Georgia Tech was able to fend off a late run by Notre Dame on Tuesday night, taking down the Irish 63-61.
Georgia Tech was on a mission to end their two-game losing streak on Tuesday night against Notre Dame and got the job done. The Jackets were bolstered pregame with Jose Alvarado and Abdoulaye Gueye being cleared to play in the ACC matchup between two teams looking to get back into the win column.
The Yellow Jackets got out to a quick lead against the Irish, at one point having an nice 13-4 lead. The Irish however would end the first half on a strong run, making it a 30-28 game at halftime. The second half proved to be a back-and-forth affair, which saw the two teams battle for the lead until just about the 10-minute market when the Jackets took the lead for good. With under five to go the Jackets had a nine-point lead but held off a late surge by the Irish and some sloppy plays to hold onto a 63-61 victory.
The Yellow Jackets had four players on Tuesday night score double-digit points with Jose Alvarado and James Banks leading the way with 16 points each, Banks added in 10 rebounds in his effort. Abdoulaye Gueye and Michael Devoe had 13 and 11 points respectively as well. The Jackets in the 63-61 only used two players off the bench, those being Khalid Moore and Moses Wright. Moore finished with seven points off the bench.
Notre Dame had their fair share of strong efforts in the hard-fought affair, junior forward John Mooney who we highlighted in the game preview finished with an outstanding 22-point, 14-rebound night, adding another double-double to his stat sheet. Overall, the Irish shot poorly against the Jackets suffocating defense, shooting just 32.3% from the field, and 23.3% from beyond the arch. The Jackets for a comparison shot 46.2% for the night but didn’t fare too much better from long distance, connecting on just over 26% of their opportunities.
Overall, the win moves the Jackets record to 11-8 on the season and 3-3 in conference play, placing them 8th in the ACC. Notre Dame is now 11-8 for themselves and 1-5 in conference play, putting them dead last in the ACC. Four teams in the ACC currently sit with 1-4 records