Georgia Tech Basketball Loses 72-71 in Overtime To Notre Dame

Head coach Josh Pastner went with his seventh different starting lineup combination by starting Miles Kelly, Lance Terry, Deebo Coleman, Rodney Howard, and Franklin. 

The Yellow Jackets jumped out to a 9-2 lead in the first three minutes of the game, but Notre Dame would battle back to make it an 11-10 game. Both offenses struggled in the early going of this one, but Deivon Smith would come off the bench after Notre Dame took the lead and he led the way for the rest of the half for Georgia Tech. 

The two teams battled back and forth for the rest of the first half and Georgia Tech appeared to be heading to halftime with a 29-27 lead, but a long Notre Dame three-pointer at the buzzer gave the Fighting Irish a 30-29 lead. 

It was a frustrating first half shooting the ball for Georgia Tech (which is nothing new). The Yellow Jackets shot 38% from the floor and 27% from three-point range and committed six turnovers, which led to nine Notre Dame points. Tech outrebounded Notre Dame 19-18 and Smith led the way with eight points. 

Notre Dame shot 36% from the field and 44% from three-point range in the first half and committed seven turnovers. 

Notre Dame started off the 2nd half with and 11-3 run to take a 41-32 lead with 16:06 remaining in the game and all of the momentum was on the side of the Fighting Irish. A quick 6-0 run in the next couple of minutes cut the lead to three points and the teams would exchange baskets until Georgia Tech got hot from the outside. 

A three from Tristan Maxwell and then Kelly gave Georgia Tech a 49-46 lead and then Franklin made a layup to make it 51-46. It seemed things were trending the right way for Georgia Tech to get its first-ever win in Purcell Pavillion. 

Notre Dame got on a quick 8-0 run to take the lead back at 54-51, but the Yellow Jackets responded with a 12-2 run of their own and led 63-56 with 3:45 to go. 

Notre Dame hit a quick shot followed by two free throws from Terry to make it 65-58 with 2:31 to go in the ball game. A layup and a pair of free throws cut the lead to 65-62 and then with less than a minute to go, Trey Wertz hit a three for Notre Dame to tie the game. A shot clock violation would follow for Georgia Tech, but Notre Dame did nothing on its final possession and we were heading to overtime. 

Sturdivant started out great in the overtime period. A two-pointer made it 67-65 in favor of Georgia Tech before Notre Dame took the lead back with a three-pointer. Sturdivant would respond with a three of his own and Georgia Tech led 70-68. 

With less than a minute to go, Wertz hit another clutch three for Notre Dame to take the lead. Sturdivant would hit two free throws to take back the lead 72-71. A foul on Georgia Tech would give Notre Dame a chance to take the lead with free throws and they nailed them both to take the lead 73-72. 

Sturdivant had a clean look at the basket at the end of the game, but his three-pointer would not fall and Georgia Tech lost the game 73-72 and fell to 1-5 in ACC play. 

For the game, the Yellow Jackets shot 41% from the field and 30% from three-point range. They won the rebound advantage 42-33 but committed 14 turnovers, which is a big issue for this team. Tech did have 17 points off of 14 Notre Dame turnovers. 

Sturdivant led the way with 18 points, Franklin had a double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds, and Smith finished with 16 points. 

Notre Dame shot 42% from the field and 38% from three-point range. They had 18 points off of 14 Georgia Tech turnovers. 

Georgia Tech is now 8-8 and 1-5 in ACC play. The Yellow Jackets return home to play Pitt, who is currently 11-5 and 4-1 in the ACC. That game will tip off at 3:00 p.m. in McCamish Pavillion. 

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