Jackets fizzle again, but Radakovich in Hewitt’s corner
Georgia's Gerald Robinson drives past Tech's Daniel Miller for a layup in the second half, and the Bulldogs rallied for a 73-72 win. (AP photo)
For most of the evening, it looked like early December basketball: Missed jumpers, mistimed passes and long stretches of mediocrity interrupted by the occasional highlight.
Actually, if you flipped back the calendar a couple of weeks, it was the Georgia vs. Georgia Tech football game.
In the end, the Bulldogs won this one, too, 73-72 at Alexander Memorial Coliseum. The difference: a 3-pointer by the Dogs’ Dustin Ware that broke a tie with 18 seconds remaining, followed by a Tech team that looked again as if it lacked either a plan or an ability to execute thereafter.
Why would Glen Rice drive the lane for a layup with 6.8 seconds left rather than attempt to set up a three-pointer to tie it?
Why, with the Jackets inbounding the ball with 2.8 seconds left, would Brian Oliver attempt a low-percentage pass the length of the court to center Daniel Miller when there probably was time for a mid-court pass, a dribble and a shot? (The pass was intercepted by Travis Leslie.)
Neither team looked March-ready. Or even January-ready. But only one made plays to win the game, and it wasn’t the Jackets.
Georgia coach Mark Fox wasn’t thrilled with his team’s performance but said: “We feel like we’re leaving here with a good win.”
That’s more than Paul Hewitt could say. Of Oliver’s pass, he said: “Just a [bad] read. The next time he’s in that situation, he’ll make a good decision.”
But an impatient fan base isn’t allowing Hewitt much room for error. This was only the second time in 16 years since the Tech-Georgia game was shifted back on campus that the home team lost. Both times, the Dogs have won at Alexander. The last time: 10 years ago in Hewitt’s first season.
The masses aren’t happy on North Avenue. That’s when there are masses. It doesn’t speak well for the feeling around the program when there are 2,000 empty seats in a 9,000-seat arena.
But before the game, Tech athletic director Dan Radakovich stood up for Hewitt.
“We went to the finals of the ACC tournament last year,” Radakovich said. “We went to the second round of the NCAA tournament. That wasn’t a bad year.”
So you’re satisfied?
“You’re never satisfied unless you win it all,” he said. “But there was significant progress over the previous couple of years. I feel like we’re going in the right direction.”
He said he’s aware of the concern over the direction of the program, adding: “I’m not oblivious to it. But Paul and I talk an awful lot about where the program’s going the next couple of years, bringing in some players that we think will [not leave early]. One-and-dones aren’t bad if you understand them from the beginning. It’s the ones who leave when you don’t expect it that really put the program behind the eight ball.”
Three weeks ago the Jackets lost at Kennesaw State. That left the impression the program was under the eight ball, not behind it. (If the loss wasn’t humiliating enough, consider that the Owls are 0-5 since.)
Radakovich, with a slight smile: “Yeah, we hit a bump at Kennesaw State.”
A bump?
“OK, a pothole. A crevice. An iceberg.”
It pays sometime to have a sense of humor when the barbarians are at the gate. But this end-of-game fizzle won’t help Hewitt’s cause.
The teams shot a combined 25-for-62 in the first half. Georgia at least had an excuse. Leslie sat for most of the half with two early fouls. When he returned in the second half, so did some semblance of flow to the Dogs’ offense.
They made five consecutive three-pointers in one stretch. They finally took their first lead at 48-47 on a three-point shot by Sherrard Brantley with 11:36 remaining. The Jackets fought back. Effort wasn’t the issue, execution was. But that has become a familiar sight.
– By Jeff Schultz
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489 comments Add your comment
Sanford Drive
December 8th, 2010
11:24 am
(((((42-34)))))
(((((73-72)))))
But it’s ok Tech… because you ALMOST won both of those right???? Congrats on the Moral Victories!!!!
WE RUN THIS STATE!!!!!!!!!!!!
Old Gold
December 8th, 2010
11:27 am
which is better than scoring homerun baskets
Differential X,
Differential Y,
A Square, B Square,
Integral of Pi !
Engineers Touchdown,
Engineers Yell,
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
Fight like Hel*!
Take that mutts
Old Gold
December 8th, 2010
11:28 am
which is better than scoring homerun baskets
Differential X,
Differential Y,
A Square, B Square,
Integral of Pi !
Engineers Touchdown,
Engineers Yell,
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
Fight like He**
Take that mutts
Snoop Dawg
December 8th, 2010
11:29 am
As bad as the Dawgs’ fortunes have been, they can always count on beating their little brother Georgia Tech on the athletic field (or court in this case). Used to be, the Bumble bees would take solace that their academic credentials were better than those in Athens, but this has also eroded away to the point where the academics at UGA are virtually as demanding as GT. In two years, UGA will have its own engineering schools too. At that point, the only thing that the Bugs will be able to brag about is their location in Atlanta’s inner city. They will rally to, “We are closer to the Varsity than the Dawgs!
The Jackets should have never quit the SEC. They quit because Alabama gave them such a smackdown one year that several of the Bugs actually wound up in traction at Grady Hospital. Pat Dye would say that the Bugs weren’t man enough. Now they are proud members of the JV team, the ACC.
blazer
December 8th, 2010
11:29 am
Wish the H he would get out of this corner then!! Disgusting to lose to them
in basketball at home even!
fan of the game
December 8th, 2010
11:31 am
Hewitt is not a good collegiate level coach! Good recruiter… yes. Good coach…no. Udofia looks lost most of the time. I scouted this kid I know his talent. He would have been better off going out of state where his talents would have been developed instead he chose to stick it out with Hewitt and Hewitt does nothing with him. The guy is a great leader and Hewitt knows this. Instead he allows Rice and Shumpert to do whatever and the team looks like a bunch of kids playing a game of pick up. Georgia Tech do yourself a favor and realease Hewitt of his duties. Make him VP of Recruiting but allow a real coach to coach the team. It may be some assistant coaches in the league who would love the opportunity or where is Felton from UGA and his staff get one of them. Hewitt has to go. This year’s program is a waste.
Sanford Drive
December 8th, 2010
11:32 am
blazer…..
I am VERY VERY VERY glad you are hurting this morning. As much as you hate UGA fans…. WE HATE YOU TOO!!!!!
Coach Hewitt...
December 8th, 2010
11:32 am
Just wait until they get their engineering school up & running over in Athens….
Snoop Dawg
December 8th, 2010
11:32 am
UGA Bumper Sticker on GT Campus:
“I may be slow, but I’m ahead of you!”
TomB
December 8th, 2010
11:34 am
Can You Dig It and Breaking News: What are you two stupid? Why should Tech fans show up to support a coach they want fired? Why support with Body or money a program you know is quickly becoming a laughing stock of ACC basketball. Tech fans are proud just like UGA fans who would probably respond the same way. But, basketball is more important to many fans.This was a dismal program until Cremins resurrected the program and made GT fans proud, and now they see how bad its gotten.If I wanted a change for the better, the last thing I would do is show up to support the team. I hate it but this is where we are.
Basketball Guru
December 8th, 2010
11:34 am
All this Hewitt buzz , samething as last Spring. Everyone after hewitt and rightly so. DRad didn’t pay any attention then and isn’t now. How can he be so on top of GT sports and so oblivious to men’s basketball. $45 mill to redo the Colesium,,, who is going to fill it. The fan base is almost History. I don’t miss Tech BB games, but right now, I am almost outa here!
Sanford Drive
December 8th, 2010
11:34 am
If Tech fans weren’t so pompous in their arguments about sports, trying to tie in who knows calculus better, I wouldn’t really care to rub these wins in.
However, Tech fans want to act like they are the classiest fans on earth, when they are probably the worst when it comes to brazenly insulting others.
I AM SO GLAD JACKET NATION IS HURTING FROM LOSING TO THE “REDNECKS”
(((((42-34)))))
(((((73-72)))))
Coach Hewitt...
December 8th, 2010
11:36 am
Just remember my buyout rolls over infinitium until the earth careens into the sun.
LMMFAO…Paul.
Sanford Drive
December 8th, 2010
11:36 am
so, does anybody havew the inside scoop on wich Engineering Firms are recruiting Josh Nesbitt and Antony Allen???
They are STUDENT-athletes like you Nerds say right??
Any chance they could start their own Engineering Firm???
Will Reggie Ball or Joe Hamilton get them a job at their Engineering Firms??
UGA Athletic Department
December 8th, 2010
11:39 am
Do you Nerds need to borrow $7M???
$7M….. LOL….. we have $7M sitting in the “give a penny take a penny” tray at Butts-Mehre receptionist desk.
Coach Hewitt...
December 8th, 2010
11:40 am
I gotta admit that sign I saw last night…”"It’s OK Paul, I can’t coach basketball either!”…. made me chuckle.
Takin' what I can get
December 8th, 2010
11:42 am
Georgia Tech: 2010 Women’s Basketball State Champs (69-53)
amg
December 8th, 2010
11:43 am
DRAD has to get this straight in his mind. You can only ask the fan base for so much charity and make no mistake about it. Alot of pressure was put on the alumni to pony up for the basketball program and Georgia Tech. Now without an enjoyable product you will lose everything. Hire a no name coach with no expectations and as he turns the program into a respectable game of basketball the fans will show up and cheer even when they lose. But the excuses and the overwhelming sad coaching is so apparent that most high school girls basketball coaches are far better than Hewitt at coaching the fundamentals. This is not about how Hewitt manages the program although he does not do that well, it is not about winning and losing, although he has a losing record in the ACC and has NEVER had a winning season in the ACC, it is not about the graduation rate although that is awful as well, it is not about anythiong other than Tech deserves better and if Hewitt was true to tech he would say the same thing.
Coach Hewitt...
December 8th, 2010
11:46 am
Is that restaurant called “Rock Bottom” in Buckhead still there? I used to love that place. LMAO…Paul.
Indiana Jacket
December 8th, 2010
11:49 am
Paul Hewitt is my soul mate.
GTBob
December 8th, 2010
11:50 am
@Can You Dig It
Here are the numbers for the last 4 UGA games at Alexander Memorial Coliseum:
2004: 9191 (sellout)
2006: 9191 (sellout)
2008: 8368 (starting to fall)
2010: 6700 (Crashing)
Between the 2004-2005 season and the 2007-2008 season we sold out every game. Then we slipped down into the mid 7000’s on average attendance. This season we are averaging 5735 a game. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that GT fans are getting a little tired of the direction of the program and are showing it by not going to games.
Coach Hewitt...
December 8th, 2010
11:50 am
Hold your heads up tech fans…We’ve got Savannah St. coming to the thriller dome this weekend.
I promise you the “WIZARD OF TECHWOOD” will have a little surprise for them…Paul.
Igotta Point
December 8th, 2010
11:53 am
I am not a Hewitt hater. I want him to succeed. After attending the game last night, I came to the conclusion that he has to grow as a coach. You cannot yell at your players the entire–calling out various sets and telling players where to position themselves on the floor. I am not suggesting that Hewitt shoudl sit quietly like some other noted college coaches. I am suggesting that many of the aforementioned yellings should be taught in practice and contingency set, defenses, offenses can also be taught in practice as I understand that situations change. Well coached teams are prepared during practice. The coach should yell (if at all) when a player is not illustrating an ability to remember and execute that he was taught in practice. Because of the way Hewitt yells out instructions 90% of the game, one wonders how he uses practices.
TomB
December 8th, 2010
11:56 am
Hey Snoop Dawg; Why is it that a mighty SEC team such as UGA gave up over 500 plus yards to the little junior ACC team of Tech. Your words right. You should be asking yourself why a mighty SEC team loaded with high school all americans can barely beat a little ACC team such as Tech, and on your on damn field no less. Which team recruits the 4 and 5 star players every year? I watched that game and it looked like to me that the better team lost.
Comparing UGA’s academics to Tech is a joke and you know it. It may be better because of Jan Kemp, but not because UGA people wanted a better school. Most UGA fans were kicking and screaming at the higher academic standards, because they thought it would hurt their mighty football teams recruiting. Why was Ga State and Tech not combined years ago moron. Because the regents who are dominated with UGA alumni wouldn’t allow it. Why? Because they were afraid Tech would be able to recruit as well as UGA with a full liberal arts curriculum, thats why. Why will UGA have an engineering program? For the same damn reason, pure corruption at the highest level. I doubt Tech feels threatened in the least with UGA starting engineering light in Athens though.
Coach Hewitt...
December 8th, 2010
11:58 am
“I don’t care if we lose, I’m getting paid either way”………Paul
ga tech 92
December 8th, 2010
12:02 pm
We’ve been beyond patient, considering ONE winning acc record in TEN years:
2000–2001 Georgia Tech 8–8 T–5th NCAA 1st Round
2001–2002 Georgia Tech 7–9 T–5th
2002–2003 Georgia Tech 7–9 5th NIT 3rd Round
2003–2004 Georgia Tech 9–7 T–3rd NCAA Runner-up
2004–2005 Georgia Tech 8–8 T–4th NCAA 2nd Round
2005–2006 Georgia Tech 4–12 T–10th
2006–2007 Georgia Tech 8–8 T–6th NCAA 1st Round
2007–2008 Georgia Tech 7–9 T–7th
2008–2009 Georgia Tech 2–14 12th
2009–2010 Georgia Tech 7–9 7th NCAA 2nd Round
Overall at Georgia Tech: 67–93
Hewitt is now 4-7 against UGA
Appathy has beyond set in: I *LOVED* GT basketball more than any other sport…had season tickets for years…let them expire in discust about 3 years ago…I can’t stand to watch them for free on TV anymore (didn’t watch UGA because I knew we would find a way to Blewitt).
Some say, “We can’t afford to fire him.” I say we can’t afford not to and should have 7 years ago.
What cost more,
(a) 7 mil
or
(b) 1.4 per year, for a couple/few more years + continued destruction of the program + continued errosion of the fan base + further emptying of seats + further humiliation from loosing to Kennesaw State, UGA, etc, and THEN paying the 7 mil?
You don’t have to know advanced math to know that (a) is much less than (b), yet we pick (b) year after year.
Since we had the money to put into the arena, then we had the money to spend and our AD CHOOSE not to fire him.
Even the Wall Street Journal knew this years ago, per this article:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123690294088913675.html
What is the good word? = FIRE PAUL HEWITT!!
What is the good word? = FIRE PAUL HEWITT!!
What is the good word? = FIRE PAUL HEWITT!!
stinger
December 8th, 2010
12:03 pm
Please fire Radakovich, he’s got a man crush on Hewitt and Johnson, we aint gonna beat the dogs at anything on a regular basis until we get the right coaches…Hewitt is terrible and Johnson is crazy aggressive..too aggressive, closer to stupid than aggressive
Coach Hewitt...
December 8th, 2010
12:09 pm
Dang I miss ole G. Wayne Clough….He’s a good man. I’d not be where I am without him. How’s he doing at the Smithsonian Institute?… Paul…
there is nothing that the yellow jackets can do
December 8th, 2010
12:10 pm
to cause the pain and humiliation that comes from a school ….
-that routinely has a dozen football players arrested yearly.
-that is an also ran in its own conference in spite of having a ‘dream’ team every year in recruiting.
-that is so inept against uf it makes gt’s record against the frogs seem mild in comparison .
-that has a student body that is so ignorant that they urinate on the carpet of their own school library. so much for education eh?
-that had the jan kemp affair and the jim harrick classes and the cheating by the school of pharmacy.
-that had a lying cheating man like vince dooley for their coach and ad. wasnt ugag on probation like every 4 years under the evil dooley?
-that tosses tons and tons of garbage onto their own campus and any venue they attend. i heard that shreveport under no circumstances ever wants to see the ugag fan base back in shreveport. EVER. st simons is almost to that point.
-that had a nationally written newspaper article describing how the broadcast team of tv announcers commented on the FACT that the ugag fan base was the WORST bunch of out of control drunks they had ever witnessed in 40 years of doing college fb broadcasts. now that is outright shameful.
-that had its most recent married ad arrested for drunk driving while sniffing the panties of the prostitute that was riding with him.
gaggers…. there is NOTHING gt can do to top the above. nothing. do you not get it? ugag is a laughing stock of a school and an athletic program.
so gt fans anytime a gagger gets under your skin just remember the list above that cant be topped and chuckle a chuckle of superiority.
Ben
December 8th, 2010
12:12 pm
Who are these mystery players that were expected to stick around longer than one year? Every early exit that I can think of was pretty obvious from the start. Bosh, Crittendon (who would have been better off to stay), Young, Favors…. Do they seriously expect anyone to believe Hewitt thought they were going to stay longer? If he did, then he’s even stupider than I had thought, and should be replaced immediately.
Dawgy
December 8th, 2010
12:12 pm
Hey TomB,
Tell us all again who won the football game!! BTW, you clowns recruit 4 star football recruits too. They just don’t want to play for you!
Snoop Dawg
December 8th, 2010
12:14 pm
Tom B.
A couple of points to your drivel.
First, I have to admit that the Dawgs football is terrible because of da Preacha Man and his clowns. That said, we can always count on thumping the bees. So no matter how bad we might be, the GT folks are worse.
Second, there’s nothing special to being an engineering nerd. Engineers are supervised by managers and leaders. That would be UGA grads. Most have one or more nerdy Tech engineers doing the technical work for them.
Look up the stats: UGA’s on the rise academically while GT’s on the fall. The GPA and SAT scores for UGA freshmen are actually just a little higher than Tech’s. Wait until we have our own engineering school!
Get used to being number two in a two state university system.
Dawgy
December 8th, 2010
12:15 pm
“there is nothing that the yellow jackets can do”
What a bitter, immature jacka$$ you are. Don’t even try to compare the 2 schools and the fan bases.
I know for sure there is nothing a jacket can do: Beat UGA in football or basketball!!! Go suck on that you poor sport!!!
like i said dawgy
December 8th, 2010
12:18 pm
the truth hurts. lmao.
notice jackets that dawgy could not defend against the truth. ouch.
Snoop Dawg
December 8th, 2010
12:18 pm
PS Tom B-
Look this up: Georgia State used to be UGA in Atlanta. It was split from UGA so that the state could develop more managers and supervisors to oversee all the engineer technicians. Don’t forget, the Tech in Ga Tech stands for technician.
DawginLex
December 8th, 2010
12:19 pm
Thanks RAMBLINWRECK,
I really feel sorry for the fans and players involved in this.
It is really about like us keeping Ray Goff from 1993-1995 when it was obvious that he was a great recruiter who just was not that good of a coach. We had so much talent in 1992 that it was unbelievable. The SEC east was down and we still blew it. Beat OSU in the bowl game, went 10-2 and everyone felt tlike we failed. It was obvious he needed to go after the 93 season but Dooley hung on for 2 more years.
Similar to Hewitt. With the talent he has, there is no way he should be 4-7 against UGA and sub .500 in the ACC.
MS
December 8th, 2010
12:20 pm
Just think of it as a win-win for us Tech grads/fans – when we win, great…when we lose, it’s one more mark against the worst coach in Division I basketball
Snoop Dawg
December 8th, 2010
12:21 pm
GT’s keeping Hewitt is like UGA keeping Richt and Bozo the Clown…
TomB
December 8th, 2010
12:21 pm
Hey Dawgy:
You are the one’s always talking up the mighty SEC. I didn’t see a great SEC team. When UGA, on their own field, wins by an extra point against an ACC team that finished 4-4 in conference and 6-6 overall, I wouldn’t be running my mouth.
You just made my point regarding the recruits. UGA recruits the 4 and 5 star players, not Tech. If one team has 4 and 5 star players, then why are they giving up 500 plus yards to the little ACC school, and winning by a missed extra point?
drunken dawg
December 8th, 2010
12:24 pm
at least those panties were red.
If a yellow jacket administrator ever sunk so low as to do that they would probably have a pair of white panties. Those jackets dont even know thier own school colors. lmao.
PHIL
December 8th, 2010
12:24 pm
Gracious Tom B give the academic thing a rest! The myth that a GT education is somehow “loftier” than an education from the UGA has been busted long, long ago and many, many times. And especially when you compare the academic achievements of athletes. The performance of UGA athletes is superior to GT in academic performance to GT in any way you or the NCAA want to measure it. Even though the athletes there take all those classes at that Ivory Tower of Academia, Georgia State. Every time I hear someone from Tech crow about their academics I want to ask what engineering firms are in the running for the services of Josh Nesbitt. Or is he just going straight to NASA? Maybe the firm of Ball and Hamilton, LTD could be interested?
And as to the all those 5 star recruits UGA always gets, since you don’t have anything else to do, look up the last 4 years and see how many of those 5 stars you can find that have come to Athens, I’ll wait…………… I will give you that in general better players chose Athens over inner city Atlanta to go to school……just as any reasonable person would.
Ga. State
December 8th, 2010
12:25 pm
Wow, and I thought taking over Atlanta as the primary collegiate sports institution would actually take some time.
3-4
December 8th, 2010
12:25 pm
I’m done watching pathetic coaching. The kids are talented but not very well coached. What a joke we’ve become as an athletic program. We do not have ANY EXCUSES and UGA does run this state in terms of basketball and football. Until we make changes to turn this around, we may as well continue to play second fiddle to the devil in Athens.
Ted M
December 8th, 2010
12:25 pm
What is the good word? = FIRE PAUL HEWITT!!
Nope
The good word is: Hewitt has been fired!
GTBob
December 8th, 2010
12:26 pm
@Snoop Dawg,
Are you really convinced that UGA grads are GT grads bosses and are much better off? Do you actually read any of the real statistics that show the complete opposite? UGA is a fine school but it’s not quite at the GT level.
buck
December 8th, 2010
12:26 pm
Pretty sure Richt has only landed nine 5-stars since he’s been in Athens. UGA has been slapping Yech’s 3 stars around with their own 3 star guys.
TomB
December 8th, 2010
12:27 pm
Hey Snoop Dawg:
I didn’t say anything about how Ga. State was started. You know where they are located, right next to GT. And if you know the history then you know I’m right. The UGA dominated regents never would allow the two schools to combine. And, now you know why.
I would gather a guess that there are not many UGA grads managing Tech grads, technicians or not.. You are making me laugh now.
Techsuxoffski
December 8th, 2010
12:27 pm
Hewitt is the greatest coach ever in GT Basketball!!!! Sign him to a 30 year extension for 15 million a year!!! I love watching street ball!!! I fealt like I was sitting at the park!!
MS
December 8th, 2010
12:29 pm
Good God shut up about the academics. All of you. Both schools are in the top tier of public universities in this country, regardless of what you major in.
reebok
December 8th, 2010
12:29 pm
does ‘coach’ hewitt make public service announcements? maybe if we boo him every time his face comes up, we’ll be rid of him…it worked with ‘coach’ chan gailey.