Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets: 17-14, 8-10 in the ACC
Head coach: Josh Pastner (1st season)
Players to watch: Josh Okogie (15.5 PPG, 5.1 RPG); Ben Lammers (14.6 PPG, 9.2 RPG); Quinton Stephens (9.7 PPG, 7.5 RPG)
Season recap: With many expecting the Yellow Jackets to be a laughingstock in Josh Pastner's first season, the former Memphis head coach shocked the college basketball world en route to ACC Coach of the Year honors. Led by standout freshman Josh Okogie, Georgia Tech put early-season home setbacks against Ohio and Georgia in the rearview mirror, upsetting North Carolina in its ACC opener led by Okogie's 26 points.
Despite an ugly 53-point loss at Duke, the Yellow Jackets were smelling an upset again just a few weeks later, dominating Florida State 78-56 led by Okogie's monstrous 35-point, 14-rebound effort. Additional wins against Notre Dame and Syracuse were enough to put Georgia Tech on the NCAA tournament bubble, but the team dropped six of its last nine—including a potentially costly two-point loss at home to N.C. State—to fall to the No. 11 seed in the ACC tournament.
Although the Yellow Jackets have shown great promise, they likely need at least two wins this week in New York if they want to make the Big Dance.
How they make a run: Okogie performs well under the bright lights, with big man Ben Lammers also making his presence felt on both ends to lead Georgia Tech past Pittsburgh and to upsets against Virginia and Notre Dame en route to the conference tournament semifinals.
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Digital Strategy Director for Vol. 115, Michael was previously Sports Editor for Vol. 114 and Assistant Blue Zone Editor for Vol. 113. Michael is a senior majoring in Statistical Science and is interested in data analytics and using data to make insights.