2017 ACC Tournament: Georgia Tech’s season ends with first round loss to Pitt

By Carmine Carcieri | Mar 7, 2017

Mar 7, 2017; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets forward Quinton Stephens (12) defends Pittsburgh Panthers forward Jamel Artis (1) during the first half during the ACC Conference Tournament at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Anthony Gruppuso-USA TODAY Sports /

In a low scoring affair, Pittsburgh busted Georgia Tech’s bubble in the first round of the 2017 ACC Tournament.

After firing Brian Gregory and losing four starters off their 2015-16 team, Josh Pastner’s Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets were picked to finish 14th in the ACC by the coaches in the preseason and some predicted the team to go winless in league play.

Related Story: Five bold predictions for the ACC Tournament

Instead, the Yellow Jackets defeated North Carolina, Notre Dame, Florida State and VCU and entered the ACC Tournament with a chance to earn an at-large bid to the Big Dance.

While Pastner overachieved and had a tremendous first year, the hopes and dreams of making the NCAA Tournament are over as the Yellow Jackets were downed in the opening round of the ACC Tournament by the 14th seeded Pittsburgh Panthers, 61-59, on Tuesday evening at the Barclays Center.

“Our young men have given us everything they’ve had,” Pastner said in his postgame press conference. “It’s a tough loss but I’m really proud of our young men. I still believe eight wins in this league deserves to be in the NCAA Tournament. This is the best league in the country, however, I know it could be still a long shot but we’re going to keep our fingers crossed.”

Georgia Tech just couldn’t muster enough offense to overcome Pittsburgh’s much-improved balanced attack. Their leading scorer, Josh Okogie, scored 15 points but was scoreless in the opening half and picked up his fourth foul with eight minutes left in the game. Also, Ben Lammers, the team’s second-leading scorer, was held to just six points on 3-of-9 shooting.

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Quinton Stephens (16 points and 10 rebounds) and Tadric Jackson (17 points) kept the Yellow Jackets in the game with their three-point shooting and attacking mentality respectively, but the team shot just 22 percent from beyond the arc and missed six free throws (65 percent).

They also had just nine assists on 22 made field goals and received zero points from their thin bench.

“Basketball is a make or miss game and the three-point shot can change the dynamics of the game,” Pastner said. “That’s why I’ve been clear with everyone in Atlanta that we have to get shooting. It’s the difference maker, it’s the equalizer. It will open things up for us offensively to spread the floor.

“As we moved on this year, it was hard to find openings. The amount of packing in that teams did on us, I have probably never seen it this packed in on team’s that I’ve coached or even seen. It’s just abnormal.”

The Panthers contributed to GT’s loss, though, as they played with the urgency and toughness from a team that features four seniors. They missed critical free throws, turned the ball over and gave up offensive rebounds down the stretch (they gave GT numerous opportunities to win the game in the final minute), but Pitt’s two biggest weaknesses during the regular season were strengths on Tuesday evening.

The Panthers gave up just 59 points, showing more energy and aggressiveness on the defensive end, and they had two players, in addition to Jamel Artis and Michael Young, score in double figures. Sheldon Jeter was particularly impactful as he scored 14 points on 6-of-11 shooting, grabbed eight rebounds and did a solid job on Lammers in the painted area.

Maybe it was the urgency of this possibly being the seniors last go-round. Or maybe the team is coming together at the right time and is ready to make a run over the next few days.

“I thought we were more together as a basketball team than we have been in a while,” Kevin Stallings said after the win.

Pittsburgh will prep for their quarterfinal game against Virginia on Wednesday evening while Georgia Tech will have to settle for an NIT berth.

Next: Five bold predictions for the ACC Tournament

Despite finishing 8-10 in league play and recording multiple quality wins, the Yellow Jackets have 15 losses overall and don’t have any more opportunities to impress the NCAA Selection Committee. Their youth and inability to score consistently came back to haunt them, but the Yellow Jackets are certainly moving in the right direction under Pastner.

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