Jan. 31, 2018
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THE FLATS – Josh Okogie scored a game -high 20 points, Tadric Jackson scored 15 to reach the 1,000-point mark for his career and Georgia Tech never trailed in a 55-51 win over visiting Syracuse on Wednesday evening at sold-out McCamish Pavilion.
Tech (11-11, 4-5 ACC) used just six players, with Jackson as the only sub, and Syracuse (15-7, 4-5) deployed seven. Guard Tyus Battle scored 19 points and grabbed nine rebounds to pace the Orange, who lost for the first time in four games.
The Yellow Jackets never trailed, and led 24-21 at halftime, powered chiefly by an 11-2 run early that included 3-point shots by Okogie and Jose Alvarado and a three-point play by Ben Lammers on consecutive possessions.
Lammers finished with 11 points, 12 rebounds, four assists and two blocked shots from the center position, his eighth double-double of the season and 24th of his career.
The Orange trailed by as many as 10 points, missing 15 of their first 18 shots before scoring on three consecutive possessions to close the first half.
Tech took a 44-37 lead on a Jackson layup with 6:56 left. His final points gave the senior guard 1,001 in his career.
Syracuse pulled within a basket twice in the game’s final minute, but the Orange struggled to score on a night when they made just 15-of-50 shots (30 percent) and Tech made 21 of 63 (33.3).
Oshae Brissett had 11 points and eight rebounds for Syracuse.
BIG PICTURE
Syracuse: The Orangemen entered the game with just seven scholarship players available, and one of them was a surprise. Forward Matthew Moyer, who started the first 20 games before missing Saturday’s win over Pitt because of left ankle sprain, was expected to miss Wednesday night game but played two minutes off the bench in the first half. He didn’t shoot. Guard Howard Washington did not play; he suffered a right leg injury in practice Monday. Syracuse lost forward Taurean Thompson before the season, when he transferred to Seton Hall, and graduate student transfer guard Geno Thorpe left the program in December.
Georgia Tech: Head coach Josh Pastner, who’s generally been deploying seven players in ACC games, used six Wednesday. The Yellow Jackets lost freshman guard Curtis Haywood II Wednesday, when he was shut down for the season because of a stress reaction in his right leg. He played in 15 games, starting seven, before missing six consecutive contests in December and January with a shin injury.
UP NEXT
Syracuse returns home to play No. 2 Virginia Saturday afternoon. The Cavaliers beat the Orange 68-61 Jan. 9 in Charlottesville.
Georgia Tech will go on the road for consecutive ACC games, Sunday at Boston College and Wednesday at Louisville.
