Three Takeaways From Georgia Tech's Loss to Notre Dame

Georgia Tech is now likely to finish in last place in the ACC

The slide continues for Georgia Tech Basketball and now they are likely heading for a last-place finish in the ACC. 

The Yellow Jackets lost their fourth straight game tonight when they went on the road and lost to Notre Dame. Georgia Tech was fighting to stay out of last place these past couple of weeks with games against Louisville and Notre Dame, but they lost them both and now they are staring a last-place finish right in the face. 

Tonight, rebounding, turnovers and an advantage in free throws gave the Fighting Irish the win. Notre Dame did not shoot particularly well, but they found a way to get the win at home. 

 So what are the key takeaways from tonight's loss?

1. A last-place finish in the ACC is starting to look probable

A couple of weeks ago I wrote that while a lot of things have gone wrong for Georiga Tech this season, if they beat Louisville and Notre Dame, they would likely avoid a last-place finish in the ACC and find a more favorable matchup in the ACC Tournament in the first round. 

That is not what happened though. 

Georgia Tech lost on the road to both Louisville and Notre Dame and while they could surprise some teams down the stretch, they appear to be looking at a last-place finish. 

Nobody expected Georgia Tech to be an ACC contender in year one under Damon Stoudamire, but finishing in last place was also not expected. 

2. Ibrahima Sacko played his best game of the season

Sacko has not come along as fast as the other freshman on this team, but he showed some promise tonight and hopefully, it is something he can build off of the rest of the year. 

He scored 13 points on 6-8 shooting, pulled in four rebounds, and had a block. Sacko doubled his career-high in points tonight and looked comfortable on offense. The freshman for Georgia Tech this season have been a bright spot and Sacko could be emerging here at the end of the year. 

3. The Yellow Jackets let this game get away

Georgia Tech guard Miles Kelly vs Notre Dame / Georgia Tech Athletics

Notre Dame spent more time trailing in this game than they did leading it and it would be another single-digit ACC loss for Georgia Tech, which they have had plenty of those this season. 

You can point to several things that cost Georgia Tech in this game. The offense could not finish the Fighting Irish off, Notre Dame held a free-throw advantage over Georgia Tech, and they outrebounded Georgia Tech, but the Yellow Jackets' offensive numbers were better than theirs. They just let the game get away from them in the end because of the mistakes. That has been a theme of the season and it continued. 

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