ACC Basketball: 2020-21 power rankings after non-conference play
436. . 4-3 (0-1). . Yellow Jackets . 10. team
No projected contending team had a rougher opening week to the season that Georgia Tech, who started out with back-to-back losses to Georgia State and Mercer. The former came in an epic four-overtime battle, with the Yellow Jackets falling 123-120. The saving grace for this team from a Bracketology standpoint is that both of those mid-majors are a combined 13-2 on the season and should finish near the top of the Sun Belt and Southern Conference respectively.
What’s hurting the Yellow Jackets right now is the lack of any meaningful wins. They got the unlucky draw of Nebraska, the lone team that doesn’t look good in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge, and were down to them in the second half. And the victory over Kentucky currently means nothing, as the Wildcats are 1-6 on the season.
Georgia Tech has an outstanding offense, led by big man Moses Wright. The breakout frontcourt player leads the team with 19.6 ppg and 7.4 rpg and went for 31 points and 19 rebounds against Georgia State, along with 24 and 7 over Kentucky. Guards Jose Alvarado and Michael Devoe look all-conference good, while Jordan Usher and Bubba Parham are also double-digit scorers.
The Yellow Jackets have a rather easy stretch of games in January, with no ranked opponents. They’ll need to win the vast majority to start filling out their resume, starting with North Carolina. We’ll see if the defense has improved enough to win.