Men’s Basketball Begins February at NC State

GEORGIA TECH (10-11, 3-7 ACC) vs. NC STATE (14-7, 6-4 ACC)

Saturday, February 3, 2024 | 5:30 p.m. EST | Raleigh, N.C. | PNC Arena

• Television:  The CW/Peachtree TV in Atlanta (Announcers:  Evan Lepler, Jordan Cornette)
• Radio: Georgia Tech Sports Network by Legends Sports (In Atlanta: 680 AM/93.7 The Fan) | SiriusXM channel 386
• Other ways to listen:  SiriusXM app | Listen Online | Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets App | TuneIn
• Announcers: Andy Demetra, Randy Waters
• Live Stats:  Statbroadcast.com

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THE FLATS – Looking to build on its third win over a top-25 team this season, Georgia Tech goes back on the road this weekend to face NC State in a 5:30 p.m. contest Saturday night at PNC Arena, tipping off the second half of the ACC regular-season schedule.

The Yellow Jackets (10-11, 3-7 ACC) toppled No. 3 North Carolina Tuesday night at home by a 74-73 score, snapping a three-game losing streak. The Yellow Jackets’ have also knocked off Clemson (93-90 in overtime) and No. 7 Duke (72-68) in ACC play this season.

NC State (14-7, 6-4 ACC) snapped a three-game losing streak of its own Tuesday night with a 74-68 homecourt win over Miami. The Wolfpack downed Notre Dame, Louisville, Wake Forest and Virginia in January and sit sixth place in the ACC standings.

Saturday’s game will be televised live on The CW, which can be seen in Atlanta on Peachtree TV. Radio coverage is on the Georgia Tech Sports Network by Legends Sports and flagship station 680 the Fan (680 AM/93.7 FM). The Tech broadcast is also available on SiriusXM channel 386 and the SiriusXM app.

THE TIP-OFF

• Georgia Tech’s three ACC wins have come against the ACC’s three highest-ranked teams in the NCAA’s NET rankings – North Carolina (9), Duke (18) and Clemson (34).
• Eight of Georgia Tech’s ACC games have been decided by single digits. Fifteen of Tech’s 21 games overall this season have been decided by fewer than 10 points, nine of those by five points or fewer.
• Tech’s two largest defeats (by scoring margin) have been followed by wins over top-25 teams (No. 21 Mississippi State after Cincinnati, No. 3 North Carolina after Virginia Tech).
• Tech is 5-8 against Quad 1 and Quad 2 teams this season, with Quad 1 wins over Duke, Clemson and North Carolina and Quad 2 wins over Mississippi State and Massachusetts. The Jackets have three Quad 1 and three Quad 2 opponents remaining on its schedule (NC State is a Quad 2 opportunity). Tech was 3-14 last season against Quad 1/2 foes.
• In 45 seasons of ACC membership, Tech has defeated North Carolina and Duke in the same season nine times, most recently in 2020-21 prior to this season. The Yellow Jackets reached the NCAA Tournament each of the previous eight times, three of them won ACC championships and another won the regular-season title.
• Ebenezer Dowuona, who transferred to Tech from NC State, will become the second of Tech’s current transfer players to face his former team. Tafara Gapare, who transferred from UMass, faced his former team in the Diamond Head Classic.
• Tech has averaged 74.1 points per game and has connected on 44.9 percent of its field goal tries in ACC play, which ranks No. 8 and No. 7, respectively, in those categories. Tech leads in three-point field goal per game on conference play (9.50) and is fifth in percentage (.371).
• Tech has the ACC’s sixth-most efficient offense in conference games (107.5 points per 100 possessions according to KenPom.com) and ranks No. 3 in effective field goal percentage (52.9) in conference games.
• Four Tech players are averaging double figures in ACC play – Baye Ndongo (14.2), Miles Kelly (13.7), Kowacie Reeves, Jr. (11.1) and Naithan George (10.7). Those four players have combined to hit 46.6 percent of their shots from the floor (186-399) and 37.8 percent from three-point range (62-of-164).
• Tech has started two freshmen – Baye Ndongo and point guard Naithan George – in its last 17 games. The Jackets have not had two freshmen in its regular starting lineup since the 2018-19 season (Michael Devoe, Khalid Moore), and have not had a freshman regularly start at point guard since Jose Alvarado in 2017-18.
• Either Ndongo or George has led Tech in scoring in eight of Tech’s last 11 games, and in seven of 10 ACC games. They have accounted for 33.6 percent in ACC games.
• Tech’s point guard tandem of Naithan George and Kyle Sturdivant has averaged 7.3 assists per game combined, 9.5 in ACC games. Their assist/turnover ratio is 2.48-to-1 combined overall, 3.39-to-1 in conference games. Both players rank among the nation’s top 50 players in assist rate (assists divided by the field goals made by the player’s teammates while he is on the court) according to KenPom.com.

SERIES VS. NC STATE

• NC State swept the regular-season series from Tech in 2022-23 for the first time since the 2012-13 season, and snapped a four-game losing streak to the Yellow Jackets on its home floor. Tech had not lost to the Wolfpack at PNC Arena since Jan. 26, 2014 and had won four in a row there.
• NC State has a 60-44 lead in the overall series which dates back to 1925. Georgia Tech has won six of the last 10 meetings, although the Wolfpack have defeated the Yellow Jackets the last three times the teams have played. The teams did not play during the 2020-21 season due to COVID issues.
• Twenty-four of the last 30 meetings in the series have been decided by 10 points or less, with four of those decided in overtime.
• Since it joined the ACC, Tech is 36-46 against NC State, including regular-season and tournament.
• Tech has won six of 10 games (one win was vacated by the NCAA Committee on Infractions) against the Pack under head coach Josh Pastner, and is 4-3 vs. NC State coach Kevin Keatts.
• The Jackets are 14-32 against NC State in Raleigh, including a 7-12 mark at PNC Arena (one win vacated by NCAA Committee on Infractions).

TEAM TRENDS

• Damon Stoudamire is only the third head coach in ACC history to defeat both Duke and North Carolina in his first year.
• Tech has exceeded a point per possession in six consecutive games, and in eight of 10 ACC games this season (KenPom.com).
• Only six Tech teams since 1997 have finished a season with a KenPom.com offensive efficiency rating higher than the current Yellow Jackets’ rating of 110.4. All but one of those teams played in the post-season.
• Tech’s offensive efficiency is also the highest for a Damon Stoudamire-coached team, as is its adjusted tempo rate of 67.4 possessions.
• Tech has made 76.8 percent of its free throws (63-of-82) in its last four games.
• Led by Kyle Sturdivant’s 18, Tech got 39 points from its bench against North Carolina, more than half of its 74 in the game. That was a season high for the Jackets in an ACC game, one off the season high of 40 vs. UMass Lowell. Tech ranks No. 2 in the ACC in bench scoring (24.3 points per game).
• Tech is 34-of-94 from three-point range (36.0 percent) in its last four games after hitting 10 or more in four straight games (39.7 percent).
• Miles Kelly and Kowacie Reeves, Jr., are the only Tech players to start every game this season.

PLAYER HIGHLIGHTS

• Freshman point guard Naithan George reached double digits in points for the fifth time in the last six games with his 16-point effort against North Carolina, seventh time this season. The 6-3 guard has averaged 14.2 points over that stretch, hitting 45.2 percent from the floor and 41.7 percent from three-point range. He also has 36 assists and nine turnovers across those six games.
• Senior point guard Kyle Sturdivant hit double digits for the fourth time in ACC play with his team-high 18 points against the Tar Heels, seventh time this season. It was his career-high in points for a Tech home game, though he has scored more in games away from McCamish Pavilion. Seven of his eight highest point totals have come in road or neutral games.
• Sturdivant is 11-of-11 from the free throw line over Tech’s last five games. He leads the Jackets at 88.4 percent from the line this season, 91.3 percent (21-of-23) in ACC play.
• In Tech’s last five games, Sturdivant averaged 13.4 points and hit 22-of-49 shots from the floor, 12-of-25 from three-point range, 11-of-11 from the free throw line, 12 assists/5 turnovers
• Tyzhaun Claude (9 points, 8 rebounds vs. North Carolina) has averaged 6.6 points and 5.6 rebounds over Tech’s last five games, hitting 10-of-14 from the floor and 13-of-17 from the foul line. He has averaged 24.8 total minutes.
• Claude and Tafara Gapare each exceeded their average minutes by more than 10 against the Tar Heels (53 total minutes) in an effort to make up for the loss of Baye Ndongo, who was injured five minutes into the game. They had eight rebounds and three blocked shots each and combined to score 15 points (6-13 FG, 3-3 FT).
• Miles Kelly (909) and Tyzhaun Claude (903) each surpassed the 900-point mark for their careers. Kyle Sturdivant has 59 points to go to reach that milestone, and five three-point field goals to reach 100.
• Kelly ranks 14th in Tech history with 154 three-point field goals, while Deebo Coleman is 18th with 129.
• Ndongo is converting at a 61.2-percent rate in ACC games, 60.2 percent for the season. He ranks No. 2 nationally among freshmen in field goal percentage.
• Ndongo’s current scoring average of 12.7 points per game is the highest for a Tech freshman since Josh Okogie in 2016-17 (16.1), and his rebound average of 8.2 is tied for the second highest for a freshman (Chris Bosh 9.0 in 2002-23, Derrick Favors 8.2 in 2009-10).

Miles Kelly (13) surpassed 900 career points Tuesday night against North Carolina. (photo by Danny Karnik)

 

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ABOUT GEORGIA TECH MEN’S BASKETBALL

Georgia Tech’s men’s basketball team is in its first year under head coach Damon Stoudamire. 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.