Wright, Banks lead Jackets past BC

CHESTNUT HILL, MASS. — On a night when the offense took time to get going, Georgia

Tech relied on its defense to secure a vital road win over Boston College.

The Yellow Jackets took advantage of an Eagles team thinned by injury in a 71-52 win Saturday night at the Conte Forum. Boston College shot 29.8% from the field and could do little against the formidable pairing of center James Banks and forward Moses Wright and Tech’s zone defense. It was Tech’s second-best defen- sive field-goal performance of the season.

The Eagles scored 18 points in the paint — they had aver- aged 26 in the previous five games — as Banks and Wright challenged and blocked shots in the lane.

Tech’s defensive might led the way to scoring opportunities and better play on the offensive end. The Jackets (8-8, 3-3 ACC) shot 50.9% from the field, well above Boston College’s season average of 40.9%.

It was Tech’s largest margin of victory in an ACC road game during coach Josh Pastner’s tenure.

Banks, showing the play that earned him a spot on the ACC’s all-defense team last season, scored 13 to go with five rebounds and four blocks.

Wright continued his strong run, collecting 18 points and 10 rebounds for his sixth double-double of the season. Wing player Jordan Usher, in one of his better games of the season, added an energetic 13 points to go with six rebounds and two assists.

With the win, Tech won its third ACC road game in four attempts this season, following wins at N.C. State and North Carolina. The Jackets last won three ACC road games in the 2015-16 season, former coach Brian Gregory’s last team.

The last time Tech won more t han three league games on the road was the 2007-08 season, when the Jackets were 4-4 in ACC road games.

Tech took the floor of the Conte Forum three days after one of its top performances of the season, when the Jack- ets were within one possession of No. 2 Duke with three minutes to play before faltering.

Against Duke, Tech con- trolled the glass and played with exceptional effort, but was done in again by 17 turnovers and an empty gas tank, as the Jackets missed their final 11 shots from the field in the 73-64 loss.

Saturday was a test of the Jackets’ commitment to continuing to play at that level or even higher against a Boston College team that, perhaps to Tech’s dismay, excels at creating turnovers. The Eagles (9-7, 3-2) were with- out leading scorer Derryck Thornton (ankle) and No. 3 scorer Nik Popovic (back).

Tech did better with the ball, turning the ball over 15 times while handing out 18 assists, but its defense showed the way, overpowering an Eagles team that had difficulty generating offense without Thornton and Popovic.

The Jackets took control of the game late in the first half, pushing a 19-16 lead with 4:25 to go to 31-23 at the half. Banks scored eight of the 12 points.