Tech falls short against Miami in ACC play

Gregory’s five-year tenure.

Marcus Georges-Hunt scored 19 points to lead the Yellow Jackets before a sparse crown at McCamish Pavilion.

Miami made nine straight free throws in the final minute to seal their second ACC road win.

“Every time you win on the road in the ACC, it’s a good win,” McClellan said. “No matter who it’s against.”

The margin was never more than seven points, but Miami tenaciously led throughout the second half after being up 33-32 at the break.

The Yellow Jackets came in as one of the nation’s top rebounding teams, but Miami held its own in the lane. Georgia Tech managed just a 31-30 edge on the boards and got little production out of its big men, tumbling to its sixth loss in seven games. Nick Jacobs and Charles Mitchell were held to eight points apiece.

Davon Reed had 15 points for Miami, while Newton finished with 14 and Kamari Murphy chipped in 10. The Hurricanes connected on 15 of 21 at the free throw line, making all but two of 14 attempts in the second half.

McClellan kept up his trend of getting stronger as the game goes on, scoring 13 points over the final 20 minutes.

Unselfish star

McClellan is Miami’s undisputed leader, but he sure doesn’t act like it.

The senior guard took only nine shots, fewer than two of his teammates. He made seven.

“He just doesn’t know how good he is,” Larranaga said. “If I shot as well as him, I’d take 20 shots.”

Post drought

Georgia Tech went more than 21 minutes without getting a basket from any of its post players. After Mitchell made a jumper with 5:24 remaining in the first half, the big men were shut down until Ben Lammers banked in a shot with 3:53 left in the game.

Jacobs took only one shot in the second half. It missed.

Mitchell was kicking himself for managing only two rebounds.

“That’s terrible,” he said.

Tip-ins

Miami: McClellan came into the game ranked eighth nationally in shooting percentage (.527) among guards, and he improved on that with his 7-of-9 performance. ... The Hurricanes moved to 12-8 in their series against Georgia Tech and 5-2 under Larranaga. ... Point guard Angel Rodriguez has 23 assists and just three turnovers over the past three games.

Georgia Tech: Dropped to 1-5 against ranked teams this season. ... Made only 9 of 16 free throws, including a crucial miss by Tadric Jackson on the front end of a 1-and-1 with 1:07 remaining. ... The Yellow Jackets had been outrebounding their opponents by an average of 7.6 per game, ranking third in the ACC. ... Adam Smith scored 14 points and Jackson added 13.

Up next

Miami hosts Pittsburgh on Tuesday.

Georgia Tech hosts Wake Forest on Wednesday.