 was playing one day after moving up a spot in the Top 25 to earn its first top-five ranking since the 2007-08 season. After the Yellow Jackets made the game's first basket, Tennessee scored the next seven points and stayed in control the rest of the way.Georgia Tech (1-1) shot just 27.6 percent from the field - its lowest mark since Josh Pastner took over as coach in 2016. The Yellow Jackets had nearly twice as many fouls (30) as baskets (16).The Yellow Jackets missed 15 straight shots during one stretch, including their first 11 attempts of the second half. They didn't make their first second-half basket until Jose Alvarado sank a 3-pointer with 12:12 left.Georgia Tech still managed to hang around and cut Tennessee's lead to 45-37 on another basket by Alvarado with 10:08 remaining, but the Volunteers responded with seven straight points.Jordan Bone had 15 points and Kyle Alexander added 12 for Tennessee. Brandon Alston led Georgia Tech with 16.Tennessee's defense enabled the Vols to win on a night when they shot just 39.6 percent (19 of 48) from the field and 63.2 percent (24 of 38) at the foul line.Georgia Tech received some good news earlier in the day as the NCAA granted a waiver allowing Texas transfer James Banks III to play immediately for the Yellow Jackets rather than sitting out the season. Banks had five points and seven rebounds in 16 minutes before fouling out.The game marked a return to Knoxville for Georgia Tech guard Shembari Phillips, who played two seasons at Tennessee before transferring. Phillips started and played 22 minutes but scored just two points.BIG PICTUREGeorgia Tech: The Yellow Jackets lacked the outside shooting that helped them beat Lamar 88-69 in their season opener. Georgia Tech shot just 3 of 19 from beyond the arc. Georgia Tech's 12 3-point baskets and 30 3-point attempts against Lamar were the most by the Yellow Jackets under Pastner.Tennessee: After winning its first two games by an average margin of 33.5 points, Tennessee passed a tougher test Tuesday before heading to the NIT Season Tip-Off next week in Brooklyn, New York. After facing Louisville in the first round of the NIT event, Tennessee will meet No. 2 Kansas or No. 24 Marquette.UP NEXTGeorgia Tech hosts East Carolina on Friday.Tennessee faces Louisville on Nov. 21 in the NIT Season Tip-Off in Brooklyn.---More college basketball: https://apnews.com/tag/Collegebasketball and https://twitter.com/-Top25---Follow Steve Megargee at https://twitter.com/stevemegargee)
Nov 13, 2018Teams with offenses that are off to a highly productive start meet Tuesday when No. 5 Tennessee hosts Georgia Tech in an early-season non-conference game pitting two Power 5 programs.The Volunteers (2-0) have scored a combined 173 points in their first two wins over Lenoir Rhyne and Louisiana, the most points by a Tennessee team through the first two games of the season since 2011-12 when 177 points were scored.Tennessee has shot 61.9 and 54 percent from the field in its first two games. The Volunteers shot 50 percent or better from the field during back-to-back games only once last season.All five Tennessee starters scored in double figures in the first two games. In the 87-65 win over Louisiana on Friday, junior forward Grant Williams recorded his fourth career 30-point game, finishing with 31 points on 11-of-15 shooting.Commenting on Tennessee's 27 assists against Louisiana, Tennessee coach Rick Barnes said: "We love that. That's something that we like to think that we'll do, that we'll share the ball."We ran one or two ball screens out of random motion. We're not a heavy ball screen team, so our whole deal is based on passing, cutting, screening and movement. And to see us make those plays is what we want to see. We do really want to share the ball." Georgia Tech (1-0) opened its season Friday with an 88-69 victory over visiting Lamar, making 12 3-pointers, the most in the three years Josh Pastner has been coach.The Yellow Jackets' 26 assists were their most since recording 27 against Winston-Salem State on Jan. 3, 2007.Senior Brandon Alston led four Georgia Tech players in double-figures with 17 points."We had 26 assists on 32 made field goals, which is outstanding," Pastner said. "We have a goal to get 60 percent of our field goals assisted every time we play. So that was an outstanding stat for us." Georgia Tech sophomore guard Jose Alvarado had 14 points and a team-high five assists against Lamar. He played in his first game since missing the last seven contests last season because of an arm injury. He had two of Georgia Tech's 12 3-pointers. Alston went 4-of-5 from beyond the arc."We're going to live a lot of times by the 3-point shot," Pastner said. "I'm hoping we don't die by it. But we're going to live a lot by the 3-point shot, because I really believe in our shooting ability." Williams, who also had 10 rebounds for Tennessee against Louisiana, finished making 3 of 4 shots from 3-point range. His teammates made a combined 6 of 17 from there."He has been working on (shooting the 3)," Barnes said of Williams. "Probably not as much as Kyle (Alexander), who actually can shoot the ball (but did not attempt a 3-pointer against Louisiana). I don't know why he doesn't shoot it sometimes."But Grant does work at it. All of our guys do. We have all of them shoot it. He just has to pick his spots for the right times to shoot it, that's what's most important."
Looking for More Picks?
You can browse all the individual handicapper picks below.
Georgia Tech
Tennessee
Pick Center
NCAAB
FINAL (11/13/2018)
BettingLeverage
