PREMIUM
$20! Rogers' ACC ANNIHILATION!
(NCAAB) Pittsburgh vs. Georgia Tech,
Point Spread: 2.00 | -110.00 Georgia Tech (Home)
Result: Push
Point Spread: 2.00 | -110.00 Georgia Tech (Home)
Result: Push
The set-up: The 15-16 Pitt Pannthers are the No. 14 seed in the ACC (4-14) and will meet the 17-14 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, the ACC's No. 11 seed (8-10), in this first round ACC tourney action from Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
Pittsburgh: Jami Dixon bolted Pitt after last season to coach his alma mater (TCU), after winning 328 games in 13 seasons at Pitt (25.2 per), taking the Panthers to 13 postseason tourneys (11 NCAA appearances). Kevin Stallings has not had a good first year at Pitt, as the Panthers enter on a four-game slide and a loss here would mean a losing record. The Panthers are basically a two-man team, in forwards Young and Artis. The 6-9 Young (19.9 & 6.8) and the 6-7 Artis (18.4 & 4.8) have combined for 26 games of 20 or more points scored this season, accounting for 52.1 percent of the team's 73.5-point average. Guard Cameron Johnson (11.8 & 4.6) is the only other contributor of note and has shot 45.9 percent from three-point range over his last 10 games.
Georgia Tech: The Yellow Jacks were picked to be 14th in the 15-team ACC entering the season, having lost four starters plus opened with a new head coach, after firing Brian Gregory. However, Ga. Tech opens the ACC tourney with an outside shot to reach the NCAA Tournament. Josh Pastner (of Memphis fame or infamy?) was just named ACC coach-of-the-year, after a 17-win regular season that featured three upsets of ranked teams (75-63 over North Carolina, 78-56 over Florida St. and 62-60 over Notre Dame). The 6-10 Lammers (14.6 & 9.2) was named the ACC's defensive player-of-the -year and freshman guard Okogie (15.5 & 6.1) is the team's leading scorer.
The pick: the case for Pitt would be that the Panthers have played 11 games against teams in the NCAA's RPI top-25 (the highest total in the nation) plus Pitt has the motivation that if it can win two games, the tourney shifts to the PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh on Thursday. However, I see no reason to believe Pitt will get past Ga. Tech, which won 61-52 in the teams' lone meeting this year and noting also that Ga. Tech has covered its last five games against Pittsburgh. Make Ga. Tech an 8* play.
Pittsburgh: Jami Dixon bolted Pitt after last season to coach his alma mater (TCU), after winning 328 games in 13 seasons at Pitt (25.2 per), taking the Panthers to 13 postseason tourneys (11 NCAA appearances). Kevin Stallings has not had a good first year at Pitt, as the Panthers enter on a four-game slide and a loss here would mean a losing record. The Panthers are basically a two-man team, in forwards Young and Artis. The 6-9 Young (19.9 & 6.8) and the 6-7 Artis (18.4 & 4.8) have combined for 26 games of 20 or more points scored this season, accounting for 52.1 percent of the team's 73.5-point average. Guard Cameron Johnson (11.8 & 4.6) is the only other contributor of note and has shot 45.9 percent from three-point range over his last 10 games.
Georgia Tech: The Yellow Jacks were picked to be 14th in the 15-team ACC entering the season, having lost four starters plus opened with a new head coach, after firing Brian Gregory. However, Ga. Tech opens the ACC tourney with an outside shot to reach the NCAA Tournament. Josh Pastner (of Memphis fame or infamy?) was just named ACC coach-of-the-year, after a 17-win regular season that featured three upsets of ranked teams (75-63 over North Carolina, 78-56 over Florida St. and 62-60 over Notre Dame). The 6-10 Lammers (14.6 & 9.2) was named the ACC's defensive player-of-the -year and freshman guard Okogie (15.5 & 6.1) is the team's leading scorer.
The pick: the case for Pitt would be that the Panthers have played 11 games against teams in the NCAA's RPI top-25 (the highest total in the nation) plus Pitt has the motivation that if it can win two games, the tourney shifts to the PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh on Thursday. However, I see no reason to believe Pitt will get past Ga. Tech, which won 61-52 in the teams' lone meeting this year and noting also that Ga. Tech has covered its last five games against Pittsburgh. Make Ga. Tech an 8* play.
