Georgia Tech has lost nine of its last 11 games, but did defeat Boston College 81-78 in overtime this past Sunday.
The nucleus of sophomore point guard Jose Alvarado, junior center James Banks and freshman wing Michael Devoe gives GT some hope for the future, but a 13-17 record and 5-12 mark in the ACC has made for a tough season.
NC State has a 20-9 overall mark and is 8-8 in the ACC with Georgia Tech at home and at Boston College on Saturday to end the regular season.
Here is a scouting report on Georgia Tech.
Season Overview
Georgia Tech knew this would be a tough year and it has been. It could have been even worse if Banks didn’t get a waiver from the NCAA to be immediately eligible. Banks has also far exceeded expectations based on his two years at Texas.
The Yellow Jackets went with a semi-youth movement with a freshman and three sophomores in the starting lineup. Former Raleigh Enloe High product Moses Wright moved past fellow sophomore Evan Cole this season at power forward. Cole picked GT over NC State after he was released from his letter of intent from UNC Wilmington when head coach Kevin Keatts took the NC State job.
Georgia Tech’s best non-conference win was at Arkansas on Dec. 19, and the team was 8-5 going into ACC action, including a loss vs. Gardner-Webb on Dec. 17. GT also lost at Tennessee, at Northwestern, vs. St. John’s and vs. Georgia.
Rankings
In the newly established NET rankings done by the NCAA, through games of March 4, Georgia Tech is ranked No. 129 in the country. ESPN’s College Basketball Power Index (BPI) has the Yellow Jackets at No. 109, and KenPom.com has GT at No. 111.
The Yellow Jackets are ranked No. 156 in the old RPI formula used by the NCAA — according to RealTimeRPI.com.
For comparison, NC State is 23rd in BPI, 31st in NET, 34th in Kenpom.com and 97th in RPI.
Shooting
Devoe was ranked No. 45 in the country in the class of 2018 by Rivals.com, and he’s easily Georgia Tech’s top shooter. The 6-4, 188-pounder leads the squad at 39.2 percent from three-point land and he has gone 9 of 22 from beyond the arc the last three games.
Georgia Tech ranks 10th in the ACC in field-goal percentage (43.4) and 15th in three-point field-goal percentage (30.7). Fifth-year senior wing Brandon Alston, who didn’t play against Boston College, paces the team at 83.7 percent from the free-throw line. Of the regulars, sophomore Curtis Haywood is at 76.0 percent and Alvarado is 75.5 percent.
Rebounding
Georgia Tech averages 33.6 rebounds per game, and with its slower pace, that has the Yellow Jackets ranked 13th in the ACC. GT’s 8.4 offensive rebounds a contest ranks dead last in the league.
The numbers in 17 ACC-only games aren’t much different. Georgia Tech ranks 13th in the ACC with 32.2 rebounds per game, seventh with 24.2 defensive rebounds a contest and 14th in the league with 8.1 offensive rebounds. Banks paces the team with 7.6 rebounds per contest, but no other Georgia Tech player is averaging more than 3.8.
Defense
Banks is a gifted shot-blocker at 2.4 blocks per game and three different Georgia Tech players are averaging over a steal a contest. In 17 ACC games, the Yellow Jackets are eighth in the league in allowing 69.8 points per game. Opponents are shooting 41.5 percent from the field, which ranks sixth in the ACC, but just 30.8 on three-pointers, which ranks fourth.
Depth
Georgia Tech only played freshman small forward Khalid Moore and fifth-year senior post player Abdoulaye Gueye against Boston College. Alston didn’t play against the Eagles, but has played in every other game, and is chipping in 7.5 points in 18.8 minutes a contest.
The 6-9, 217-pound Gueye is a former starter and has shown flashes of quality play. He had a stretch of scoring in double figures in seven out of eight ACC games that he was healthy enough to play in from Jan. 9-to-Feb. 10. He had 15 points and seven boards in a 59-49 loss at FSU on Feb. 2 during that stretch.
The 6-6, 200-pound Moore was an unranked Rivals.com three-star prospect from Queens (N.Y.) Archbishop Molloy. He’s averaging 3.8 points and 1.4 rebounds in 15.2 minutes per game, and has reached double figures twice this season.
Star Watch
Alvarado has quietly been on a mini-roll the last five games for the Yellow Jackets. He’s averaging 19.8 points and four assists per game and shooting an impressive 12 of 28 on three-pointers. Included in that stretch was a season-high 29-point effort in a 73-65 win over Pittsburgh on Feb. 20.
In six of his last nine games, he’s had one turnover or less, including three games with zero. Alvarado has also had a heavy workload, playing every minute in three of those games, and 44 out of 45 minutes in another contest.
The 6-0, 176-pounder was a Rivals.com four-star prospect at Middle Village (N.Y.) Christ the King in the class of 2017 — getting ranked No. 130 nationally.
Alvarado had a solid freshman season, but it was cut shot after a season-ending elbow injury against Duke on Feb. 11, 2018. He missed the final seven contests, including Georgia Tech’s 78-75 win over NC State on March 1.
Likely starters:
NC State
PG — 11 Markell Johnson (6-1, 175, Jr., 11.5 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 4.2 apg, 1.0 spg)
SG — 13 C.J. Bryce (6-5, 195, R-Jr., 12.0 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 1.8 apg, 1.3 spg)
G — 10 Braxton Beverly (6-0, 180, Soph., 10.1 ppg, 1.6 rpg, 2.8 apg)
F — 2 Torin Dorn (6-5, 210, 5th-Sr., 13.9 ppg, 6.9 rpg, 1.3 apg, 1.0 spg)
C — 33 Wyatt Walker (6-9, 240, R-Jr., 5.0 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 1.0 apg)
Georgia Tech
PG — 10 Jose Alvarado (6-0, 176, Soph., 12.8 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 3.3 apg, 1.8 spg)
SG — 0 Michael Devoe (6-4, 188, Fr., 9.8 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 2.4 apg, 1.4 spg)
SF — 13 Curtis Haywood (6-5, 202, Soph., 5.6 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 2.0 apg, 1.2 spg)
PF — 5 Moses Wright (6-9, 221, Soph., 5.6 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 0.7 apg)
C — 1 James Banks (6-8, 243, Jr., 10.2 ppg, 7.6 rpg, 1.3 apg, 2.4 bpg)
Stats To Watch
Field goal shooting: Georgia Tech is 1-13 when opposing teams shoot a better field-goal percentage.
GT trio: When Alvarado, Devoe and Banks all score in double figures, Georgia Tech has gone 4-2. The Yellow Jackets trio combined for 59 of the 81 points in the overtime win over Boston College.
70 points: Georgia Tech is 10-1 when it scores 70 or more points, 11-1 when leading with five minutes to play and 10-4 when leading at the half. However, Georgia Tech is 3-16 when scoring fewer than 70 points.
Game Within The Game: NC State's DJ Funderburk vs. Georgia Tech's James Banks
NC State offered James Banks when he played for La Lumiere in La Porte, Ind., in the class of 2016, but didn’t get much traction.
The Atlanta area native was ranked No. 83 overall in the country by Rivals.com and picked Texas. The 6-8, 243-pounder first backed up 2017 first-round pick Jarrett Allen and then did the same with 2018 lottery pick Mohamed Bamba. He averaged just 1.6 points and 1.7 rebounds in 6.8 minutes per game for the Longhorns last year.
Banks transferred back home to Georgia Tech and was able to get a waiver from the NCAA to be immediately eligible. The change has been a welcome situation, and he’s averaging 10.2 points, 7.6 rebounds and 2.4 blocks in 29.9 minutes per game for the Yellow Jackets. He’s shooting 54.3 percent from the field. He has six double-doubles for points and rebounds this season, and even blocked seven shots against Clemson in a 65-42 loss Feb. 6.
Banks is fresh off of having 18 points and nine rebounds in the overtime win against Boston College. He also had a season-high 24 points and 11 rebounds in a 79-51 loss vs. Louisville on Jan. 19.
The slender 6-10, 210-pound Funderburk is giving up 33 pounds in the matchup against Banks. Funderburk will likely get to find soft spots when Georgia Tech plays zone. He’s averaging 8.9 points and 4.2 rebounds and shooting 55.5 percent from the field. He was a bright spot in the loss to Florida State on Saturday, scoring 18 points and grabbing nine boards before fouling out.
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