The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Depleated Jackets hammered at McCamish by Louisville
Georgia Tech lost Saturday to Louisville, which was predictable. The Yellow Jackets were without valuable point guard Jose Alvarado, key forward AbdoulayeGueye and sixth man Brandon Alston, out because of, respectively, a groin injury, an unspecifified medical condition and a personal matter.
But themanner in which the Jacketswere overrun by the Cardinals at McCamish Pavilion in a 79-51 defeat providedthe fifirst glimpse at the bumpy road that Tech could be traveling for the duration of the aforementioned trio’s absence.
It was Gueye andAlston’s second consecutive game missed and the first for Alvarado.
In the fifirst half, when the game was decided, Tech (10-8, 2-3 ACC) had difficulty creating open shots andwas reduced to a series of attempts thatwere either forced or challenged.
The Jackets could have used Alvarado, their leading scorer and primary ballhandler, to hit shots, lead the break and set up teammates for open looks.
That much was clear in the way that the Jackets had trouble moving the ball effffffffffffectively and taking smart shots in the fifirst half, not getting into double digits until their 28th possession, by which point Louisville had scored 39 points.
The scoring punch that Alston(9.6pointsper game) can provide was likewise missed in a game in which the Jackets didn’t score their fifirst 3- pointer until the sixth minute of the second half, at which point they’dmissed their fifirst six.
Tech functioned better on offffffffffffense in the second half, as the Jackets moved without the ball better and shot 50 percent from the
fifield and scored 35 points after managing just 16 in the first half, the fewest that Tech has scored in a
half this season. An optimist would take hope in the performance after halftime. A cynic would suggest that Louisville was not as interested in defending after taking a 27-point halftime lead.
Forward James Banks led the Jackets with a careerhigh 24 points, 15 of them in the second half. Guard Michael Devoe was next with eight points.
On defense, the Jackets missed Gueye, a long post defender who challenges shots and goes hard to the glass.
Without Gueye, Louisville had plenty of success
scoring at the basket and on offffffffffffensive rebounds.
Tech’s 28-point margin of defeat was the widest in a home loss in coach Josh Pastner’s tenure, according to sports-reference.com. Louisville (13-5, 3-1) shot 47 percent from the fifield.
The Cardinals were led by forward Jordan Nwora, who dropped 25 on the Jackets, 21 of them in the fifirst half.
Tech plays Notre Dame at home Tuesday, followed by a visit to No. 1 Duke on Saturday, a home game against No. 13 North Carolina the following Tuesday and then a trip to No. 11 Florida State on Feb. 2.
The forecast for all three players is uncertain. Pastner has declined to provide a possible return date for Alvarado, noting that groin-muscle injuries can be tricky and sometimes take a long time to heal.
He has been vague on the nature of Gueye’s injury — it was uncovered by testing that he underwent after suffffffffffffering muscle cramps in consecutive games, and the teammedical staffff has since ruled him out of practice and games — and said that it could be season-ending.
Pastner said that Alston is considered day-to-day. He played against Syracuse on Jan. 12, but was not with the team for the past two games and is not practicing, either.
Together, the three average a total of 28.8 points out of the 70.6 that the Jackets averaged before Saturday’s game.