GEORGIA TECH (8-7, 2-2 ACC) vs. SYRACUSE (6-8, 0-3 ACC)
- Tuesday, January 7, 2025 | 7 p.m. EST | Syracuse, N.Y. | JMA Wireless Dome
- Television: ACC Network (Announcers: Doug Sherman, Malcolm Huckaby)
- 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. 385 | SiriusXM app | Listen Online | Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets App | TuneIn
Lance posters will never get old#StingEm 🐝 pic.twitter.com/oaRepl9vyQ
— Georgia Tech Men’s Basketball (@GTMBB) January 5, 2025
THE FLATS – Riding back-to-back Atlantic Coast Conference wins, Georgia Tech hits the road for the first time in 2025 with a visit to Syracuse for a 7 p.m. ACC contest Tuesday night at the JMA Wireless Dome.
Tech (8-7, 2-2 ACC) takes a 3-game winning streak into the week, which features road games against the Orange and SMU (Saturday). The Yellow Jackets 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 after losses at North Carolina and Oklahoma in December.
Syracuse (6-8, 0-3 ACC) is looking for its first ACC win after sustaining defeats at Notre Dame on Dec. 7 (69-64), Wake Forest at home last Tuesday (81-71) and Florida State on the road Saturday (90-74). The Orange have dropped six of their last eight games following a 4-2 start and are 6-2 at home this season.
Tuesday’s game will be televised live on the ACC Network, 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 385 and the SiriusXM app.
Javian McCollum (2) has scored 20-plus in back-to-back games. (photo by Danny Karnik)
THE TIP-OFF
- A win Tuesday would give Tech its first 3-2 start in ACC play since the 2020-21 season. The Yellow Jackets started that season 3-1 and went on to finish 11-6 and win the ACC Tournament.
- Tech last won three-straight ACC games late last season, taking down Miami, Florida State and Wake Forest, two of those on the road.
- A win Tuesday would give Tech a 4-5 all-time record at the JMA Wireless Dome. The Jackets have better records, percentage-wise, only at the Conte Forum (6-6) and the Watsco Center (5-7) among ACC arenas.
- Tech has won three games in a row by an average of 25 points. The Jackets scored their largest margin of victory in any game since 2007 with their 92-49 win over Alabama A&M, and their largest victory margin against an ACC team since 2021 with their 85-64 win over Boston College.
- The Jackets have averaged 87.7 points, shot 56.3% from the floor and 44.8% from three-point range, and assisted on 63 of 94 made field goals (67%) over their last three games.
- 29 years ago (1995-96 season), Tech completed its non-conference schedule with a 6-7 record, same is its 2024-25 mark. Led by the guard tandem of Stephon Marbury and Drew Barry, sophomore forwards Matt Harpring and Michael Maddox and junior center Eddie Elisma, the Yellow Jackets went on to post a 13-3 ACC record to win the regular season championship, come within one point of winning the ACC Tournament title, and advance to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament, finishing the season 24-12.
- Four Tech players are averaging in double-figure points in conference play thus far (Lance Terry 15.8 ppg, Javian McCollum 15.7, Baye Ndongo 14.3, Duncan Powell 12.0).
- Tech has utilized five different starting lineups through its first 15 games this season. Freshman Jaeden Mustaf and graduate transfer Ryan Mutombo have started Tech’s last five games along with Lance Terry, Naithan George and Baye Ndongo.
- Sophomores Ndongo and George are the only Yellow Jackets to have started every game this season; no one else has started more than 10. Ndongo has started 44 consecutive games, George 43, dating back to last season.
- Tech players have missed a total of 28 games this season because of injury. Kowacie Reeves, Jr., has missed the last 9 games with a foot injury, Luke O’Brien missed the last 4 games, also with a foot injury, and Doryan Onwuchekwa has missed the last 5 for personal reasons. Those three players had combined to start 20 games before their injuries.
SERIES NOTES VS. SYRACUSE
- Tech has won seven of the 15 meetings between the two teams since Syracuse joined the ACC and nine of 18 meetings in the history of the series, which dates back to the 1986 NCAA Tournament. (2017 victory was vacated by the NCAA Committee on Infractions)
- Tech has won the last two meetings, including the only regular-season game in 2023-24, a 65-60 decision in Atlanta.
- The Yellow Jackets have won three times in eight visits to the JMA Wireless Dome, including a 67-62 decision on March 4, 2014, with the Orange ranked No. 7 in the nation. They are 3-3 against the Orange at McCamish Pavilion.
- Ten of the 15 meetings as ACC brethren have been decided by seven points or fewer, with one decided in overtime.
Duncan Powell has scored i double digits five times this season, all vs. Power 4 opponents. (photo by Danny Karnik)
TECH BYTES
- Tech has won back-to-back ACC games by double-digits for the first time since Feb. 25 and 28, 2023, when the Jackets defeated Louisville (85-67) and Syracuse (96-76). Tech’s 85-64 win over Boston College was its largest margin of victory against an ACC team since the Yellow Jackets posted an 87-60 victory at Miami on Feb. 20, 2021
- Defensively, Tech has limited its opponents to 34.7% from the floor, 31.9% from three-point range, and 62.7 points per game in its last three games.
- Tech has achieved a season high in field goal percentage in three consecutive games – 54.1% vs. Alabama A&M, 56.6% vs. Notre Dame and 58.5% vs. Boston College.
- Tech’s field goal percentage in its last 6 halves of basketball – 60.0%/48.4% (Alabama A&M), 60.7%/52.0% (Notre Dame), 60.7%/58.5% (Boston College).
- Tech has shot better than 50% from the floor in four of its last five games dating back to UMBC on Dec. 18.
- Tech has had a pair of 20-point scorers in two-straight games – Lance Terry and Javian McCollum scored 20 apiece against Boston College, following the Notre Dame game in which McCollum and Duncan Powell tallied 21 each.
- During Tech’s current three-game winning streak, McCollum has averaged 19.7 points, Terry 18.7, Powell 12.7 and Baye Ndongo 11.3. Those four players have combined to make 62.1% of their field goals, 50% of their three-point tries and 70.5% of their free throws.
- Lance Terry has scored 20-plus points in five games this season and leads the Jackets in scoring at 15.6 points per game (15.8 ppg in ACC games). Terry’s shooting splits across the Jackets’ last 3 games are 62.5% FG/56.3% 3pt FG/50% FT.
- McCollum has scored 59 points in his last three games, essentially five halves of basketball because he rolled his ankle early in the second period vs. Alabama A&M after scoring 18 points. The Oklahoma transfer has followed that with 21 vs. Notre Dame and 20 vs. Boston College.
- In ACC games, McCollum is averaging 15.7 points, hitting 60% from the floor (4th-best in the ACC), 42.9% from three-point range, and is 11-of-11 from the foul line. He also has 13 assists and just two turnovers in four conference games.
- Powell has averaged 12.8 points and 5.0 rebounds over his last four games after scoring 11 points with five boards against Boston College. The Sacramento State transfer has gone 15-of-30 from the floor, 8-of-16 from three-point range and 13-of-17 from the foul line in that stretch.
- 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, and is averaging 6.3 per game with an assist/turnover ratio of 2.88-to-1.
Please enjoy all 10 of yesterday’s dimes from the ACC’s assist leader 🥽@NaitGeorge | #StingEm 🐝 pic.twitter.com/WpxQs2fXdH
— Georgia Tech Men’s Basketball (@GTMBB) January 5, 2025
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.
