THE FLATS – The Yellow Jackets dominated play from start to finish as Georgia Tech men’s basketball (2-0) secured a comfortable 74-45 victory over Bryant (0-2) on Friday night at McCamish Pavilion. Senior Kowacie Reeves Jr. led the offense with 18 points, just three shy of his career high, while freshman Mouhamed Sylla delivered his second double-double in as many games (10 points, 11 rebounds). Sylla also recorded four blocks in the outing, becoming just the second GT freshman to record a double-double with four or more blocks in a single game (also Derrick Favors in 2009).
Four different Yellow Jackets finished in double figures, led by Reeves’ 18 points. Freshman Akai Fleming delivered 14 points off the bench, including a 2-for-3 showing from three-point range. Tech’s big men, Sylla and junior Baye Ndongo each finished with 10. Sylla led the team on the glass with 11 rebounds and sophomore Jaeden Mustaf led the offense with five assists.
The Jackets utilized strong defense to put the lead into double digits early, holding Bryant scoreless for nearly five minutes of game time, without a field goal for 6:58 and jumped in front, 18-6. Tech grew the lead to as many as 21 points in the opening frame (35-14) thanks to a barrage of threes before ultimately heading into the break with a commanding 39-22 advantage. Tech held Bryant to just 25.8 percent shooting in the first half (eight-of-31) including just 11.1 percent from three (2-of-18) thanks in large part to three blocks by Sylla, while the offense shot 44.8 percent from the field (13-of-29) with a stellar 43.8 percent clip from three (7-of-16).
GT picked up right where they left off in the second half, taking off on a 15-2 run right out of the gate to grow the lead to 30 points (54-24). That run featured a pair of threes from Ndongo and Reeves along with the fourth block of the game from Sylla. The Jackets rolled to the finish from there, holding Bryant to just 24.1 percent shooting in the second half (7-for-29) and 10 percent from three (2-for-20).
For the game, the Tech defense held Bryant to 10.5 percent from three, its lowest opponent three-point percentage in two seasons and just 25 percent from the field, the lowest since Dec. 28 vs. Alabama A&M last season.
Georgia Tech returns to the hardwood on Monday night, welcoming Southeastern Louisiana for a 9 p.m. tip. The game will be televised on the ACC Network.
Mouhamed Sylla became just the second freshman in Tech history to record a double-double with four or more blocks tonight (Danny Karnik photo)
TEAM NOTES
INDIVIDUAL NOTES
Akai Fleming hit the first two threes of his college career, finishing with 14 points (Danny Karnik photo)
PRESS CONFERENCE VIDEO
Full Steam Ahead
Full Steam Ahead is a $500 million fundraising initiative to achieve Georgia Tech athletics’ goal of competing for championships at the highest level in the next era of intercollegiate athletics. The initiative will fund transformative projects for Tech athletics, including renovations of Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field (the historic home of Georgia Tech football), the Zelnak Basketball Center (the practice and training facility for Tech basketball) and O’Keefe Gymnasium (the venerable home of Yellow Jackets volleyball), as well as additional projects and initiatives to further advance Georgia Tech athletics through program wide-operational support. All members of the Georgia Tech community are invited to visit atfund.org/FullSteamAhead for full details and renderings of the renovation projects, as well as to learn about opportunities to contribute online.
ABOUT GEORGIA TECH MEN’S BASKETBALL
Georgia Tech’s men’s basketball team is in its third year under head coach Damon Stoudamire. Tech has been a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference since 1979, won four ACC Championships (1985, 1990, 1993, 2021), played in the NCAA Tournament 17 times and played in two Final Fours (1990, 2004). Connect with Georgia Tech Men’s Basketball on social media by liking their Facebook Page, or following on X (@GTMBB) and Instagram. For more information on Tech basketball, visit Ramblinwreck.com.