school-record 10 against Middle Tennessee – but can also get downhill and post up smaller guards. He’s joined in the backcourt by Freshman All-Conference USA point guard Quel’Ron House (8.4 ppg), a slippery, undersized player with solid touch from the mid-range. Wake Forest transfer Jao Ituka (8.7 ppg) was limited in the C-USA Tournament but is a streak shooter, while 6-10, 280-pound Mason Nicholson (7.5 ppg, 7.5 rpg), an honorable mention All-Conference USA selection, gives them a bruiser and drop-off target down low.
The Gamecocks run an isolation-heavy offense as their low assist rate suggests (#348 NCAA). The Jackets have allowed 39.6% field goal shooting over their last six games. Can they force a steady diet on non-rim twos and make Jax State’s guards earn their points inefficiently?
Records can sometimes ring hollow in defeat, but Duncan Powell quietly tied a school record in Georgia Tech’s ACC Tournament quarterfinal against Duke.
Playing with a host of family members in attendance – he has relatives on his Dad’s side who live in North Carolina – Powell’s six three-pointers against Duke tied a school record for most in an ACC Tournament game. Charlotte native Anthony Morrow, who attended Tech’s second-round game against Virginia (while wearing a vintage Kenny Anderson jersey, no less), drained six against the Cavaliers in 2008.
To put those threes into perspective: Powell didn’t make his sixth three-pointer of the season until Dec. 28.
It’s tempting not to mess with a storybook sendoff. But Georgia Tech’s NIT bid ensures one more home game for Lance Terry, who scored a career-high 31 points on Senior Night against Miami.
He’ll face a Jax State team that allows 37% of its opponents’ points to come off three-pointers, among the highest rates among Tech’s opponents this season. The Gamecocks tend to favor drop coverage on pick-and-rolls, and they also don’t force a gratuitous number of turnovers:
Jacksonville State Defense – NCAA Ranks
- 3pt.-Point %: 37.1% (#22 NCAA)
- Turnover Rate: 3% (#352 NCAA)
The Gamecocks play big in gaps, which can sometimes coerce teams into settling for threes. Can Tech run patient offense and get second- and third-side touches in the half-court, something that eluded them at times against Duke?
Duncan Powell (31) tied a Tech record for the ACC Tournament by making 6 3-point field goals against Duke. (photo by Keith Lucas)
Who is that masked man? Ibrahim Souare will sport a new accessory for the postseason: a black face mask, courtesy of a dislocated nose he suffered against Duke. He said his teammates have already teased him about looking like Batman.
They’ll need his activity on the glass against a Jax State team that features two players (Nicholson and 6-7 Michael Houge, who started for St. Peter’s in its 2024 NCAA Tournament game) who average 7.4 rebounds per game. The Gamecocks are a strong defensive rebounding team, and the Jackets haven’t faced a team this year that has two players averaging at least 7.4 rebounds apiece.
They may have missed out on their third NCAA Tournament appearance, but Jax State may have made March Madness history last weekend: Sitting through the first rain delay in a conference tournament championship game. The Gamecocks’ title game against Liberty was delayed by more than an hour due to a leak in the roof of Huntsville’s Von Braun Center.
Now that we’re prepared, we hope you are as well. Join us for pregame coverage starting with the “Ramblin’ Wreck Tip-off Show” at 6:30 p.m. ET on the Georgia Tech Sports Network. See you at McCamish.
-AD-
Postseason hoops at home
🆚 Jacksonville State
⏰ 7:00 PM
🎟️ https://t.co/CLESAQgS1C
📺 ESPN2
📻 @680TheFan / 93.7 FM#StingEm 🐝 pic.twitter.com/9ORJ5mSIac— Georgia Tech Men’s Basketball (@GTMBB) March 18, 2025
Full Steam Ahead
Full Steam Ahead is a $500 million fundraising initiative to achieve Georgia Tech athletics’ goal of competing for championships at the highest level in the next era of intercollegiate athletics. The initiative will fund transformative projects for Tech athletics, including renovations of Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field (the historic home of Georgia Tech football), the Zelnak Basketball Center (the practice and training facility for Tech basketball) and O’Keefe Gymnasium (the venerable home of Yellow Jackets volleyball), as well as additional projects and initiatives to further advance Georgia Tech athletics through program wide-operational support. All members of the Georgia Tech community are invited to visit atfund.org/FullSteamAhead for full details and renderings of the renovation projects, as well as to learn about opportunities to contribute online.
ABOUT GEORGIA TECH MEN’S BASKETBALL
Georgia Tech’s men’s basketball team is in its second year under head coach Damon Stoudamire. Tech has been a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference since 1979, won four ACC Championships (1985, 1990, 1993, 2021), played in the NCAA Tournament 17 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 X (@GTMBB) and Instagram. For more information on Tech basketball, visit Ramblinwreck.com. Tickets for men’s basketball can be reserved here.
