Preview: Georgia Tech Basketball vs Notre Dame

Can Georgia Tech basketball win its rematch with Notre Dame?

Jackson Caudell | Feb 7, 2023

In this story:

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets

If Georgia Tech wants to win another ACC game this season, Wednesday's contest with Notre Dame might be their best shot.

The Yellow Jackets battled with the Fighting Irish in South Bend nearly a month ago and Notre Dame was able to come away with a win. Georgia Tech led by seven points with 2:31 to go in their first matchup, but the Yellow Jackets let that lead slip away and Notre Dame walked away with a win.

Tech (8-15, 1-12 ACC) looks to snap its current nine-game losing streak in Wednesday’s game against the Irish. After two dreadful performances against Duke and Louisville, the Yellow Jackets showed some heart against NC State this past Saturday and led for a lot of the game. The offense cooled down the stretch and the Wolfpack were able to survive the upset bid, however.

Notre Dame (10-13, 2-10 ACC) comes to Atlanta following an 81-64 homecourt loss to Wake Forest and has lost five of its last six games since its win over the Yellow Jackets. The one win was a 76-62 decision at home over Louisville. The Fighting Irish, 0-5 on the road this season, also has four ACC losses of seven points or fewer.

Kyle Sturdivant played well in the first matchup against Notre Dame / Georgia Tech Athletics

Notre Dame comes into this game and doesn't have a particularly good offense or defense. The Fighting Irish rank 10th in the ACC in offense and 12th in defense. They are 8th in the ACC in team field goal percentage and dead last in opponent field goal percentage. They are one of the worst rebounding teams in the ACC and one of the worst at defending the three-point shot. This is an opponent that is beatable, but Georgia Tech is going to have to play much better than it has in recent weeks.

The nine meetings between Tech and Notre Dame at McCamish Pavilion have been decided by a total of 26 points, with neither team winning by more than five points (the first one, won by Notre Dame, 74-69 in 2014). Tech is No. 2 in the ACC in three-point defense and is 48th nationally, allowing 30.9 percent from distance. Tech is also No. 2 in the ACC in bench scoring, its reserves contributing 20.1 points per game this season. The bench has provided 30 or more points six times this season and has outscored its opponents’ reserves in 12 of 23 games. Tech led the conference all season until Saturday when its reserves did not score at NC State (Per Georgia Tech PR).

The offense seemed to play better in the last game against NC State with the return of guard Lance Terry to the lineup. Terry, who has averaged 9.3 points and made 34.4 percent of his threes in ACC games, returned from a four-game injury absence to play 38 minutes against NC State, scoring 10 points. Tech had connected on 25.2 percent of its threes and averaged just 53.8 points across those four games, and improved to 64 points and 8-of-24 on threes against the Wolfpack with Terry on the floor (Per Georgia Tech PR).

The guy that led the Yellow Jackets in the last matchup was point guard Kyle Sturdivant. Sturdivant played perhaps his best game of the season and posted 18 points on 7-of-12 shooting with a pair of threes. Sturdivant scored all of his points after halftime, including all seven of the Yellow Jackets’ points in the overtime period (Per Georgia Tech PR).

Notre Dame has won seven of the last eight meetings to take a 15-12 lead in the all-time series. Georgia Tech’s only win was an 82-80 win on Feb. 6, 2021, at McCamish Pavilion. The Fighting Irish won the teams’ initial meeting this season, 73-72 in overtime on Jan. 10 in Atlanta. They swept the regular season series in 2019-20 and 2021-22 and had won the last two meetings of 2018-19, the final regular season contest, and an ACC Tournament meeting.

The Yellow Jackets are 6-13 against Notre Dame since the Fighting Irish joined the ACC. The first 17 meetings were decided by a total of 88 points, and the widest margin of victory was 10 points by Notre Dame on Feb. 10, 2019 before the Fighting Irish scored a 34-point win (90-56) on Feb. 26 2022 in South Bend. True to form, the teams played their fourth overtime game in the most recent meeting earlier this season (Per Georgia Tech PR).

This is potentially the last game Georgia Tech plays against Notre Dame with Fighting Irish head coach Mike Brey leading the team. Brey is set to retire at the end of the season.

Georgia Tech has utilized 11 different starting lineups total this season. Nine Yellow Jackets have started at least two games this season, eight have started at least nine games, nine have started at least one ACC game, and none have started every game.

Tech has averaged 24.4 three-point attempts in ACC games, trying at least 20 in every game except Virginia (16). The Jackets are fourth in the ACC in the highest 3PA/FGA rate (40.9 percent according to KenPom) and sixth in the average number of attempts over the entire season (22.2). Tech’s 44.1-percent success rate from the floor was its best since it connected on 44.4 percent against Virginia on Dec. 31, a span of 10 games. Its 33.3-percent conversion on three-pointers (8-of-24) was the Jackets’ best since Jan. 14 vs. Pitt (41.4 pct., 12-of-29). Still, Tech has made just 30 percent of its threes in ACC play, and 24.3 percent over its last six games (Per Georgia Tech PR)

Tech is 6-1 this season when scoring 70 or more points (1-0 in the ACC), 2-14 when failing to reach 70. The Jackets have reached 70 points in ACC play only against Miami and Notre Dame. Tech went 4-for-6 from the foul line at NC State and has hit just 39-of-68 over its previous seven games. The Jackets have scored 14.6 percent of their points from the foul line this season, last in the ACC (Per Georgia Tech PR).

Notre Dame is ranked 170th in the KenPom ratings and Georgia Tech is ranked 208th.

How To Watch Georgia Tech vs Notre Dame

Who: Georgia Tech vs Notre Dame

When: 7:00 p.m., Wednesday

Where: McCamish Pavillion

TV: ACC Regional Sports Network

Live Stream: FuboTV (Start your free trial)

Radio: Georgia Tech Sports Network by Legends Sports (In Atlanta: 680 AM/93.7 FM | SiriusXM ch. 121 or 194, SXM app 956 | Listen Online | Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets App | TuneIn

Play-by-Play: Andy Demetra | Analyst: Randy Waters

Prediction

Ja'von Franklin — Can Georgia Tech earn its second ACC win of the season? / Georgia Tech Athletics

These two teams played a close game the last time they met and neither of them is very good. Tech is desperate for a win and there is a lot of uncertainty about the future of head coach Josh Pastner. This is one of the best shots that Tech has to get another ACC win (the other being a home game against Louisville) and I do expect them to give maximum effort and eke out a win at home.

Final Score: Georgia Tech 74, Notre Dame 70

Facebook: All Yellow Jackets

Twitter: @AllYellowJacket

Follow Jackson on Twitter: @jacksoncaudell

Follow Madison on Twitter: @Madison_Meyers7

Follow Matthew on Twitter: @kistner__

See all of the latest Tech News at AllYellowJackets.com

Check out the Georgia Tech Homepage

Listen to the Goal Line Stand Podcast for the best Georgia Tech and national college football coverage!

How To Watch Georgia Tech vs Notre Dame

Prediction

More Georgia Tech Related Content: