AROUND THE ACC

This time two years ago, Georgia Tech was in the hunt for an ACC regular-season title. This year, the Yellow Jackets are still searching for their third win against a conference opponent and have lost seven straight games in the ACC. And with remaining contests against three of the league's top four teams, it is not going to get any easier for the struggling Yellow Jackets. "We're obviously trying to stay as upbeat as possible-that's the only choice we have," head coach Paul Hewitt said. "Are we disappointed? Absolutely we're disappointed. Should we be playing better? No question." If there is any consolation for Georgia Tech, it's that the team is very young. Twelve of the 14 players on the Yellow Jacket's roster are either freshmen or sophomores. And they seem to be maturing, as the team has started to play more competitively against its conference foes. Georgia Tech came up just short against Boston College Jan. 29 and Virginia Tech Jan. 31, falling to the Eagles by two points and to the Hokies by one. Of the Yellow Jacket's young players, sophomore forward Ra'Sean Dickey has recently emerged as the team's greatest offensive threat. Dickey is averaging 14.6 points and 7.8 rebounds in the last eight games while shooting 60-percent from the field over the course of the season. "He still does have some things to work on.... He'll be the first to tell you that," Hewitt said of Dickey. "But he's just more prepared for what each opponent's going to try to do, and I think that's why you've seen his stats improve in the last few games." One of the criticisms of Dickey's play since high school, however, is his tendency not to show up for every game. "I think Ra'Sean is a bright enough kid to see that he needs to become more consistent," Hewitt said. "At the same time, he's a young player with an awful lot of talent. Again you see improvement and you see him getting better. He's taking care of the ball better. Over the last eight to 10 ball games, I think he's done a nice job."