Georgia Tech downs No. 21 Louisville, 77-70

Ss\taff Reports, gallery photos by Kameron Taylor for the Albany Herald

THE FLATS – Georgia Tech men’s basketball secured its first top-25 victory of the season, taking down No. 21/22 Louisville, 77-70, on Saturday afternoon at McCamish Pavilion to end the Cardinals” 10-game winning streak.

The Jackets (10-12, 4-7 ACC)erased an 11-point halftime deficit (27-38) with a dominant second half, outscoring the Cardinals 50-32 to hand Louisville its second loss of Atlantic Coast Conference play while earning Tech its first win over a top-25 opponent since beating No. 3 North Carolina, last year (Jan. 30, 2024).

Lance Terry led the team in scoring, playing in his first game back at McCamish since missing the last two home games due to injury. Terry finished with 23 points, his seventh 20-point performance of the season and fourth of ACC play. Baye Ndongo recorded his 11^th career double-double, and fifth of the season, finishing with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Naithan George came up one assist shy of a double-double pocketing 15 points to go along with a team-high nine assists. Javian McCollum made his impact felt all over the court, ending with 12 points, three rebounds, three assists and four steals. Duncan Powell put up 11 points, all in the second half for his 10^th game of the season in double-figures.

George assisted or scored six of the Jackets first seven field goals to help Tech jump in front, 16-12. By the first media timeout, George paced Tech with five points and four assists and Tech led, 16-15, shooting 70 percent from the field as a team (7-10). The Jackets fell into a scoring drought later in the half and trailed by 11 after 20 minutes.

Tech upped its level defensively to begin the second period and erased a 12-point Louisville lead, using a 21-3 scoring run to turn a 49-39 deficit into a 60-52 lead with eight minutes remaining. McCollum’s driving layup gave Tech it’s first lead (51-50) since 4-2 early in the first half. After Louisville went back in front with a layup of its own, Terry cashed in a UL turnover for a slam to bring McCamish to its feet before Powell delivered a powerful bucket for a 56-52 lead with just inder 10 minutes remaining, sending Tech fans into a frenzy. The Jackets led the rest of the way.

The victory was the fourth top-25 win in the Damon Stoudamire era at Tech after defeating No. 21 Mississippi State, No. 7 Duke and No. 3 North Carolina last season.

The Jackets will be back in action on Tuesday, Feb. 4, when they travel to No 25 Clemson for a 9 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ACC Network.