THE FLATS – Georgia Tech men’s basketball made 13 3-pointers – including six-straight during a 24-10 run midway through the second half – to pull away from pesky Georgia Southern and win the first game under head coach Damon Stoudamire, 84-62, on Monday night at McCamish Pavilion.
Although Georgia Tech (1-0) never trailed after taking a 40-38 lead less than three minutes after halftime, Georgia Southern (0-1) kept it close for the first 10 minutes of the final period and trailed by just two points at 52-50 at the midway point of the second half.
However, a Kyle Sturdivant 3-pointer with 9:36 to go in the ballgame kick-started the 24-10 run for the Yellow Jackets over the next six minutes that saw them take control at 76-60. Tech made 9-of-10 shots – including 6-of-6 from 3-point range – during the decisive run.
In all, Georgia Tech shot 56.7 percent from the field in the second half – including a blistering 64.3 percent (9-of-14) from long-distance – to pull away for the convincing victory.
Miles Kelly led four Yellow Jackets in double-figures with a game-high 25 points, 19 of which came on 7-of-10 shooting (4-of-6 from 3) in the second half. Deebo Coleman also scorched the nets after the break, making 4-of-5 shots while scoring 13 of his 17 points in the second period. Playing in their first game as Yellow Jackets, Kowacie Reeves and Tyzhaun Claude rounded out the four Jackets in double-figures with 15 and 10 points, respectively.
Kyle Sturdivant came off the bench to dish out a game-best six assists and Claude pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds for his double-double as a Yellow Jacket after recording 11 last season at Western Carolina.
Jamar Franklin scored a team-high 17 points for Georgia Southern.
Georgia Tech returns to action on Thursday versus Howard at McCamish Pavilion. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. and the game will be streamed live on ACC Network Extra.
Tyzhaun Claude scored 10 points with 10 rebounds in his Yellow Jackets debut. (photo by Danny Karnik)
Post-Game Notes
TEAM TRENDS
- Nine players saw action in the Yellow Jackets’ season opener vs. Georgia Southern, and eight made at least one field goal.
- Tech played the Georgia Southern game without senior guard Lance Terry and freshman forward Baye Ndongo, out with injuries. Both are expected to be significant contributors to the Jackets this season.
- Nearly half of Tech’s 60 field goal tries against Georgia Southern were three-pointers (29). In Tech’s closed scrimmage and exhibition game combined, 80 of the Yellow Jackets’ 133 shots were three-point tries.
- Tech went 13 of 29 from three-point range (44.8 percent). Tech connected on 33 of 70 three-point attempts (47.1 percent) in the two pre-season games combined.
- Tech had 17 assists on its 27 field goal tries (63 percent). Tech had 45 assists on 65 made field goals (69.2 percent) in the two pre-season contests combined.
- Tech forced 18 turnovers and turned them into 19 points, and scored 14 points off 15 offensive rebounds.
PLAYER NOTES
- Deebo Coleman has made at least one three-point field goal in 16 consecutive games, dating back to Jan. 17, 2023 when he went 0-5 vs. NC State. He hit 3-of-5 from distance against Georgia Southern.
- Coleman came off the bench to score 17 points, and has scored 44 points in his last three games (tallied 10 and 17 in his two ACC Tournament games last season).
- Miles Kelly has reached double figures in points in nine straight games dating back to last Feb. 11 at Wake Forest (9 pts). With his 25 points against Georgia Southern, he has averaged 20.3 points over that stretch.
- Kelly went 4-of-9 from three-point range against Georgia Southern, and has connected on 44.3 percent from long range (39-of-88) over the same 9-game stretch.
- Tyzhaun Claude has 15 career double-doubles with his 10-point, 10-rebound effort against Georgia Southern (11 last season with Western Carolina).
- Kowacie Reeves, Jr., went 4-of-7 form the floor, 3-of-5 on threes and 4-of-4 from the foul line against Georgia Southern, adding three assists and three steals in his Tech debut.
Deebo Coleman came off the bench to score 17 points, hitting three three-point shots. (photo by Danny Karnik)
