Charles Mitchell leads Georgia Tech to easy win over Green Bay
ATLANTA -- Forward Charles Mitchell had his third consecutive double-double as Georgia Tech took care of business early with a quick start and never let up in a 107-77 win over Green Bay on Thursday at McCamish Pavilion.
The senior had 15 points and 12 rebounds as the Yellow Jackets shot 72 percent from the floor in the first half and led by as many as 31 points. They wound up shooting 56 for the game.
Georgia Tech (3-0) had six players in double figures: Adam Smith and Quinton Stephens with 14, Marcus Georges-Hunt and Josh Heath with 13 each and Nick Jacobs with 12 points and eight rebounds.
The Georgia Tech defense put the clamps on Green Bay guard Carrington Love, who entered the game averaging 27 points. He was held to seven, primarily by the good defensive effort of Josh Heath and Travis Jorgenson.
FOUR WHO MATTERED
Charles Mitchell: He was 6-for-11 from the field and scored 15 points. Throw in the 12 rebounds (he's led or shared the lead in each game) and the senior had his third double-double in three games.
Marcus-Georges Hunt: He turned in his usual consistent game. The senior had 13 points, his third straight game in double figures, and five assists
Nick Jacobs: Jacobs made his presence felt down low early and forced Green Bay to double-team him in the post and leave the perimeter open. Jacobs scored 12 points and had eight rebounds.
Adam Smith: The guard flashed the sort of outside shooting that Georgia Tech has been missing. He scored 14 points and made four 3-pointers.
TURNING POINT
Georgia Tech hit its first eight shots and never slowed down. The Yellow Jackets led 18-7 with 16:36 left and Green Bay never got closer any closer the rest of the night. The Yellow Jackets shot 72 percent in the first half and led 56-30 at halftime.
OBSERVATIONS
Same five: The Yellow Jackets started the same five players for the third straight game -- forwards Marcus Georges-Hunt, Charles Mitchell and Nick Jacobs, guard Adam Smith and point guard Josh Heath. Forward Ben Lammers and point guard Travis Jorgenson were the first subs to enter at the 15:42 mark.
Tough break: Green Bay took a big hit when guard Charles Cooper had to leave the game with two quick fouls. Cooper had scored a career-high 23 points in his last start against East Tennessee State. Cooper didn't re-enter until 5:32 left and Georgia Tech had built a 45-19 lead. He finished with 15 points.
WORTH MENTIONING
Strong start: This is the fourth straight season that the Yellow Jackets have won their first three games under coach Brian Gregory. They've never been 4-0.
No ACC love this time: Green Bay had beaten the past two ACC teams it had played. The Phoenix took down Virginia two years ago and beat Miami last year. It was their first contest against Georgia Tech.
WHAT'S NEXT
Georgia Tech completes its four-game homestand to start the season with a 2 p.m. game on Sunday against East Tennessee State in the second game of the NIT Season Tipoff.
THEY SAID IT
Georgia Tech head coach Brian Gregory, on the offense: "We want to push the ball, so there are more possessions. I think you're going to see more in the high 70s or 80s as things calm down a bit. I'd take 107 every night, especially if we hold the other team to 77."
Gregory on the defensive effort against high-scoring guard Carrington Love: "Give Josh (Heath) and Travis (Jorgenson) a lot of credit because they guarded a high-level guard in Carrington Love and they did a great job of disrupting him and keeping him out of rhythm. I thought that was a big key."
Georgia Tech's Charles Mitchell on the double-doubles: "I want to keep getting double-doubles and try to be the leading double-double player in the country. If you've got it, you get it. Trying to just keep pushing forward."
Green Bay head coach Linc Darner: "If they can shoot the ball like they did (Thursday), it's going to make it a lot easier for those guys down low to score. We were kind of hoping they wouldn't shoot it. We rolled the dice and they threw it out and knocked them in."
This story was originally published November 19, 2015 at 10:38 PM with the headline "Charles Mitchell leads Georgia Tech to easy win over Green Bay ."