Jackets rally to beat Eagles with Devoe’s big day
Michael Devoe scored 15 of his game-high 26 points in the second half as Georgia Tech held on for 61-59 victory over visiting Georgia Southern in a nonconference win Friday in Atlanta.
Devoe, who missed Monday’s victory over Charleston Southern with the flu, was a game-time decision on Friday. But the standout guard who entered the contest averaging 22.8 points and five assists per game led the Yellow Jackets’ second-half comeback from a 12-point halftime deficit.
After Devoe’s free throw gave the Yellow Jackets (5-1) a 61-59 lead with seven seconds remaining, the Eagles’ Elijah McCadden missed a 3-pointer with two seconds remaining and Jordan Usher secured the rebound for Georgia Tech.
Devoe finished the game 8-for-16 from the floor, including 5-for-9 from 3-point range, while Kyle Sturdivant had 11 points and five rebounds for the Yellow Jackets.
Georgia Tech, which also got 10 points and six rebounds from Rodney Howard, scored 28 points off 16 Eagle turnovers. Usher added nine points and a game-high 10 rebounds,
Georgia Tech shot 41.2 percent (21-for-51) from the field, including 7-for-20 (35 percent) from 3-point range, but it went just 12-for-24 from the free-throw line.
The Yellow Jackets made their final push after Georgia Southern (4-2) tied the game at 50 with 8:25 left. Devoe’s 3-pointer on the ensuing possession sparked a 9-2 run that culminated with Devoe’s two free throws with 3:20 left.
Trailing 39-27 at halftime, the Yellow Jackets opened the second half on a 16-3 run to take a 43-42 lead on Devoe’s steal-andlayup with 13:15 remaining.
Cam Bryant and McCadden each had 14 points and seven rebounds for Georgia Southern, while Kamari Brown added 13 points and six rebounds.
The Eagles shot 42.1 percent (25-for-57) from the floor and 26.3 percent (5-for-19) from 3-point range. But the Eagles’ undoing was at the free-throw line, where they went just 6-for-13.
Georgia Southern dominated the first half en route to a 39-27 lead.
Bryant and Brown each scored 11 points for the Eagles, who shot 55.2 percent (16-for-29) from the field and 40 percent (4-for-10) from beyond the arc.
Georgia Tech shot 34.6 percent (9-for-26) from the field and 40 percent (4-for10 from 3-point range.