Kowacie Reeves, Jr. (14) made 5-of-7 three-pointers at Clemson, and his 52.9-percent rate in ACC games is the best in the conference. (photo by Jaylynn Nash)
No, your eyes weren’t deceiving you. Georgia Tech did throw in some surprise 2-3 zone against Clemson, hoping to throw off a Tigers team that led the ACC in offensive efficiency.
Damon Stoudamire prefers man-to-man, but as he relayed on his radio show, he isn’t averse to sprinkling in some spurts of zone. Still, how rare was it to see that tactic from Tech? The Yellow Jackets played more possession of zone against Clemson than they had all season combined.
Total zone possessions – 2023-24
- First 16 games: 11
- Clemson: 15
The zone proved especially effective in overtime, when Clemson managed just 5 of 18 field goals.
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Scoring has been a grind for Virginia this year, but the Cavaliers come in refreshed following a crisp, 65-57 win over Virginia Tech.
The Cavs lost four starters from last year’s ACC regular season championship team, but they still feature senior Reece Beekman (12.9 ppg), a heady, versatile guard and preseason first-eam All-ACC pick who leads the ACC in assists. Six-foot-8 wing Ryan Dunn (9.5 ppg) has started to appear in the first round of NBA mock drafts for his skills as a lob threat and attacking, athletic driver. Guard Isaac McKneely (11.4 ppg), a 46.8-percent three-point shooter, does a terrific job manipulating screens in the Cavaliers’ mover-blocker offense. His ability to get going can ignite the rest of his teammates – and he may be seeking threes early after going 0-for-4 from deep over his last two games.
The Cavaliers also got a boost Wednesday from 6-8 grad transfer Ryan Minor, who scored a season-high 16 points and gave Virginia some much-needed “grown man strength” on drop-off and pocket passes. Tyzhaun Claude, who logged a career-high 38 minutes against Clemson, could be a physical counterpoint to him.
Tech will need to stay disciplined working around the wide pindowns and baseline pindowns that Virginia likes to use to enter into its offense. Can they also protect the defensive glass better? The Cavaliers rank last in the ACC in offensive rebounding percentage, but Tech can’t take anything for granted after allowing 22 offensive boards to Clemson. Pay attention to Beekman, whose shooting has been a bellwether of the Cavaliers’ ACC success this year:
Reece Beekman – ACC games
- Wins: 55.5% (15 of 27)
- Losses: 29.8% (10 of 34)
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Georgia Tech has surpassed 50 percent shooting in five games this year.
Four of them have come in ACC play.
A sixth may be tricky against Virginia and its vaunted Pack Line defense, which has helped them rank 12th in the nation in defensive efficiency and sixth in turnover margin (+5.6). Beekman, the ACC’s reigning Defensive Player of the Year, is a clingy defender around pick-and-rolls, and Dunn is a one-man possession wrecker who recorded seven steals in a win over Florida.
Look for Virginia to take away straight line drives, collapse quickly on post touches, and stifle pick-and-rolls with hard hedges. Damon Stoudamire knows his team isn’t flush with one-on-one creators, which could cause problems against a Virginia defense that forces plenty of late shot clock possessions. The Jackets have averaged 11.7 three-pointers over their last four games; with the Cavaliers’ ability to overheat an offense, they’ll need to keep their rhythm and not get rushed when shooting off the catch.
