Georgia Tech’s first look under Scott Cross did not produce the kind of bounce-back moment the Yellow Jackets were hoping for. In an exhibition against Providence, Tech was buried 101-73, and the problems showed up early enough to make the rest of the afternoon feel like an uphill climb.
The opening half was more messy than disastrous, but it never looked clean. Georgia Tech shot just 35% from the floor, hit only 31% from beyond the arc, and went 1-for-6 at the free-throw line before halftime. The Yellow Jackets also coughed it up 10 times and were beaten on the glass 23-15, a combination that left them chasing the game without much rhythm.
Colby Garland paced Georgia Tech early with seven points on a perfect 3-for-3 shooting line. Nasir Whitlock added four points, and Tylis Jordan finished with five. Even with those contributions, nobody seized control of the offense, and that remains a real concern heading toward the season.
The turnover battle was the most glaring issue of the day. Georgia Tech finished with 17 giveaways, and Providence turned those mistakes into 23 points.
The Yellow Jackets did force 13 turnovers, but that only became six points on the other end. For a team that is going to need discipline and ball security to survive in the ACC, that margin is too costly.
If there was a bright spot, it came from Kam Craft. The veteran sharpshooter looked the part, scoring 17 points and knocking down five of his nine three-point attempts in 31 minutes. For a Georgia Tech team that will lean on him for veteran production on the perimeter, that was at least a promising sign.
Still, the overall shooting numbers were not far apart, even if Providence took seven more shots. The real separator was the line.
Georgia Tech went 6-for-15 at the free-throw stripe, leaving nine points on the board. Combined with the turnovers, it was the kind of self-inflicted performance that can sink this group quickly if it carries into the regular season.
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The Eagles kept hammering away until the Yellow Jackets had no good answer, and the defenses issues against the run were only part of the problem. Georgia Techs offense had its own frustrations with dropped passes and limited rushing production, leaving too little margin to recover from the early damage. On a disappointing afternoon, Tae Harris was one of the few steady pieces, a small bright spot in a game that otherwise brought back an old concern fans hoped had been left behind. [Read more 🡒]
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The turning point in the third quarter came when Boston College cashed in on a short field after a Mendoza interception, a sequence that helped the visitors widen the gap at a key moment. By the time the quarter ended, Georgia Tech was still chasing and needed a response in the fourth to avoid letting a winnable home game slip further away. [Read more 🡒]