Tech Hoops Faces Northwestern in MKE Tipoff

GEORGIA TECH (4-5, 0-0 ACC) vs. NORTHWESTERN (7-3, 1-1 Big Ten)

• Sunday, December 15, 2024 | 4 p.m. EST | Milwaukee, Wis. | Fiserv Forum
• Television:  Big Ten Network (Announcers: Jeff Levering, Stephen Bardo)
• Radio: Georgia Tech Sports Network by Legends Sports (In Atlanta: 680 AM/93.7 The Fan)
• Announcers: Andy Demetra, Randy Waters
• Other ways to listen:  SiriusXM Ch. 371  |  SiriusXM app  |  Listen Online | Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets App | TuneIn

Wildcats up next in Milwaukee

🗓️ Sunday, 4 PM ET
🏟️ Fiserv Forum
📺 Big Ten Network#StingEm 🐝 pic.twitter.com/R2TYvyUq3J

— Georgia Tech Men’s Basketball (@GTMBB) December 11, 2024

THE FLATS – Looking to rebound from back-to-back losses on the road to Oklahoma and North Carolina, Georgia Tech plays its third straight game away from home Sunday at 4 p.m. EST when it takes on Northwestern in the MKE Tipoff at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wis.

Tech’s game is the middle game of the afternoon triple-header in which Akron faces Milwaukee, and San Francisco takes on Loyola Chicago.

Tech (4-5) fell to the No. 21 Sooners in the SEC/ACC Challenge and dropped a 68-65 decision to the No. 20 Tar Heels on the road last week. The Yellow Jackets had won their two games prior, defeating Central Arkansas, 87-68, Saturday, and Charleston Southern, 91-67, to finish off a seven-game homestand to open the season.

The Wildcats (7-3) split their first two Big Ten Conference games in their most recent action, coming up short on the road at Iowa (80-79) and downing No. 19 Illinois (70-66) at home. Northwestern’s three losses to Dayton, Butler and Iowa have come by a total of eight points.

Sunday’s game will be televised live on the Big Ten Network, with a live stream available on FoxSports.com. 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 371 and the SiriusXM app.

Naithan George (1) leads the ACC in assist average (5.7 per game). (photo by Jerome Ibrahim)

THE TIP-OFF

• Georgia Tech is making its fifth trip to Milwaukee in program history, but will play in the Fiserv Forum for the first time.
• The Yellow Jackets were 5-1 in the Milwaukee Bucks’ former home, the Bradley Center. Tech started its 1992 Sweet 16 run in the Bradley Center with victories over Houston and Southern California, the latter on the “Miracle in Milwaukee,” James Forrest’s buzzer-beating three-point field goal at the buzzer. The Jackets also began their 2004 run to the national championship game at the Bradley Center with victories over Northern Iowa and Boston College. Tech returned to the Bradley Center in 2010 for NCAA Tournament first- and second-round games, defeating Oklahoma State before bowing to Ohio State.
• Tech also played in the Milwaukee Classic in 1963, defeating Marquette and losing to Wisconsin.
• Tech is playing its third straight game away from Atlanta after opening the season with seven consecutive home games. The Jackets return home next week to start a five-game homestand with games against UMBC and Duke.
• Tech will play its first game in eight days, taking last week off for fall semester finals.
• Sunday marks the first time Tech and Northwestern will meet on a neutral floor, with three of the prior games played in Evanston, Ill., and two in Atlanta.
• Four Tech players are averaging in double-figure points through five games (Lance Terry 15.4, Baye Ndongo 13.4, Javian McCollum 12.8, Naithan George 11.1).
• Tech has used four different starting lineups in nine games this season, all of them occurring as a result of injury. Tech has played without starting guards Javian McCollum (missed 4 games) and Kowacie Reeves, Jr., for its last three games.

SERIES NOTES VS. NORTHWESTERN

• Sunday marks the sixth meeting between the Yellow Jackets and the Wildcats, who lead the series 3-2. All five of the previous games were part of the former ACC-Big Ten Challenge series.
• The teams last met in November of 2018, with Northwestern taking a 67-61 victory at Welsh-Ryan Arena, where the Wildcats won two of three meetings.
• Tech and Northwestern split two meetings in Atlanta, including a 52-51 Yellow Jacket victory won at the final horn when Tadric Jackson drove through the Wildcat defense for a layup.
• Northwestern won the first two games in the series, first by a 91-71 score in 2010 in Evanston, and again by a 76-60 count in 2011 at Philips Arena in Atlanta.
• Georgia Tech is 23-39 all-time against the Big Ten, last meeting a member of the conference last season when the Yellow Jackets captured an 82-81 overtime decision against Penn State at Madison Square Garden. That record does not count the Yellow Jackets’ 36-40 mark against Maryland, which was previously a member of the Atlantic Coast conference.
• Tech is 1-1 against Northwestern teams coached by Chris Collins.

Baye Ndongo (11) is No. 2 in the ACC in field goal percentage. (photo by Jerome Ibrahim)

JACKETS TAKE WEEK OFF AFTER ACC OPENER

Georgia Tech forced 18 turnovers and limited North Carolina to 39% shooting from the floor, but the Yellow Jackets were unable to make enough shots of their own last Saturday and fell to the No. 20 Tar Heels, 68-65, on the road in the Atlantic Coast Conference opener for both teams.

Lance Terry scored a game-high 22 points on the strength of five three-point field goals for the Yellow Jackets (4-5, 0-1 ACC), while Baye Ndongo scored 19 points with 12 rebounds for his third double-double this season, and Naithan George also reached double digits with 12 points, including a pair of threes.

TECH BYTES

• Eight players saw the court for the Jackets against North Carolina and six of them scored.
• Tech has held each of its last four opponents under 40 percent from the floor (36.2% combined) and done so six times in nine games.
• The 18 turnovers forced by Tech against North Carolina were a season high. Tech has a plus-2.5 turnover margin over its last four games.
• Tech’s defensive efficiency rate of 101.6 (KenPom.com) ranks 97th in the nation, 2.4 PPP lower and 51 spots higher than 2023-24. The Jackets limited North Carolina to .892 points per possession and 68 total points, by far its lowest score of the season.
• The Jackets connected on just 31.3% of their shots from the floor against UNC, a season low.
• Tech remains ahead of its pace in several offensive categories through eight games compared to the same period a year ago – scoring average (78.1 ppg over 71.0), field goal percentage (43.9 pct. over 39.9), three-point percentage (32.0 over 29.6), free throw percentage (68.7 over 65.3), assist/turnover ratio (120/84 over 105/102).
• Tech also ranks much higher in adjusted tempo, according to KenPom.com – 70.5 possessions per game (59th in the nation), compared to 67.6 possessions (168th nationally) a year ago and the fastest Tech has played since the 2000-01 season.
• Baye Ndongo has three double-doubles this season, nine for his career, after scoring 19 points and grabbing 12 rebounds at North Carolina.
• Ndongo has scored in double digits in seven of nine games. He leads the Jackets and ranks No. 2 in the ACC in field goal percentage at 52.9%. Ndongo also ranks 7th in rebound average (7.9 rpg).
• Lance Terry has reached double figures seven times in nine games this season and 53 times in his career. He scored 22 points at North Carolina for his third 20-point game this season.
• In Tech’s last 4 games, Terry has averaged 37 minutes, averaged 19 points (25-of-57 FG, 13-of-30 3pt FG) with 14 total rebounds, 7 assists, 4 turnovers and 6 steals.
• Terry ranks 6th in the ACC in three-pointers per game (2.44) and 9th in total three-pointers attempted (56).
• Naithan George has 27 assists and 8 turnovers in Tech’s last 4 games, and a 51-to-19 assist/turnover ratio for the season. He leads the ACC in assist average (5.7 per game) and ranks 8th in assist/turnover ratio (2.68-1).
• George grabbed a career-high 8 rebounds at North Carolina to go with his 12 points.
• Freshman guard Jaeden Mustaf has averaged 14 points while hitting 18-of-40 shots from the floor, 2-of-5 from three-point range and 18-of-22 from the foul line. He also has 13 rebounds and 7 assists across the 3 games.

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.