Georgia Tech

Georgia Tech's Paul Hewitt: Head Coach Q&A

Shawn Siegel — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 09:29:50 -0700

College Basketball's Best Coaches

CollegeHoops.net is lucky to have access to some of the best coaches in college basketball. As part of our preseason interview series, we thought it would be appropriate to ask these basketball minds about the best things that their team and college basketball has to offer.

Paul Hewitt: Georgia Tech

We continue this month long Q&A Series with 9th year Georgia Tech coach Paul Hewitt, who has led the Yellow Jackets to 4 NCAA Tournaments. Coach Hewitt was kind enough to take some time out of his busy schedule to answer questions for CollegeHoops.net:

CollegeHoops.net) What will be the best strength of this year's team?

Paul Hewitt) We can really shoot the basketball.

CHN) Who are the biggest leader on this year's squad?

PH) I think we have a core of good leaders in D'Andre Bell, Zack Peacock and Moe Miller. So I think we have some good leaders on this team.

CHN) What's the best change you've made in your coaching style in recent seasons?

PH) Being more patient with freshmen.

CHN) If everything goes according to plan, what's the best case scenario this season?

PH) We can be one of the best three or four teams in the ACC.

CHN) What's the best arena you guys play at in the ACC?

PH) I guess you've got say to Duke. They have really good players, and they get their fans into the game.

Coach Hewitt also wanted us to mention that Tech fans and anyone in the Atlanta region should get involved with Project Success sponsored by the 100 Black Men of Atlanta (they mentor kids from 9th to 12th grade), as well as HERO for Children and the Boys and Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta.

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The Starting Fives: ACC

Shawn Siegel — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 11:11:16 -0700

Unlike the NBA, where most starting lineups are set in stone weeks before the season, NCAA starting fives are highly unsettled and constantly in flux. Going through the BCS leagues this week, I'll be projecting the starting fives for each team. Also included is the team's most important bench option, and some notes on other possible lineups.

In the case where a quality player is ineligible for the fall semester or suspended for the opening few games, I've still included them in the projections. These are really supposed to be projections of how lineups will look in February and March.

Next week, based on these lineups, I'll be throwing out statistical projections for major BCS contributors.

THE ACC

Boston College

G Biko Paris So
G Tyrese Rice Sr
F Rakim Sanders So
F Corey Raji So
C Josh Southern So

6 Joe Trapani (PF)

Notes: BC's lineup is pretty well settled. Tyler Roche could be just as important as Southern or Trapani in the frontcourt. Freshman guards Reggie Jackson and Dallas Elmore should also figure into the regular rotation.

Clemson

G Demontez Stitt So
G Terrence Oglesby So
G KC Rivers Sr
F Raymond Sykes Sr
C Trevor Booker Jr

6 Andre Young (PG)

Notes: The freshman Young is well-hyped, but Clemon's returnees are too solid for him to sneak into the starting five. David Potter and Jerai Grant should be the other reserves seeing major minutes.

Duke

G Greg Paulus Jr
G Jon Scheyer Jr
G Gerald Henderson Jr
F Kyle Singler So
C Brian Zoubek Jr

6 Lance Thomas (PF)

Notes: Compared to the above teams, Duke's minutes are up for grabs. Scheyer isn't a lock to start, as both Elliot Williams and Nolan Smith will push him for minutes. I put Thomas as the 6th man because he'll inevitably see major minutes when Zoubek gets tired, hurt, or in foul-trouble.

Florida State

G Toney Douglas Sr
G Derwin Kitchen So
F Chris Singleton Fr
F Uche Echefu Sr
F Solomon Alabi Fr

6 Ryan Reid (PF)

Notes: The Noles will be relying on youth as much as any ACC team. Alabi is a raw, talented freshman, but it wouldn't suprise me if Reid ends up starting at some point. Another freshman, Deividas Dulkys, could be the team's highest scoring option off the bench.

Georgia Tech

G Maurice Miller So
G Lewis Clinch Sr
F Iman Shumpert Fr
F Gani Lawal So
C Zack Peacock Jr

6 D'Andre Bell (G/F)

Notes: Unless he's a bust, there's no reason Shumpert won't start from day one. Bell could be one of the ACC's best reserves, while senior Alade Aminu is the best forward off the bench.

Maryland

G Greivis Vasquez So
G Eric Hayes Jr
F Landon Milbourne Jr
F Jerome Burnley So
C Braxton Dupree So

6 Sean Mosley (SG)

Notes: The only possible change from this lineup is that Dino Gregory beats out Burnley for the PF spot. Cliff Tucker and Adrian Bowie will also get major reserve minutes, and could possibly start if Milbourne falters.

Miami

G Lance Hurdle Sr
G Jack McClinton Sr
F James Dews Jr
F Dwayne Collins Jr
C Jimmy Graham Sr

6 Brian Asbury (PF)

Notes: Miami has more experience and more depth than most ACC teams. Asbury is good enough to start, and could relegate either Dews or Graham to a reserve role. Arkansas transfer Cyrus McGowan could also take minutes from Graham. Edwin Rios will be the backup point guard, while freshman swing-man DeQuan Jones should also see 15-20 mpg.

NC State

G Farnold Degand Jr
G Courtney Fells Sr
F Tracy Smith So
F Brandon Costner Jr
C Ben McCauley Sr

6 Julius Mays (G)

Notes: This seems to be the consensus starting five that everyone expects. The addition of freshman Mays is big, because he should allow the Pack to play quicker three-guard lineups (perhaps relegating Smith to the bench). Dennis Horner should be the first of State's weak frontcourt reserves to see action.

North Carolina

G Ty Lawson Jr
G Wayne Ellington Jr
F Marcus Ginyard Sr
F Deon Thompson Jr
F Tyler Hansbough Sr

6 Danny Green (SF)

Notes: This lineup should be familiar, since it returns untouched from last year. Bobby Frasor will be the other piece of UNC's seven-man core. One of either freshman Ed Davis or Tyler Zellar will emerge as the first big off the bench.

Virginia

G Calvin Baker Jr
G Jeff Jones So
F Mamadi Diane Sr
F Mike Scott So
C Tunji Soroye Sr*

6 Sylven Landesberg (SG)

Notes: UVA has some options, unfortunately most of them aren't very good. Sammy Zeglinski is a possible starter at the point, but I expect Baker to win the job. The freshman Landesberg could replace Jones, but might be better as a super-sub to start. Up front, Jamil Tucker will probably be the first big man off the pine. *Soroye will be back for a 5th season, while potential starter Laurynas Mikalauskas was kicked off the team during the summer.

Virginia Tech

G Malcolm Delaney So
G AD Vassallo Sr
F JT Thompson So
F Jeff Allen So
F Victor Davila Fr

6 Lewis Witcher (PF)

Notes: This lineup is definitely not set in stone. Davila and Witcher could swap starting spots, but I'm going with Davila because he's the better offensive player. Hank Thorns (who began last year as the starting PG) could regain a starting spot, pushing Vassallo to the wing and Thompson to the 6th man role.

Wake Forest

G Ishmael Smith Jr
G Jeff Teague So
F Al-Farouq Aminu Fr
F James Johnson So
C Chas McFarland Jr

6 LD Williams (G/F)

Notes: Wake is getting a lot of hype due to its freshmen, but the returning players aren't bad either. Harvey Hale will join Williams as the two main guards/wings off the bench. Front-court minutes are up for grabs. Besides newcomers Ty Walker and Tony Woods fighting for the backup center role, you also have PF Jamie Skeen who would start for most teams. Junior big David Weaver might be the odd man out.

Think my projections are off, let me know below where you differ!

State of '08: Georgia

Shawn Siegel — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 08:52:12 -0700

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Duke or Carolina? BC or UMASS? Gonzaga or Washington.. or Washington State? What is the best program in each state? While there's not much competition in Hawaii.. there are great debates to be had in loaded regions like California, North Carolina, and Texas. The State of '08 is a ranking of every program in every state.. based mostly on recent success (the last five years) mixed in with subjective factors such as conference prestige, historical success, and overall program direction.

Up today: Georgia. For more info, check out the State of '08 introduction.

GEORGIA

GEORGIA TECH - After making the National title game in 2004, and being good again in 2005, Paul Hewitt was on the verge of entering the coaching stratosphere. But the past few seasons have been disappointing, and Tech should once again finish in the bottom half of the ACC. In Hewitt's eight seasons, the Jackets have never finished below 7-9 in ACC play.. and going 7-9 in the ACC is more impressive than winning most conference titles.

GEORGIA - The Bulldogs are coming off one of the more shocking seasons in NCAA history. After a completely sub-par season, which included a 4-12 SEC record, the team somehow managed to run through the SEC Tournament, knocking off 4 other postseason teams along the way. But don't be fooled by that March magic, Georgia still hasn't really recovered from the mess that Jim Harrick created, and 2008-09 should be similar to last year (at least in terms of the 4-12 SEC record..)

GEORGIA SOUTHERN - Although Georgia Southern hasn't made the NCAA Tournament since 1992, the program has been consistently solid in Jeff Price's 9-year tenure. In 2006, he guided the Eagles to the NIT, where they lost to Charlotte in the opening round. Last year was another solid campaign, which included 13 wins in the Southern Conference, and upset victories over highly touted UAB and Cleveland State.

GEORGIA STATE - The Panthers haven't had much success since making the move from the Atlantic Sun to the CAA. In three years in the more competitive league, GSU has hovered around the bottom of the standings and rarely been competitive against the better teams. But there was serious improvement last year, a win over George Mason, and a ton of close losses (including a one-point loss in the CAA tourney). 2008-09 could be Georgia State's best season since Lefty Driesell's imprint was still on the program.

MERCER - After an impressive 2003 campaign in which the Bears went 14-2 in the A-Sun, the program's fortunes have steadily gone down hill. Since that time, Mercer hasn't even won a game in the A-Sun tournament. Even worse, Mercer has finished behind D1 newcomer Kennesaw State each year since the Owls joined the A-Sun in 2006.

6. KENNESAW STATE - Considering the Owls are only entering their 4th full season of D1 basketball, the results haven't been half bad. They've finished 7-9 in the Atlantic Sun the past two seasons, and knocked off conference leader Belmont (a Top 100 team) in January. The next step for the program is to find a way to win some games away from home.

7. SAVANNAH STATE - From 2003 to 2006, this was simply the worst program in the country. I'm sure many fans remember the embarrassing 0-28 season of 2005. But there's been major improvement in the last two years including 10 D1 wins in 2008. Last year's RPI of 254 trumped in-state rivals Georgia State, Kennesaw State, and Mercer. I give Kennesaw the nod though due to their conference alignment, and because the Savannah State's horrible run isn't far enough in the past.

Last: Florida - Next: Illinois

State of '08: The Introduction

Georgia Tech Basketball Schedule: 2008-09

Press Release — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 09:56:20 -0700

ATLANTA - A trip to California to play Pepperdine and Southern California and non-conference games against Alabama, Georgia, Penn State and Vanderbilt, as well as 16 games within the nation's strongest conference, highlight Georgia Tech's 2008-09 men's basketball schedule.

Tech's schedule, announced Tuesday by the Atlantic Coast Conference, includes 12 games against teams that played in last year's post-season (NCAA or NIT) and seven national television dates.

Unlike last year, when the Yellow Jackets played 19 of their 32 games away from home, including 11 of 16 non-conference games, Tech's schedule is more heavily weighted with home games this year. Tech leaves campus for non-conference games only twice aside from its Dec. 20-22 trip to the West Coast. The Jackets have 16 home games.

"We made a good effort to better balance our schedule this year with quality home games and games on the road which would help our strength of schedule," said head coach Paul Hewitt. "With Jacksonville improving every year, Georgia State up-and-coming, and strong teams in Penn State, Vanderbilt and Georgia coming here, I think we accomplished that."

Some of the non-conference highlights include home games with Jacksonville (Nov. 28), coached by former Tech assistant Cliff Warren, in his fourth season, and Penn State (Dec. 3) for the annual ACC-Big Ten Challenge. Vanderbilt visits Dec. 6 for the final game of a four-game contract, and Georgia comes to Alexander Memorial Coliseum on Jan. 6. Tech and Georgia State finish off a intra-city series with a Dec. 17 game at the Thrillerdome.

Also on the travel itinerary is a Jan. 3 visit to Alabama, the first meeting between the two teams in Tuscaloosa since 1974, and a Nov. 22 trip to Mercer, the first time the Yellow Jackets have visited the Bears since 1975.

Tech's ACC schedule begins with a Sunday national telecast on Fox Sports Net at home against Virginia on Dec. 28. The Yellow Jackets' home conference schedule this year includes Duke (Jan. 14), Boston College (Jan. 21), Wake Forest (Jan. 31), Maryland (Feb. 8), NC State (Feb. 14), Clemson (Feb. 22) and Miami (Mar. 4).

The 56th annual Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament comes to Atlanta for the fourth time, and for the second time in the Georgia Dome, which hosts the event March 12-15. The championship was last held in Atlanta in 2001, Hewitt's first season at Tech.

The Yellow Jackets will make seven national TV appearances, including a CBS game at North Carolina on Feb. 28. Tech's Dec. 28 game with Virginia, its Jan. 25 game at Clemson and the Feb. 8 game with Maryland will be part of the ACC Sunday Night Hoops package on Fox Sports Net, and its Dec. 22 game at Southern California will also appear on FSN. The Jackets' Dec. 3 game with Penn State will be televised on ESPN2, and its Jan. 14 game with Duke will be on ESPN.

Six ACC games will appear on the ACC's Raycom regional network, and as many as eight other games, including non-conference tilts with Vanderbilt, Alabama and Georgia, will appear on FSN South and other regional cable outlets.

Tech's schedule as announced Tuesday leaves four ACC games and the Dec. 20 game at Pepperdine not televised, but all could be picked up by regional cable TV. Those selections will be announced separately.

By the numbers, Tech has seven games scheduled against teams that finished in the top 50 of last year's Ratings Percentage Index, eight games against teams that played in the 2008 NCAA Tournament, and four others against NIT participants.

Poll: Who Will Be the Worst Team in the ACC?

Shawn Siegel — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 09:32:49 -0700

2008-09 Georgia Tech Basketball Preview: #111

Joel Welser — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 07:56:43 -0700

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets

Overall Rank: #111

Conference Rank: #11 ACC

2007-08: 15-17, 7-9, 7^th

2007-08 postseason: none

In ACC play, Georgia Tech started to come around and play like a team that wanted to win some games. The Yellow Jackets even ended the season winning three of their final four regular season games and beat Virginia in the first round of the ACC Tournament. That momentum is big, but unfortunately the loss of three key players is bigger.

Who’s Out:

Anthony Morrow was the scorer. He took all the clutch shots and was easily the best shooter from behind the arc on the team. His 14.2 points per game will certainly be missed on a team that struggled to consistently put points on the board. Backcourt mate Matt Causey was not as prolific of a scorer, but he was always a dangerous threat to get hot from long range. His leadership, tenacity and team high 3.7 assists will be much more difficult to replace than his 7.2 points per game. The main scorer in the paint was Jeremis Smith, who averaged 10.5 points and 7.1 rebounds.

Who’s In:

The lone incoming freshman is the highly touted Iman Shumpert. The point guard has enough scoring prowess to even play at the two guard spot if necessary. And he certainly does not lack the athleticism to play either position in the ACC. Shumpert might be the lone incoming freshman, but the arrival of Basirou Dieng will help a depleted front line. Dieng, a 6-9, 215 pound center played at St. Francis (PA) the last two years and is immediately available to play as a graduate student with one year of eligibility remaining. The Yellow Jackets thought they might have Ra’Sean Dickey back after redshirting with an injury last year, but he has opted to play in Europe instead. Without Dickey the frontcourt will not be as explosive as they would have been, but there are some experienced players returning. Zach Peacock averaged nearly ten points per game off the bench last year and Gani Lawal started most of his freshman season. Throw in 6-10 senior Alade Aminu and the Yellow Jackets are full of talented big men.

Who to Watch:

The issues will likely be in the perimeter where there is plenty of talent, but a lack of depth. Maurice Miller had a decent freshman campaign and even started 19 games, but there was a lack of consistency at times. That can be expected from a freshman point guard, but Causey is not around anymore to take over when there are problems. If Miller can handle running the team, Georgia Tech and Coach Paul Hewitt will be dangerous. Having a couple of seniors on the wings in Lewis Clinch and D’Andre Bell should make Miller’s job a little easier, but those two have their own problems to take care of trying to replace the production of Morrow.

Final Projection:

It will be important for the team to find a couple shooters to stretch out the defense. Clinch has proven he can hit the long ball, but he only hit one-third of his attempts last year and is the only returning player to knock down more than one per game last season. Morrow’s shooting ability really opened up space for the big guys, but it will not be as simple for Lawal and Peacock to find space in the paint without anybody hitting the outside shot.

Projected Post-season Tournament: none

Projected Starting Five:

Maurice Miller, Sophomore, Guard, 8.1 points per game

Lewis Clinch, Senior, Guard, 9.0 points per game

D’Andre Bell, Senior, Guard, 6.6 points per game

Gani Lawal, Sophomore, Forward, 7.2 points per game

Zack Peacock, Junior, Forward, 9.9 points per game

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Georgia Tech Adds Transfer Bassirou Dieng

Press Release — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 05:55:03 -0700

ATLANTA - Bassirou Dieng, who played basketball the last two seasons at St. Francis University (Pa.) and has been accepted into Georgia Tech's International Affairs graduate program, has been granted immediate eligibility by the NCAA to play for the Yellow Jackets' basketball team in the 2008-09 season.

Dieng (pronounced BASS-uh-roo dee-ENG), who is 6-9 and 215 pounds, has one year of eligibility at Tech. In two years at St. Francis, he averaged 8.5 points per game, 5.2 rebounds per game and shot 46.2 percent from the floor. Dieng also played one year at Norfolk State (2004-05) before moving to St. Francis, where he sat out the 2005-06 season in accordance with NCAA transfer rules.

"'Bass' is a young man who contacted us about playing basketball after applying and being accepted into graduate school at Georgia Tech," said head coach Paul Hewitt. "Coaches in their league that I have spoken with are very complimentary of his ability as a player and his character. We're happy that he has decided to attend Georgia Tech."

NCAA rules require student-athletes sit out one year when transferring, but the NCAA can grant a waiver when the student-athlete enrolls at an institution in a graduate program which is not offered by his previous school. Dieng, who received his undergraduate degree from St. Francis in the spring in Political Science and International Studies and will begin his graduate studies at Tech in the fall semester.

Dieng, a native of Dakar, Senegal, will be on a basketball scholarship at Tech this year. The post player actually has played a game in Alexander Memorial Coliseum, scoring four points in 19 minutes for St. Francis during an 87-43 loss to the Jackets on Dec. 30, 2006.

Ra'Sean Dickey Leaving Georgia Tech.. for Ukraine

Press Release — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 22:18:57 -0700

ATLANTA – Georgia Tech basketball player Ra’Sean Dickey will not play his senior year at Georgia Tech and has signed a contract to play professionally in the Ukraine, head coach Paul Hewitt announced Wednesday.

The 6-10 center from Clio, S.C., who red-shirted last year, ends his Tech career after three seasons and will play for Budivelnyk Kiev in the Ukrainian Super League. He is enrolled at Tech for the summer session and will complete the term.

“Ra’Sean and his family have decided that the time is right for him to begin his professional basketball career, and we wish him all the best,” said Hewitt. “He has every intention of returning to school and finishing his degree at a later time.”

Dickey played in 89 games over three seasons, averaging 8.7 points and 5.1 rebounds per game while shooting 60.1 percent from the floor. His best season was the 2005-06 campaign in which he averaged 13.2 points, 6.8 rebounds and hit 59.7 percent of his field goals.

--www.ramblinwreck.com--

Daily Bracketology: Monday's Field of 65

Shawn Siegel — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 07:48:03 -0800

Daily Bracketology

I'm going to be projecting the Tournament field on a close to daily basis for the rest of the year (and no Saturday's since there's little action Friday). This is a field based on how the tourney looks as of this moment. Note that for one-bid leagues, I simply include the conference leader at the time of publishing. In case of ties, I use my projected winner.

Arrows indicate team that moved up or down based on last night's performance.

Note on Monday's Movement: Despite a lot of upsets and wild games yesterday, there were actually not that many big changes in today's field. Tennessee moves up to a 1 seed due to UCLA's loss, where some suggest they should have been anyways due to their gaudy RPI. Clemson remains a 7 seed despite the loss to UNC, while Arizona dropped from a 7 down to the 1st 8 seed. No doubt others will have Arizona slightly higher due to their high RPI. In the A10, UMASS & Saint Joseph's both lost close games, but still manage to hang in the field. UMASS though drops to the last team in, while Arizona State moves into the first team out position after beating Arizona.

ONE

Memphis*

Kansas*

Duke*

Tennessee*

TWO

North Carolina

UCLA*

Stanford

Georgetown*

THREE

Xavier*

Indiana

Butler*

Michigan State

FOUR

Drake*

Texas

Notre Dame

Purdue*

FIVE

Kansas State

Wisconsin

UCONN

Louisville

SIX

Texas A&M

Washington State

Pittsburgh

Saint Mary's

SEVEN

Vanderbilt

Arkansas

Clemson

Marquette

EIGHT

Arizona

Gonzaga*

USC

Rhode Island

NINE

Baylor

Mississippi State

Florida

BYU*

TEN

Oklahoma

Ohio State

Maryland

UNLV

ELEVEN

West Virginia

South Alabama*

Mississippi

VCU*

TWELVE

Syracuse

Saint Joseph's

Kent State*

Oregon

THIRTEEN

UMASS

Davidson*

UNC-Asheville*

Utah State*

FOURTEEN

Oral Roberts*

Rider*

CS Northridge*

Lamar*

FIFTEEN

Lafayette*

UMBC*

Cornell*

Portland State*

SIXTEEN + ONE

Belmont*

Sacred Heart*

Austin Peay*

Morgan State* /Alabama State*

* = Conference champion

League Winners (31)

America East - UMBC

A-10 - Xavier

ACC - Duke

Atlantic Sun - Belmont

Big 12 - Kansas

Big East - Georgetown

Big Sky - Portland State

Big South - UNC-Asheville

Big Ten - Purdue

Big West - CS Northridge

CAA - VCU

Conference USA - Memphis

Horizon - Butler

Ivy - Cornell

MAAC - Rider

MAC - Kent State

MEAC - Morgan State

MVC - Drake

MWC - BYU

Northeast - Sacred Heart

Ohio Valley - Austin Peay

Pac-10 - UCLA

Patriot - Lafayette

SEC - Tennessee

Southern - Davidson

Southland - Lamar

SWAC - Alabama State

Summit - Oral Roberts

Sun Belt - South Alabama

WAC - Utah State

WCC - Gonzaga

Last In: Syracuse, Saint Joseph's, Oregon, UMASS

Last Out: Arizona State, Dayton, Houston, Illinois State

- Check out yesterday's Daily Bracketology to compare the subtle changes.

Georgia Tech's Dickey Taking Red-Shirt

Press Release — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 07:54:34 -0800

ATLANTA - Ra'Sean Dickey, a senior center for Georgia Tech's men's basketball team, has decided to red-shirt the 2007-08 season.

The 6-10, 250-pound Dickey, who has missed the first eight games of the season due to academic ineligibility, also has been forced to miss considerable practice time because of acute tendonitis in his right knee and is not yet able to play.

"Ra'Sean is just not healthy, he's experiencing severe tendonitis in one knee and also has problems in his other knee from a past injury," said head coach Paul Hewitt. "It is in his best interest at this point to get healthy, and he is assured of graduating in the spring of 2009 if he continues on his current schedule academically.

"He has missed several practices in the fall and had to pull out of a practice as early as Sunday because of his knee problems. So we've decided it is in his best interest to red-shirt."

Dickey, from Clio, S.C., has averaged 8.7 points and 5.1 rebounds in his three seasons at Tech, and has made 60.1 percent of his field goals. He averaged 5.1 points as a freshman, 13.2 as a sophomore, and 8.1 last year.

"I've decided that it's best for me to stay on my present course, concentrate on my academics and do everything I can to get healthy so, hopefully, I can play another season and get my degree," said Dickey, who majors in Management.