Tech Faces SMU for First Time as ACC FoesTech Faces SMU for First Time as ACC Foes
Men's Basketball

Tech Faces SMU for First Time as ACC Foes

Yellow Jackets and Mustangs tip off at 4 p.m. EST Saturday at Moody Coliseum

GEORGIA TECH (8-8, 2-3 ACC) vs. SMU (11-4, 2-2 ACC)

 

Dallas, Texas – Meeting for the first time as Atlantic Coast Conference foes, Georgia Tech men’s basketball and SMU bring square off at 4 p.m. Saturday at Moody Coliseum in University Park, Texas.

Tech (8-8, 2-3 ACC) had a three-game winning streak stopped Tuesday night when they struggled to a 62-55 loss at frigid Syracuse. The Yellow Jackets had downed Notre Dame (86-75) and Boston College (85-64) at home last week following a 92-49 rout of Alabama A&M in their final non-conference tilt. The Jackets are looking for their first road win of the season, having also lost at Oklahoma and North Carolina in December.

SMU (11-4, 2-2 ACC) has lost their last two games decisively to Duke (89-62) and at North Carolina (82-67), which followed a six-game winning streak. Among those six wins were conference triumphs over Virginia at home (63-51) and Boston College (103-77) on the road.

Saturday’s game will be televised live on ESPN2, with a live online stream 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). The Tech broadcast is also available on Sirius XM channel 386 and the SiriusXM app.

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Naithan George (1) has reached 100 assists for the second straight season. (photo by Danny Karnik)

 

THE TIP-OFF

  • A win over SMU would give Georgia Tech its first Quad 1 win of the 2024-25 season. The Yellow Jackets are 0-4 vs. Quad 1 teams this season with losses to Duke (2), Georgia (29), North Carolina (39) and Oklahoma (44). Tech was 4-7 vs. Quad 1 teams in 2023-24.
  • Counting Saturday, Tech has four Quad 1 opportunities remaining on its schedule – SMU (48), Clemson (41), Florida State (74) and Pittsburgh (20).
  • A win Saturday would make Tech 3-3 in the ACC through six games for the first time since the 2020-21 season, when the Jackets finished 11-6 and won the ACC Tournament.
  • Tech’s two ACC road losses have come by a total of 10 points. The Jackets lost 68-65 at North Carolina on Dec. 7 and 62-55 at Syracuse Tuesday. In Tech’s other true road game, a 76-61 loss at Oklahoma, the Jackets led by four at halftime and were within five points with less than five minutes remaining.
  • Tech fans may remember Senegalese basketball player Mouhammad Faye, who played for the Yellow Jackets from 2006-08 before transferring to the SMU, where he played from 2008-10. Faye has made 14 stops in his pro career, remains active and plays for Al-Rayyan Doha in Qatar.
  • Four Tech players are averaging in double figures for the 2024-25 season – Lance Terry (15.8), Baye Ndongo (12.3), Javian McCollum (11.9) and Naithan George (10.2).
  • Five Yellow Jackets have averages in double-digits for ACC games so far – Terry (16.2), McCollum (13.3), Ndongo (12.6), George (10.0) and Duncan Powell (10.0).
  • In ACC games, Terry leads the Jackets at 16.2 points per game while connecting on 44.1 percent from the floor and 39.4 percent from bonus land.
  • Sophomore guard Naithan George has reached 100 assists for the second straight season after finishing his freshman year with 135. He is the first Tech player since Iman Shumpert (154 in 2008-09, 120 in 2009-10) to reach the milestone in each of his first two years.
  • George remains the ACC leader in assist average (6.3 per game) and is No. 3 in assist/turnover ratio (2.86-1).

SERIES NOTES VS. SMU

  • Of the three new members of the ACC, Tech has faced SMU the most, winning eight of the 14 all-time meetings in a series that dates back to the 1959-60 season. All of the previous 14 meetings took place during the month of December.
  • The teams last met on Dec. 21, 1986 halfway around the world in the Suntory Ball Tournament in Tokyo, Japan, with Tech capturing a 63-54 victory.
  • The other 13 meetings all took place on the respective teams’ home courts with Whack Hyder as Tech’s head coach between 1959 and 1971.
  • The Jackets have won all six of their meetings against the Mustangs at home, all at Alexander Memorial Coliseum, which opened in 1955, the last of which occurred on Dec. 2, 1970.
  • The Mustangs have won six of seven meetings in Dallas, all at Moody Coliseum, which opened in 1956. The only Tech win came on Dec. 4, 1967 by a 77-74 score. The teams last met in Dallas on Dec. 18, 1971, with SMU taking a 93-70 decision.
  • Tech has faced SMU head coach Andy Enfield one time, while he was the head coach at Southern California. The Jackets lost 67-53 in Phoenix, Ariz.
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Duncan Powell (31) has averaged 10 points per game in ACC play this season. (photo by Danny Karnik)

 

TECH BYTES

  • Tech has utilized five different starting lineups through its first 16 games this season. Freshman Jaeden Mustaf and graduate transfer Ryan Mutombo have started the last six games.
  • Sophomores Baye Ndongo and Naithan George are the only Yellow Jackets to have started every game this season; no one else has started more than 11. Ndongo has started 45 consecutive games, George 44, dating back to last season.
  • At Syracuse, the Yellow Jackets snapped a three-game streak in which they had shot 54 percent or better, setting season highs in each game (36.4% vs. Syracuse). Tech has connected on less than 40 percent of its field goal tries seven times this season.
  • Tech has shot better than 50% from the floor in four of its last six games dating back to UMBC on Dec. 18.
  • Tech has limited its last four opponents to 36.3% shooting from the floor, 29.2% from 3-point range, and forced an average 15 turnovers per game.
  • Tech has 38 steals over its last four games (9.5 per game), including 12 at Syracuse, a high for an ACC game this season.
  • Twice this season, Tech has lost a game despite causing 18 turnovers (North Carolina, Syracuse) and forcing the opponent into a poor shooting night. In those losses, the Jackets also limited their foes to combined 40.2% shooting from the floor, 20.5% from three-point range.
  • Tech has attempted 23 more free throws than its opponents in ACC play. The Yellow Jackets have finished a season with more free throw attempts than their opponents since the 2016-17 season, and only once since 2000.

PLAYER NOTES

  • Senior guard Lance Terry has averaged 18.5 points in his last four games. The senior guard has gone 26-of-45 (57.8%) from the floor, 12-of-24 from three-point range (50%).
  • Terry has scored 20-plus points in five games this season and leads the Jackets in scoring at 15.8 points per game (16.2 ppg in ACC games). Terry’s shooting splits across the Jackets’ last 4 games are 57.8% FG/50% 3pt FG/55.6% FT.
  • Naithan George has posted two double-doubles in points and assists this season, scoring 10 points with 10 assists against Boston College and 16 points with 11 assists vs. Central Arkansas. George has posted 8 games of 7 or more assists this season.
  • Javian McCollum has scored 65 points in Tech’s last 4 games, essentially seven halves of basketball because he rolled his ankle early in the second period vs. Alabama A&M after scoring 18 points. The Oklahoma transfer followed that with 21 vs. Notre Dame and 20 vs. Boston College.
  • In ACC games, McCollum is averaging 13.3 points, hitting 47.4% from the floor, 33.3% from three-point range, and is 11-of-11 from the foul line. He also has 15 assists and just 4 turnovers in four conference games.
  • Duncan Powell has averaged 10.5 points and 5.0 rebounds over his last 5 games. The Sacramento State transfer has gone 16-of-34 from the floor, 8-of-17 from three-point range and 13-of-19 from the foul line in that stretch.

 

 

Full Steam Ahead

Full Steam Ahead is a $500 million fundraising initiative to achieve Georgia Tech athletics’ goal of competing for championships at the highest level in the next era of intercollegiate athletics. The initiative will fund transformative projects for Tech athletics, including renovations of Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field (the historic home of Georgia Tech football), the Zelnak Basketball Center (the practice and training facility for Tech basketball) and O’Keefe Gymnasium (the venerable home of Yellow Jackets volleyball), as well as additional projects and initiatives to further advance Georgia Tech athletics through program wide-operational support. All members of the Georgia Tech community are invited to visit atfund.org/FullSteamAhead for full details and renderings of the renovation projects, as well as to learn about opportunities to contribute online.

ABOUT GEORGIA TECH MEN’S BASKETBALL

Georgia Tech’s men’s basketball team is in its second season 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.