Feb. 22, 2011
Complete game notes
Coach Hewitt previews the game
ATLANTA – Making its second appearance on ESPNU this season, Georgia Tech begins its final stretch in the Atlantic Coast Conference by hosting Virginia at 7 p.m. Wednesday night at Alexander Memorial Coliseum.
Tech (11-15, 3-9 ACC) is looking to snap a six-game conference losing streak which has dropped the Yellow Jackets to 11th place in the ACC standings. Virginia, NC State and Miami are tied for eighth place at 4-8, and the Yellow Jackets play all three over the next two weeks. The fourth game is against Wake Forest, which is in last place at 1-11.
Tech leads the ACC in turnovers forced (17.0 per game) and steals (9.5 per game), but has averaged just 63 points and shot just 36.2 percent during its last seven games (including a non-conference win over Chattanooga).
The Jackets are led by All-ACC candidate Iman Shumpert, a 6-5 guard from Oak Park, Ill., who is bidding to become the fourth player in ACC history to lead his team in scoring, rebounding, assists and steals. He has averaged better than 20 points a game over his last 11 games.
Tech will be without sophomore forward Brian Oliver for the fifth straight game as he recovers from a fractured left thumb. He was re-examined Tuesday and will not be able to play until the ACC Tournament.
Head coach Paul Hewitt’s team, which returned two starters and eight letterwinners from a team that reached the championship game in last year’s ACC Tournament and won their first-round game in the NCAA Tournament, is one of the youngest in the ACC, with freshmen and sophomores making 84 of 130 possible starts and playing around 70 percent of the minutes.
Virginia (13-13 overall, 4-8 ACC) has lost eight of its last 11 games, but completed a season sweep of Virginia Tech in its most recent game Saturday and defeated Georgia Tech in Charlottesville on Jan. 22. The third win in that stretch was a 49-47 squeaker over Clemson on Feb. 2. The Cavaliers are 1-5 on the road in the ACC this year, 2-6 in all games.
Tech is looking to even the season series with Virginia. The teams have played two regular season games only once since the ACC became a 12-team conference.
Game Data
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (11-15, 3-9 ACC) vs. Virginia Cavaliers (13-13, 4-8 ACC)
Date: Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Tipoff: 7 p.m. Eastern time
Site: Alexander Memorial Coliseum (capacity 9,191), Atlanta, Ga.
Television: ESPNU – Carter Blackburn, play-by-play; LaPhonso Ellis, color
Radio: Georgia Tech Sports Network from IMG College, live on flagship station WQXI-AM (790 the Zone) and WYAY-FM (106.7) – Wes Durham, play-by-play; Randy Waters, color.
Satellite Radio: XM Ch. 190 (Tech broadcast)
Tech Tickets: 888-TECH-TIX
Tech Record Breakdown: 9-5 at home, 0-9 on the road, 2-1 neutral
Series History: Tech leads, 38-32 (21-7 at Alexander Memorial Coliseum)
At Alexander Memorial Coliseum: Georgia Tech is 555-193 in its 55th and final season in the building.
Series History – Tech vs. Virginia
> Georgia Tech has won eight of the last 14, 12 of the last 19, and 19 of the last 28 meetings with Virginia. But Virginia has won the last three, including a 72-64 win in Charlottesville earlier this season.
> The Jackets have won 10 of the last 13 meetings between the two teams in Alexander Memorial Coliseum, but lost the most recent game, 88-84 in overtime on Dec. 28, 2008. Overall, Tech is 21-7 against the Cavaliers in Alexander Memorial Coliseum, 22-9 on all home courts and 24-10 in games played in the city of Atlanta.
> Since Tech joined the ACC, the Yellow Jackets are 36-31 against Virginia.
> Tech is 11-7 against Virginia under Paul Hewitt, including wins in all three meetings in Hewitt’s first season of 2000-01.
> Tech and Virginia have played to overtime seven times since the 1983-84 season, including a 72-71 triple-overtime win for Tech in Atlanta on Jan. 23, 1984, and an 88-85 double-overtime triumph for Virginia in Charlottesville on Jan. 22, 1995.
> In the ACC Tournament, Tech has won five of nine games, including a 70-61 Jacket victory in the 1990 final in Charlotte.
First Meeting vs. Virginia
Jan. 22 in Charlottesville – Mustapha Farrakhan scored 23 points and K.T. Harrell added 17 on Saturday as Virginia beat Georgia Tech 72-64 to end its three-game losing streak.
The Cavaliers (11-8, 2-3 ACC) made 10 3-pointers and took command with an 18-3 burst late in the first half. It gave them a 43-29 lead at the intermission, and they slowed things down in the second half while Georgia Tech struggled to catch up.
The Yellow Jackets (9-9, 2-3), coming off blowout wins over North Carolina and Wake Forest, fell to 0-6 on the road.
Iman Shumpert led Georgia Tech with 19 points and Brian Oliver had 13. Glen Rice Jr., their second-leading scorer, missed 9 of 11 shots and scored five points – eight below his average.
The Cavaliers hit 7 of 8 3-point shots in the first half, and led 25-24 when they took charge with the 18-3 burst. Farrakhan had eight points in the run and Harrell pitched in with seven, while Virginia’s defense also contributed.
Virginia finished 10 for 15 (67 percent) from 3-point range, while the Yellow Jackets were just 4 for 10. The Cavaliers outscored Georgia Tech 22-10 from the free throw line.
