December 17, 2020

Tech Faces Pair of MEAC Foes This Weekend

THE FLATS – Looking for its first win at home following three straight games away, Georgia Tech hosts a pair of opponents from the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference this weekend, beginning with a 7 p.m. tip Friday against Florida A&M.

The Yellow Jackets (2-3, 0-0 ACC) won two of their last three games, knocking off No. 20 Kentucky (79-62) at State Farm Arena and Nebraska (75-64) on the road in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge before dropping its Atlantic Coast Conference opener Tuesday night at No. 15 Florida State (74-61). Prior to that, Tech has lost its first two games to Georgia State and Mercer, both at home.

Florida A&M (1-4, 0-0 MEAC) has yet to play at home this season, traveling to Florida Gulf Coast, Georgia, Oregon and Oklahoma, all losses, before scoring its first victory Tuesday night at Austin Peay State. The Rattlers, in their fourth season under head coach and former Tech assistant Robert McCullum, have also seen two of their games cancelled.

Delaware State (0-1, 0-0 MEAC) has played only one game due to COVID cancellations, a 111-51 loss at Wake Forest on Nov. 25. The Hornets visit Coastal Carolina for their second game of the season Thursday night before making their way to Atlanta.

Friday’s game will be televised regionally on the ACC’s Regional Sports Network (Fox Sports South in Georgia), while Sunday’s will air nationally on the ACC Network. Both games will be streamed live on the ESPN app. Radio coverage is provided by the Georgia Tech Sports Network by Learfield IMG College, with flagship station WCNN-Radio (680 AM, 93.7 FM) in Atlanta. The Tech broadcast can be heard on SiriusXM Ch. 371 (internet Ch. 371) and the TuneIn app.

THE TIPOFF

Georgia Tech has placed seven members of its team on the fall semester Dean’s List, a high for one semester for the program – seniors Jose Alvarado, Shaheed Medlock and Malachi Rice, and sophomores Niko Broadway, Rodney Howard, Jehloni James and Kyle Sturdivant.
Tech is 33-0 all-time against members of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference.
Tech ranks fourth in the ACC in scoring average (81.60 points per game), much of that a product of its 123-120, four-overtime loss to Georgia State. However, the Jackets scored 77 in regulation of that game, and have scored more than 70 points in four games this season.
Small ball – Tech moved 6-9 senior Moses Wright, who has played the “4” position most of his career, into the “5” spot and started 5-10 senior Bubba Parham against Kentucky. The re-alignment has worked as the Jackets have shot 46.7 percent from the floor, hit 7.0 three-point field goals per game, turned the ball over just 27 times and forced 50 in its last three games.
Tech has four of the top 14 players in the ACC in average minutes played (Jose Alvarado, Moses Wright, Michael Devoe, Bubba Parham). Alvarado and Wright rank No. 9 and 10 nationally.
Late start – Due to Covid-19, the NCAA pushed back the start of the 2020-21 season to Nov. 25, two weeks later than normal. Division I teams are allowed to play a maximum of 27 games. The ACC will play a 20-game schedule for the second straight year, and teams are allowed a maximum of seven non-conference games. Tech has seven non-conference games scheduled, none yet postponed.

Michael Devoe scored 21 points at Florida State and ranked 19th in the ACC in scoring average.

SERIES VS. FLORIDA A&M

Georgia Tech has won all eight prior meetings against Florida A&M, including a 73-40 victory in the teams’ most recent meeting on Dec. 9, 2018 at McCamish Pavilion.

The first five meetings all were played at Tech’s former home, Alexander Memorial Coliseum, and the teams also played at the Arena at Gwinnett to open the 2011-12 season.
Tech has scored 100 points or more in three of the teams’ eight games, the Yellow Jackets’ most against any opponent except Georgia State (seven times).
Tech has played members of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference six times during the head coach Josh Pastner’s tenure, and has two games scheduled against members of the MEAC this season, including Delaware State upcoming on Sunday. The Yellow Jackets are 33-0 all-time against members of the MEAC.
The Rattlers’ fourth-year head coach is Robert McCullum, who was a member of the Yellow Jackets’ coaching staff for the 2010-11 season.

SERIES VS. DELAWARE STATE

Georgia Tech has won all three prior meetings against Delaware State, the most recent coming by a 68-50 score on Nov. 11, 2013 during the Yellow Jackets’ first season in McCamish Pavilion.

All three prior meetings were played in Atlanta on three different courts. The first occurred Dec. 6, 1997 at Alexander Memorial Coliseum (Tech won 84-63), and the second Nov. 14, 2011 at the Arena at Gwinnett (now known as Infinite Energy Arena) in Duluth (Tech won 70-52).

Jose Alvarado ranks 12th in the ACC in scoring, 6th in free throw percentage and No. 1 in minutes.

Alexander-Tharpe Fund

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 A-T Fund’s Annual Athletic Scholarship Fund, which directly provides scholarships for Georgia Tech student-athletes, and Athletics Initiative 2020, Georgia Tech athletics’ ongoing $125 million initiative to allow Tech to recruit the nation’s most elite student-athletes, build a better student-athlete once they arrive on The Flats and, ultimately, win! To learn more about supporting the Yellow Jackets, visit atfund.org.

ABOUT GEORGIA TECH MEN’S BASKETBALL

Georgia Tech’s men’s basketball team is in its fifth season under head coach Josh Pastner, having finished fifth in the ACC in 2019-20, the program’s highest finish since 2005. 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. For more information on Tech basketball, visit Ramblinwreck.com.