The Flats – True Rookie Point Guard nathan george A left-handed dry-up over 6-foot-11 All-American Armando Bacot with 7.7 seconds left gave Georgia Tech men's basketball a historic 74-73 victory over No. 3 North Carolina on Tuesday night at a packed McAmish. led to. Pavilion.
Georgia Tech, which trailed by as many as 11 points in the first half and led by as many as eight in the final five minutes, trailed at 73 after North Carolina's RJ Davis scored a driving layup to end UNC's 13-4 run. He was behind at 72. My goal with 34.6 seconds left.
But then, as the Yellow Jackets gained possession, George drove from the right side to the left block and floated the go-getter over Bacot's long reach and high on the glass, giving Tech a 74-73 advantage. .
After a UNC timeout with 4.6 seconds left, the Tar Heels went to Davis again, but Davis was unable to evade Tech's attack. Miles Kelly And his contested running jumper from the left block went wide at the buzzer, sparking a court-storming celebration for the Thriller Dome crowd.
The win marks Georgia Tech's first win over a top-three opponent in about 19 years, since a 78-75 victory over No. 3 North Carolina in the 2005 ACC Tournament semifinals (March 12, 2005). It was a victory. It was also the Yellow Jackets' first regular-season win over a top-three team since March 3, 2004, when they won 76-68 against No. 3 Duke. It was the first time in 30 years. It dates back to January 12, 1994, when they lost 89-69 to top-ranked UNC at Alexander Memorial Coliseum.
What made Tech's win over the No. 3 Tar Heels even more impressive was that the Jackets played the final 36 minutes without their second-leading scorer and leading rebounder, an ACC Freshman of the Year candidate. was to play. Baye Ndongo, was forced to leave the game with a head injury before the first media timeout. Despite being without Ndongo for much of the game, the Jackets (10-11, 3-7 ACC) won for the second time in their last 10 games, ending North Carolina's winning streak at 10. It was a win over UNC (17-7). 4, 9-1 ACC) first conference loss of the season.
Several Yellow Jackets played in Ndongo's absence, but none more so than the fifth-year senior. Kyle Sturdivantcame off the bench and scored 18 points on 6-of-10 shooting, including 4-of-4 from 3-point range. Sturdivant's 18 points were the most in a home game in his four-year career at Georgia Tech (Sturdivant, an Atlanta native, committed to Tech after his freshman season at USC). transferred).
Winner George scored 16 points and Kelly added 15 points to round out the three Yellowjackets with double-digit scorers. Tizuan Claudeplayed 28 minutes (11 minutes more than his season average of 16.9 minutes per game), and Tafala Ngapareplayed 25 games (10 more than his 14.9 average) and grabbed eight rebounds each, helping to fill the void left by Ndongo.
Tech trailed by as many as 11 points late in the first half, but opened with a 12-1 run and the game went into halftime tied at 37-37.
For the Tar Heels, Davis led UNC with 28 points and Harrison Ingram had 13 rebounds.
Georgia Tech resumes play Saturday at North Carolina State. Tipov is set for 5:30 p.m., and the fight will be televised nationally on The CW (Peachtree TV – Ch. 17 in Atlanta).
