Georgia Tech Closes Out January vs. No. 25 DukeGeorgia Tech Closes Out January vs. No. 25 Duke
Men's Basketball

Georgia Tech Closes Out January vs. No. 25 Duke

Yellow Jackets and Blue Devils tip off at 3 p.m. Saturday at McCamish Pavilion

Georgia Tech (8-12, 1-9 ACC) vs. #25 Duke (14-6, 5-4 ACC)

THE FLATS – Georgia Tech closes out the month of January by hosting Duke, No. 25 in the Coaches poll this week, for a 3 p.m. Atlantic Coast Conference contest Saturday at McCamish Pavilion.

Tech (8-12, 1-9 ACC) looks to snap a six-game losing streak against the Blue devils, the only regular-season meeting scheduled between the two schools. Tech’s only ACC win to date came over No. 12 Miami, 76-70, on Jan. 4, and since then has lost to Florida State (75-64), Notre Dame (73-72 in overtime), Pittsburgh (71-60), NC State (78-66), Syracuse (80-63) and Clemson (72-51). The Jackets, 1-6 in the month of January, sit a half-game out of last place in the conference standings.

Duke (14-6, 5-4 ACC) is coming off a 78-75 loss to Virginia Tech Monday in Blacksburg and comes to Atlanta with a 1-4 record in road games this season. The Blue Devils have lost at Wake Forest, NC State and Clemson, with their lone ACC road win coming by one point at Boston College, and have a 3-3 record in the month of January.

Saturday’s game will be televised live on the ACC Network, with a live stream of the broadcast available on the ESPN app. Radio coverage is on the Georgia Tech Sports Network by Legends Sports and flagship station 680 the Fan (680 AM/93.7 FM), and also on satellite radio (SiriusXM channel 380, SXM app 970).

THE TIP-OFF

  • After Saturday’s game against Duke, Georgia Tech plays six of its last nine ACC games on the road, including trips to Louisville and NC State next week.
  • Tech defeated Duke on the Blue Devils’ last visit to McCamish Pavilion during the 2020-21 season. That is the Yellow Jackets’ only win over Duke in the last 16 meetings.
  • Tech is 1-2 this season against AP or Coaches top-25 teams, having defeated No. 12 Miami and falling to No. 13 Virginia and No. 24 Clemson. There are no other top 25 teams remaining on the Yellow Jackets’ schedule after Duke.
  • Nine of Tech’s first 10 ACC games have come against opponents with winning or .500 conference records (combined record: 54-25). Notre Dame (1-9) is the exception, and Tech has yet to face any of the other teams 11th through 15th in the ACC standings.
  • Tech leads the ACC in three-point defense and is 38th nationally, allowing 30 percent from distance.
  • Tech leads the ACC in bench scoring, its reserves contributing 21.9 points per game this season. The bench has provided 30 or more points six times this season, and has outscored its opponents’ reserves in 12 of 19 games.
  • Tech has used nine different starting lineups this season, and no Yellow Jacket has started every game. Nine Jackets have started at least two games, and eight of them have started a minimum of seven times.
  • Sophomore guard Miles Kelly leads Tech in scoring, minutes, field goals made and attempted, three-point field goals made and attempted, and free throw percentage.
  • Senior guard Kyle Sturdivant will play the 100th game of his college career against Duke. No other Tech player has played in more than 89.
  • Deivon Smith, at 6-1 the shortest player on Tech’s roster, leads the Yellow Jackets in rebound average at 5.9 per game. He has three double-digit rebound games this season.

 

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Senior guard Kyle Sturdivant will play in the 100th game of his college career Saturday. (photo by Danny Karnik)

 

SERIES VS. DUKE

  • Since 2010, Georgia Tech and Duke have met home-and-away just twice – in 2020-21 when the teams split the regular-season series, and in 2013-14 when the Blue Devils won both games.
  • The Yellow Jackets earned an 81-77 overtime victory on March 3 2021 in Atlanta, snapping a 14-game losing streak in the series that dated back to 2010.
  • Duke won the only meeting of the 2021-22 season, 69-57 in Durham, and has won 15 of the last 16 games in the series and 39 of the last 43 games.
  • The Blue Devils won 11 of the last 13 meetings at Alexander Memorial Coliseum and won 21 of 34 games over Tech in games played on the Jackets’ former home court, as well as a 29-16 mark in games played in Atlanta. Duke is 4-1 at McCamish Pavilion.
  • Duke leads the overall series 76-24, and is 64-20 against Tech since the Jackets joined the ACC.
  • Tech’s only four wins over Duke since 2000 were by Yellow Jacket teams that made the NCAA Tournament (2004, 2007, 2010 and 2021).
  • Tech’s best stretch of the series occurred between 1982 and 1989, with 10 wins in 17 meetings. Tech has never won more than two in a row.
  • Tech was 20-62 against Duke teams coached by Mike Krzyzewski, 13-23 in games played in Atlanta.
  • Tech has won just five of 43 games played at Cameron Indoor Stadium, the first four coming in (1959, 1984, 1987 and 1996). Tech’s last win occurred on Mar. 3, 2004 in a 76-68 victory, which snapped a 41-game homecourt winning streak for the Blue Devils and helped propel the Jackets to the Final Four.
  • Tech is 3-7 against the Blue Devils in ACC Tournament encounters. Tech defeated Duke on the way to each of its three tournament titles, including semifinal victories in 1985 and 1990 and a first-round triumph in 1993. The Blue Devils have defeated Tech three times in championship games (1986, 2005, 2010).

TEAM TRENDS

  • With Lance Terry (hamstring) and Tristan Maxwell (hip pointer) both unavailable, Tech utilized just eight players for only the sixth time this season in the Clemson game. Nine or more Yellow Jackets have taken the court in 14 of 20 games. Tech ranks No. 123 in the nation this season in bench minutes (33.0 pct. entering the game), and only one other Josh Pastner Tech team has seen its reserves play more.
  • Tech has averaged 24.4 three-point attempts in ACC games, trying at least 20 in every game except Virginia (16).
  • Tech has suffered its two poorest three-point shooting performances in its last three games (2-for-21 vs. NC State, 4-for-23 vs. Clemson).
  • Tech is 1-12 this season when the opponent makes a higher percentage of its field goal attempts, 7-0 when it has a better percentage.
  • Tech’s last three opponents (NC State, Syracuse, Clemson) have each shot better than 50 percent from the floor. Only two (Georgia, Virginia) did so in the Jackets’ first 17 games.
  • Tech is 6-1 this season when scoring 70 or more points (1-0 in the ACC), 2-11 when failing to reach 70. The Jackets’ 51 points at Clemson was a season low.
  • Tech has connected on less than 40 percent from the floor in three of its last four games (Pitt, NC State, Clemson).
  • Tech is 14-for-32 from the foul line in its last four games after hitting 75.6 percent from the stripe in its first six ACC games.
  • Tech’s bench has outscored that of its opponent 12 times in 20 games this season. The Jackets entered this week’s games No. 1 in the ACC in bench scoring (21.9 ppg).
  • Tech has assisted on 56.8 percent of their field goals in ACC games, fourth-best in the ACC.
  • After a four-game stretch in which it averaged 17 turnovers, Tech has averaged less than 12 in its last four games.

PLAYER UPDATES

  • Deivon Smith has three double-doubles in points and rebounds, all in Tech’s last five games (Notre Dame, Pitt and Clemson). The smallest player on the floor for Tech, he leads the Jackets in rebound average at 5.9 per game.
  • Ja’von Franklin (team-high 12 points) scored in double digits for the first time since Notre Dame (12 points) on Jan. 10. Franklin leads the Jackets in field goal percentage in ACC games (59.1 pct.).
  • Rodney Howard has connected on 36-of-57 shots from the floor (63.1 pct.) dating back to Nov. 23 vs. Marquette. For the season he has connected on 58.7 percent of his field goal tries for the season, 55.3 percent in ACC games.
  • Miles Kelly has hit three or more 3-point field goals in 10 games this season and has connected on 37.2 percent of his attempts in all games, 37.1 percent in ACC games. He is just 4-for-23, however, in Tech’s last three games.
  • Kelly’s 8.9-points-per-game improvement over his freshman year is the third-largest jump among ACC players. Kelly averaged 4.5 points per game as a freshman, 13.4 per game this season.
  • Tech’s sophomore trio of Deebo Coleman, Miles Kelly and Jalon Moore rank 1-2-3 on the Yellow Jackets’ scoring chart. They have accounted for 46.4 percent of the team’s total points this season and have taken 43.9 percent of the shots from the floor. In ACC games, they have accounted for 50.1 percent of the points and 47.2 percent of the shots taken.
  • Tech’s guard trio of Kelly, Coleman and Lance Terry have taken roughly two-thirds (66.3 pct.) of the Yellow Jackets’ three-point attempts and collectively have made 34.1 percent of them.
  • Senior guard Kyle Sturdivant will play in his 100th career game against Duke, most among the Yellow Jackets. Senior center Rodney Howard is the next closest, having played in 89. Tech’s other two seniors, Ja’von Franklin and Lance Terry, have played in just 79 and 73 games, respectively.
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Deivon Smith has three double-doubles in points and rebounds this season. (photo by Danny Karnik)

 

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The Alexander-Tharpe Fund is the fundraising arm of Georgia Tech athletics, providing scholarship, operations and facilities support for Georgia Tech’s 400-plus student-athletes. Be a part of developing Georgia Tech’s Everyday Champions and helping the Yellow Jackets compete for championships at the highest levels of college athletics by supporting the Annual Athletic Scholarship Fund, which directly provides scholarships for Georgia Tech student-athletes. To learn more about supporting the Yellow Jackets, visit atfund.org.

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.