Georgia Tech falls short at Miami

ATLANTA -- This was not the way the Georgia Tech basketball team needed to start the second half of its ACC schedule.

The Yellow Jackets made too many mistakes against a veteran opponent and were miserable from the free-throw line in a 75-68 loss to No. 17 Miami on Sunday afternoon.

Georgia Tech had 14 turnovers, the most it has committed in an ACC game this year, and only 13 assists. And when the Yellow Jackets did get to the free-throw line, the results were less than spectacular -- 9-for-16 for the game and 6-for-13 in the second half.

The Yellow Jackets trailed 33-32 at halftime and never caught up. Nine times they cut the margin to one or two points, but they could never get the stop or make the basket to pull even. The loss, the team's third straight, leaves it at 12-11 overall and 2-8 in the ACC.

FOUR WHO MATTERED

Georgia Tech guard Marcus Georges-Hunt: The senior scored 19 points, a nice bounceback after totaling just 16 points in the two previous games. But he was 6-for-14 from the field and an uncharacteristic 4-for-7 from the free-throw line. As unfair as it might sound, he has to do more for this team to have a chance.

Georgia Tech guard Tadric Jackson: The sophomore scored 13 points, his second straight game in double figures. Jackson hit a pair of 3-pointers, but his real success has come when he drives the ball to the basket. But Jackson was not able to convert his free throws when he was fouled on the way to the hoop; he made just 1-for-4 from the line.

Georgia Tech guard Adam Smith: The senior scored a very quiet 14 points. He was 5-for-12 from the field and has not made at least half his shots in eight straight games.

Miami guard Sheldon McClellan: The senior was 7-for-9 from the field and scored 21 points. He was 6-for-8 from the line and added four rebounds and one blocked shot.

TURNING POINT

Georgia Tech got within one or two points on nine occasions in the second half but was unable to pull even. Perhaps the most infuriating sequence came midway in the second half. The Yellow Jackets trailed 47-45 with 11:58 and Georges-Hunt missed two free throws, but center Ben Lammers saved the balll and tipped the offensive rebound out to a teammate. The Yellow Jackets were stymied by the Miami defense and Georges-Hunt got a generous foul with one second left on the shot clock. Given a second change, the Yellow Jackets again failed to get a shot and this time Georges-Hunt had the ball as the shot clock sounded. Miami then went to the other end and nailed a 3-pointer. The Hurricanes then converted following another empty possession and led by seven.

OBSERVATIONS

Starting out: The Yellow Jackets started Josh Heath at point guard, Georges-Hunt and Adam Smith at guard and Charles Mitchell and Nick Jacobs at forward. The first substitutes were Lammers and Jackson, who entered at the 14:53 mark.

Punchless on the inside: Jacobs scored six of the team's first eight points and had eight in the first half. But he took only one shot in the second half and missed. Mitchell scored eight points and had two turnovers.

Big Ben getting better: Lammers continues to improve on the defensive end. In 17 minutes, the center had a team-high six rebounds and three blocked shots. It ended a streak of three straight games without a block.

THEY SAID IT

Georgia Tech head coach Brian Gregory on the inability to catch up: "They've got a very experienced team, and they played at the same pace the whole game. They waited for us to make some mistakes on offense or have some breakdowns on defense and extended the lead. That's what they did in the first run, and we responded pretty well, and they did it again later, and we responded well."

Gregory on the turnovers and poor free-throw shooting: "You can probably get away with that if you go to the free-throw line and make the free throws. But you can't combine those two and that was a big difference in the game. You're talking a one possession game. You can't have empty possessions."

Miami head coach Jim Larranga on McClellan's performance: "He took, what, nine shots (Sunday)? If I was him I probably would have taken 20 shots. The kid is great. He doesn't realize how good he is. Guys like him, he's so unselfish. He's so team oriented. He's a great guy to play with, a terrific young man to coach. ... I just love having him in our program. And I think he's going to play at the next level."

WHAT'S NEXT?

Georgia Tech hosts Wake Forest on Wednesday.

This story was originally published February 7, 2016 at 9:09 PM with the headline "Georgia Tech falls short at Miami ."