Jackets Face No. 17 Florida State on the Road

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THE FLATS – Continuing a stretch of five consecutive games away from home, Georgia Tech resumes Atlantic Coast Conference play Tuesday at No. 17 Florida State. Tip time is at noon at the Donald L. Tucker Center in Tallahassee.

Tech (6-6. 1-1 ACC), in its fourth season under head coach Josh Pastner, won two of three games at the Diamond Head Classic which concluded on Christmas Day. The Yellow Jackets captured third place by defeating host Hawai’i, 70-53, following a semifinal loss to Houston (70-59) and an opening-round win over Boise State (74-60). Tech is 3-3 away from home this season, including an 83-81 overtime victory at NC State to open the season.

Florida State (11-2, 1-1 ACC), in its 18th season under head coach Leonard Hamilton, has won its last four games, including an 88-71 homecourt win over North Alabama Saturday. The streak began with a 72-53 victory over Clemson on Dec. 8. The Seminoles are 7-0 at home, and their only losses this season came at Pittsburgh to open the season (63-61), and at Indiana on Dec. 3 (80-64).

Tuesday’s game will be televised live on ESPNU. Live streaming is available through the ESPN app. Radio coverage of Tech’s games is provided through Learfield IMG College, airing in Atlanta on 680 AM and 93.7 FM the Fan and through the TuneIn app. The Tech broadcast is also available on satellite radio (XM ch. 380, internet ch. 970).

THE TIPOFF

• Full deck – Georgia Tech had its full roster available for the first time this season for the opening game of the Diamond Head Classic on Dec. 22. Junior forward Jordan Usher became eligible for the Yellow Jackets’ Dec. 18 game against Ball State, and junior point guard Jose Alvarado played for the first time since Nov. 20 in the Jackets’ 74-60 win over Boise State in Hawai’i.
• Long time away – Georgia Tech has played only one home game since its Dec. 7 loss to Syracuse, that on Dec. 18 against Ball State, and does not play at home again until it faces Duke on Jan. 8.
• Missing piece – Jose Alvarado returned to the court for the first time since Nov. 20 when he played 30 minutes against Boise State on Dec. 22, scoring 14 points and keying a strong second-half defensive effort by the Jackets. The junior point guard averaged 9.7 points and 3.0 assists, and took a team-high seven steals in the three games.
• Ushering in – Jordan Usher made his debut for the Yellow Jackets Dec. 18 against Ball State after sitting out the required two semesters after he transferred from Southern California last January. The 6-7 junior guard/forward from Canton, Ga., averaged 12 points and 4.7 rebounds in three games at the Diamond Head Classic, hitting 43 percent of his shots from the floor.
• Junior forward Moses Wright made the all-tournament team at the Diamond Head Classic, averaging 17.7 points and 7.3 rebounds while hitting 63.6 percent of his shots from the floor. The 6-9 junior ranks No. 2 in the ACC in field goal percentage (57.1) and No. 8 in rebound average (7.8).
• Sophomore guard Michael Devoe ranks fifth in the ACC in scoring (17.8 ppg), and eighth in field goal percentage (.461). He also is No. 2 in minutes played (36.1).
• No ducking – Georgia Tech’s schedule is the eighth-strongest among power conference teams according to KenPom.com. Tech’s schedule included six power conference teams in its first 10 games, including road games at NC State, Georgia and Kentucky, and home games against Arkansas, Nebraska and Syracuse. The Jackets’ non-conference schedule rates 13th-toughest among power conference teams.

Moses Wright made the all-tournament team at the Diamond Head Classic, averaging 17.7 points and 7.3 rebounds. (photo by Courtney Metzger)

SERIES VS. FLORIDA STATE

• Florida State has won 13 of the last 15 meetings in the series and each of the last three, including both 2018-19 regular-season meetings (59-49 in Tallahassee and 69-47 in Atlanta). The Jackets’ last victory was an 86-80 win on Feb. 17, 2016 in Tallahassee..
• Tech and FSU had met just once each of the last eight seasons before 2018-19.
• Since FSU joined the ACC, Tech is 18-28 against the Seminoles. Florida State won the first six in a row, Tech followed by winning five straight, and is 13-22 against the Seminoles since then.
• In those 46 games, 21 have been decided by four points or less, 32 by fewer than 10 points. One of those games went to double-overtime, which the Yellow Jackets won 111-108 on Feb. 11, 1999 in Tallahassee.
• Tech is 7-16 against Seminoles teams led by head coach Leonard Hamilton. Tech is 8-16 against Hamilton overall, with a victory over his Miami team in December of 1997.
• Tech is 11-22 in games played in Tallahassee, including an 8-15 mark at the Donald L. Tucker Civic Center, formerly known as the Tallahassee-Leon County Civic Center.

Jose Alvarado started all three games in Hawai’i following a long absence recovering from an ankle injury. (photo by Courtney Metzger)

WHAT’S TRENDING

• Second half surge – In the Diamond Head Classic, Tech held its three opponents to 28.3 percent from the floor, 3-for-22 from three-point range, and forced an average of 10 turnovers after intermission. For the season, the Yellow Jackets have outscored opponents by nearly five points per game in the second half and outshot them from the floor 46.5 percent to 34.9 percent on nearly the same number of attempts, and forced nearly eight turnovers per game.
• Georgia Tech ranks No. 29 in defensive efficiency according to KenPom.com (89.8 points per 100 possessions), No. 19 nationally in effective defensive field goal percentage (43.6) and 28th in two-point field goal defense (42.8).
• Since the beginning of last season, Tech has held 25 opponents, including nine ACC opponents, under 40 percent from the floor. Seven Tech opponents this season have shot under 40 percent, including Hawai’i and Boise State in the Diamond Head Classic. Tech limited its three foes in the Diamond Head Classic to 38.4 percent from the floor collectively.
• The Jackets have limited 25 opponents, nine in the ACC, to 30 percent or less from three-point range in the same time frame. Seven Tech opppnents have shot under 30 percent from three this season. Tech limited its three foes in the Diamond Head Classic to 22 percent from behind the arc collectively.
• Tech has held five opponents to their lowest defensive efficiency of the season, including two of its foes in Hawai’i – Elon, Arkansas, Nebraska, Boise State and Hawai’i.
• Georgia Tech’s adjusted tempo is 71.9 possessions per game according to KenPom (97th in the nation), well ahead of the 66.1 possessions per game last season and 66.8 in 2016-17. Game-by-game, Tech has played less than 70 possessions just four times and has exceeded 100 points/100 possessions three times.
• Two fouls in the first half? No problem. Georgia Tech ranks No. 2 in the nation, according to KenPom.com, in 2-foul participation, a measure of percentage of available minutes played by players with two fouls (69.6 pct. for Tech). The Jackets led the nation in this category in 2018-19, was fourth in 2017-18 and 35th in 2016-17.
• Tech is 3-3 away from home this season, 3-3 at home.
• Tech has trailed at halftime in 10 of 12 games this season, but has come back to win four of those 10 games. The Jackets are 14-46 under Josh Pastner when trailing at the half.
• Tech hit 18-of-23 shots from the free throw line against Hawaii and connected on 49-of-65 (75.3 pct.) in three games in the Diamond Head Classic. Tech had not hit the 70-percent mark since making 72.7 percent in the season opener at NC State but did so in all three games of the tournament.
• Tech’s 13-for-17 shooting streak to close out the Hawai’i game enabled the Jackets to finish the game at an even 50 percent from the floor, the second time this season Tech has hit 50 percent in a game (52 vs. Bethune-Cookman).
• Tech committed just 23 turnovers in its last two games of the Diamond Head Classic after recording 20 against Boise State.
• Hawai’i made just one three-point field goal in 15 attempts (6.7 percent), the lowest percentage yield by a Georgia Tech team under Josh Pastner. The previous low was 9.5 percent (2-for-21) by Duke last Jan. 26.
• Against Hawai’i, Tech did not allow a player from the other team to reach double figures, the second time that has happened under Josh Pastner.
• The Jackets recorded a season-high 12 steals against Hawai’i and are averaging 7.4 per game this season.

PERSONNEL TRENDS

• Moses Wright averaged 17.7 points and 7.3 rebounds Tech’s three games in the Diamond Head Classic, He connected on 21-of-33 shots from the floor (63.6 pct.) and 10-of-12 from the free throw line (83.3 pct.), making the all-tournament team.
• After missing seven of Tech’s eight games before the Diamond Head Classic because of an ankle injury, Jose Alvarado played an average of 33:20 in the Yellow Jackets three games in the tournament, scoring 29 points (8-24 FG, 3-12 3pt, 10-10 FT) with nine assists and five turnovers.
• Jordan Usher reached double digits in two games of the Diamond Head Classic, getting 18 against Boise State and averaging 12.0 points per game for the tournament. The 6-7 junior hit 10-of-30 shots from the floor and 9-of-10 from the foul line, and grabbed 14 rebounds with eight assists.
• Michael Devoe, the ACC’s fifth-leading scorer, has hit double figures in each of Tech’s last four games after scoring just 12 total in the two games prior. He scored 13, 17 and 18 in Tech’s three games in Hawai’i (16.0 ppg) while hitting 17-of-35 shots from the floor and The 6-5 sophomore went 4-of-8 from three-point range against Houston and Hawai’i after opening 0-for-6 against Boise State.
• Bubba Parham rebounded from a scoreless effort in 9:58 against Houston to score seven points (3-4 FG) with three rebounds and provide a strong defensive effort for the Jackets in 29:47 against Hawai’i.

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Georgia Tech’s men’s basketball team is in its fourth 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.

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