Monday Mornings from McCamish: 11/18
Welcome to another edition of Monday Mornings from McCamish. This weekly segment will be released on Monday mornings throughout Georgia Tech’s Men’s Basketball 2013-14 season. We will revisit the previous week’s action as well as look ahead to the upcoming week’s games.
Last Week Recap:
Monday 11/11: Delaware State 50 Georgia Tech 68
Friday 11/15: Georgia Tech 80 Georgia 71
The Jackets moved to 3-0 with a pair of wins this week over the Delaware St. Hornets and the rival Georgia Bulldogs.
The Monday night win over Delaware State wasn’t exactly what was expected. The Jackets seemed to lack energy and focus at times which could be attributed to the lackluster matchup and Monday night “crowd.” Regardless of the explanation, the most visible concern was on the glass. Tech outrebounded the Hornets 30-28, but gave up eleven offensive rebounds. Admittedly the Hornets missed a lot of shots (37 of 56 to be exact), but had they been able to shoot better this could have been a much closer game. As we suggested last week, the best chance for Delaware State was to shoot and make three’s. They shot plenty, but they just couldn’t knock them down (six for 22 including nine straight misses to start the game). As for the positives, Tech played well offensively – shooting over 50% from the field and 90% from the free throw line in addition to individual highlights from Trae Golden (16 points) and Robert Carter (11 points, 4 rebounds, and 5 blocks).
As for Friday night’s victory over UGA, it’s the third win over the Bulldogs in as many years and second straight in Athens. But what was most impressive was the play from Jacket seniors Trae Golden, Daniel Miller, and Kam Holsey.
While freshmen dominate the college game more than ever before, on Friday night in Athens the Jackets were led by a trio of seniors. Trae Golden led all Tech players with 18 points and 36 minutes of playing time. Daniel Miller turned in his best performance of the season with 13 points and 14 rebounds. Kammeon Holsey also notched his second career double-double with 10 points and 12 boards. But aside from the sum totals, when the Jackets needed a run to close out the first half those three were at the center of it. Trailing 33-31 with less than four minutes remaining in the first half, Tech made a 12-3 run in which Golden, Holsey, and Miller combined for eight points and two rebounds. Given all of the energy surrounding Tech’s underclassmen (albeit well-deserved), Golden, Holsey, and Miller supplied a friendly reminder that senior leadership is much more than just a trendy intangible.
Looking Ahead:
Wednesday 11/20 7:00pm: Dayton (3-0) at Georgia Tech (3-0)
Both Dayton and Georgia Tech will enter Wednesday night’s matchup 3-0, although the Flyers three wins have been slightly more adventurous.
The Flyers are coming off of a 17-14 (7-9) season that concluded without a postseason tournament appearance for the first time since 2007. But this season the Flyers have reason to believe that their depth will give them a fighting chance in the deep Atlantic 10.
After hitting a buzzer beating three pointer to defeat IPFW (Indiana University – Purdue University Fort Wayne) 81-80 in their home-opener, the Flyers defeated St. Francis (PA) 70-56 after being tied at 54 with four minutes remaining. But aside from the nail-biting wins against Summit League and Northeast Conference opponents, the Flyers are coming off their best game of the season in a 78-58 win over St. Francis (NY). In the win, four Flyers reached double digits in addition to a nine point, six rebound, and five assist effort from team captain Devin Oliver.
Dayton is a balanced team that has several players that are capable of scoring on any given night. In their three games, they have had three different leading scorers – Dyshawn Pierre, Devin Oliver, and Vee Sanford. Keep in mind, that group does not include sophomore guard Khari Price who is second on the team in points per game with 14.7.
Wednesday night’s meeting between the Flyers and the Jackets will be the third all-time and first in Atlanta. Dayton leads the series 2-0 with close wins in 1977 and 2009.
Tip-off is at 7:00pm and will be broadcast on 106.7 FM and streamed live on ESPN3.
Sunday 11/24 2:00pm: North Carolina A&T (1-2) at Georgia Tech
The Aggies of North Carolina A&T will come to McCamish Pavilion this Sunday afternoon in the first of four games associated with the Barclays Center Classic for Georgia Tech.
The Aggies are coming off their first NCAA tournament appearance since 1995. An improbable run in the MEAC championship resulted in NC A&T’s first NCAA tournament berth since 1995 which ended abruptly with a second round loss to eventual National Champion Louisville (it should be noted that North Carolina A&T defeated a fellow 16-seed in Liberty in a first round game).
This season the Aggies are 1-2 with a win over D-III Greensboro and road losses to Utah Valley and Rhode Island. In both losses, A&T was close late but succumbed to fatal runs including a 16-0 surge from URI.
As a team, the Aggies are led by a 1-2 senior punch in the backcourt in Lamont Middleton and Richaud Pack. The two are tops in points per game (19.7 and 19.0) and in minutes played (both above 30 per game). Pack has been particularly impressive by shooting above 65% from the field and 75% from beyond the arc.
If the Jackets can keep the veteran guard tandem at bay, then Tech should pick up an easy win against another MEAC opponent.
Tip-off is at 2:00pm and will be broadcast on 106.7 FM and televised on ESPN3.
Be sure to check back next week for a new edition of Monday Mornings from McCamish, but in the meantime follow @WREKSports on Twitter and like us on Facebook (under “WREK Sports”) to receive in-game updates and analysis.