Element of surprise stricken from Georgia Tech plate
The Georgia Tech basketball team lost its opportunity to sneak up on people two months ago. The Yellow Jackets certainly won’t be able to surprise Notre Dame.
The Yellow Jackets (16-12, 7-8 ACC) continue their quest for an NCAA playoff spot against Notre Dame at 6:30 p.m. on Sunday in South Bend, Indiana. And based on comments made by Notre Dame head coach Mike Brey earlier this week, there’s a feeling that the Irish have had this once circled on the calendar.
That’s because Georgia Tech stunned the Irish 62-60 on Jan. 28 at McCamish Pavilion. That night, the Irish missed a well-defended shot with three seconds left and the Yellow Jackets zipped to the ball the length of the court to Josh Okogie, who hit a driving layup at the buzzer.
Notre Dame (21-7, 10-5) hasn’t forgotten that one.
“For our guys, they will want to play well because that one hurt,” Brey said. “We had the ball with a chance to win, and they made a great play. We weren’t as alert as we needed to be on defense. That’s the most down and upset I saw them. They were mad at how they played and how they finished.”
Notre Dame went on to lose two more games — a rare four-game losing streak for Brey. The Irish haven’t lost since and bring a four-game winning streak into Sunday’s rematch against the Yellow Jackets.
Georgia Tech is coming off a bad home loss to N.C. State, a setback that put a crimp in their NCAA hopes. Coach Josh Pastner said he believes his team needs to have nine regular-season conference wins to ensure their spot in the NCAAs. That means winning two of their final three games: at Notre Dame, home against Pittsburgh and at Syracuse.
“We still have the opportunity to control our destiny, but in order to do that we’ve got to win some games and try to steal one on the road,” Pastner said. “That’s not putting any expectations or pressure, because I’ve been very upfront with the guys, but that’s kind of where I believe that everything stands at this moment.”
Georgia Tech is a difficult defensive matchup for Notre Dame. The Yellow Jackets defend the perimeter well; the Yellow Jackets rank 17th in the nation in field goal percentage defense (39.6). Notre Dame relies heavily on the outside presence of the outside skills of V.J. Beachum, Matt Farrell and Steve Vasturia, who scored only five points in the first game. Notre Dame’s inside presence is Bonzie Colson, but he is offset by Georgia Tech’s Ben Lammers.
“It’s a tough matchup,” Brey said. “They’re hard to score on. They have good perimeter defenders, and they’ve got Lammers in the back to block shots. Lammers is the best rim protector in the league. If he doesn’t block your shot, he’s got you thinking about it.”
Lammers must rebound from his poorest offensive game of the season. He scored only six points against N.C. State and was 1-for-9 from the field. The junior might be starting to show signs of the heavy minutes he has logged — Lammers has been on the court for 158 of the team’s past 160. But the Yellow Jackets have no backup who can provide anything close to what Lammers brings — even when he’s exhausted — and Paster has admitted he’ll keep riding the big man as long as he can.
The basketball series between the two schools has escalated into one of the most intriguing. In games since Notre Dame joined the ACC, the average margin of victory is four points. Notre Dame has been ranked in four of those meetings, and Georgia Tech has won twice.
“I guess we have created a rivalry as a repeat opponent,” Brey said. “I can’t put my finger on it. I thought Brian (Gregory) did a heck of a job with them and always gave them a chance to win. Josh has done a magnificent job with this group, changing up completely how they play offensively and defensively. They’re such a different preparation than they were the last couple of years.”
Georgia Tech is 0-3 in South Bend since the Irish joined the ACC. The Yellow Jackets are 2-8 on the road.
This story was originally published February 25, 2017 at 6:22 PM with the headline "Element of surprise stricken from Georgia Tech plate."