Tech and Panthers tip off at 7 p.m. Saturday at the GSU Convocation Center
THE FLATS – For the first time since 2007, Georgia Tech’s men’s basketball team travels across town to face Georgia State on its home floor when the two city of Atlanta rivals tip off at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Panthers’ new GSU Convocation Center.
Behind six players scoring in double figures, the Yellow Jackets opened their seventh season under head coach Josh Pastner Monday night by defeating Clayton State, 93-63, at McCamish Pavilion. The Panthers, likewise, opened their first season under head coach Jonas Hayes Monday with a 76-59 victory over Coastal Georgia at the Convocation Center.
Saturday’s meeting marks the 21st regular-season meeting between the two teams and the last of a three-game series that began with the 2020-21 season opener. The first two meetings were both decided in overtime, Georgia State winning in 2020 and Tech in 2021 at McCamish Pavilion.
The game will be streamed live online on ESPN+, available on the ESPN app with a subscription. Radio coverage will be heard locally on Xtra 106.3 FM, as well as on satellite radio (SiriusXM channel 389, SXM app 989).
JACKETS AT-A-GLANCE
Georgia Tech welcomes back eight players who logged significant playing time during 2021-22, looking to replace the 1-2 scoring duo of Michael Devoe and Jordan Usher, who combined to average more than 32 points per game.
Among the eight key letterwinners returning are two starters from the 2021-22 squad, both seniors in 6-3 point guard Kyle Sturdivant (7.6 ppg, 2.3 apg) and 6-11 center Rodney Howard (6.5 ppg, 5.1 rpg), as well as the backup point guard, 6-1 junior Deivon Smith (5.7 ppg, 2.0 apg) and a rising trio of sophomore perimeter players in 6-6 Dallan “Deebo” Coleman (6.2 ppg), 6-6 Miles Kelly (4.5 ppg) and 6-7 Jalon Moore (2.8 ppg). Junior 6-2 guard Tristan Maxwell and 6-8 junior forward Jordan Meka return to provide additional depth.
Pastner and his staff have augmented the eight returnees with a pair of transfers in 6-2 guard Lance Terry (14.3 ppg at Gardner-Webb) and 6-7 forward Ja’von Franklin (12.2 ppg, 7.8 rpg at South Alabama), and over the summer signed a pair of international players who will be freshmen in 2022-23 – 6-8 forward Freds Pauls Bagatskis from Latvia and 7-foot center Cyril Martynov of Canada.
SERIES VS. GEORGIA STATE
Competitive Drive Initiative
In a unified endeavor, Georgia Tech, the Georgia Tech Foundation, Georgia Tech athletics and the Alexander-Tharpe Fund have come together to accelerate funding for student-athlete scholarships with the launch of the Competitive Drive Initiative. The initiative kicks off with the Accelerate GT Match Program, where any new gift to the A-T Fund’s Athletic Scholarship Fund made through Dec. 31 will be matched dollar-for-dollar by the Georgia Tech Foundation, up to $2.5 million. Should Accelerate GT reach its $2.5 million fundraising goal, the matching gift would result in a $5 million impact for Georgia Tech athletics. To learn more and to contribute online, visit atfund.org/accelerate.
ABOUT GEORGIA TECH MEN’S BASKETBALL
Georgia Tech’s men’s basketball team has completed six seasons under head coach Josh Pastner, winning the Atlantic Coast Conference championship in 2021 and making its first NCAA Tournament appearance in 11 years. 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 Twitter (@GTMBB) and Instagram. For more information on Tech basketball, visit Ramblinwreck.com.