Jan. 3, 2017
Greensboro, N.C. – Following his 26-point performance Saturday in Georgia Tech’s 75-63 upset of No. 9 North Carolina, freshman Josh Okogie was named Atlantic Coast Conference Rookie of the Week on Tuesday, earning the honor for the second time this season. Okogie shared the distinction with Boston College’s Ky Bowman.
Okogie led Georgia Tech (9-4, 1-0 ACC) to its first win in an ACC opener in 11 years, scoring 26 points – 15 of which came in the second half – as the Yellow Jackets pulled away late for a 75-63 upset of No. 9 North Carolina on Saturday at McCamish Pavilion. The 6-foot-4 freshman made seven of 14 shots from the floor, including his only 3-pointer with 2:04 remaining in the game. He went 11-for-13 from the free throw line, 8-for-8 in the second half, and 6-for-6 in the final 1:05 to ice the win for Georgia Tech. Okogie added three assists, two steals and five rebounds in his most complete performance of the season. Earlier in the week, Okogie scored five points in Tech’s 59-52 win over North Carolina A&T in the Yellow Jackets’ final pre-conference game.
Okogie earned the honor the first time on Nov. 28 after scoring a Georgia Tech freshman-record 38 points against Tulane. He is Tech’s second-leading scorer this season at 14.2 points per game.
BC’s Bowman posted 30 points, nine assists and five rebounds in a 96-81 victory over Syracuse. Bowman was 11-for-17 from the field and was 7-for-8 from long range. Bowman is just the third freshman in the country and the only one in the ACC to have multiple 30-point games this season. Eighteen of his 30 points came in the second half, when he went 6-for-7 from the field and hit all five of his 3-point attempts. Bowman is averaging 26.3 points, 7.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists in the last three games and currently ranks fourth in the conference in freshman scoring (11.8).
Florida State (14-1, 2-0 ACC) guard Dwayne Bacon was named ACC Player of the Week after averaging 26.0 points, 2.0 rebounds and 2.0 steals and hitting the game-winning 3-point shot with two seconds remaining to lift No. 20 Florida State past No. 11 Virginia in Charlottesville. The win over Virginia capped off a perfect week for the Seminoles, who had earlier earned a victory over Wake Forest. Bacon scored 23 points in leading Florida State over Wake Forest and followed that performance with a career-high 29-point performance in the Seminoles’ thrilling win at Virginia.
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Georgia Tech’s men’s basketball team is in its first year under head coach Josh Pastner. Tech has been a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference since 1979, won three ACC Championships (1985, 1990, 1993), played in the NCAA Tournament 16 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.
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