Live from Tech: Going for a sweep of the reigning champ
The Jackets ready for the men of Roy Williams. (Extremely evocative photo by Mark Bradley)
How strange is this? For Georgia Tech, a home date against the defending NCAA champ has become one of two “should-win” games remaining. (The other involves Boston College.) Most seasons you’re happy — nay, ecstatic – with a split against North Carolina. These Jackets need to beat Carolina just to safeguard what seems to be an invitation to the Big Dance.
As noted yesterday, Tech is in decent shape for a team that has lost three of four and is 5-6 in its conference. But losing tonight could grease the chute toward the no-account NIT. The Jackets still have to go to Maryland and to Clemson, and they’ve got Virginia Tech, which is 20-4, here in the regular-season finale. With Tech’s RPI (29th) and strength of schedule (12th), a 7-9 ACC record would probably be enough. But 6-10 might not.
The good news: The Heels stink. They’ve lost seven of nine, and the victories were against North Carolina State, which is even worse than UNC-Chapel Hill. And Carolina will be missing its most talented man — forward Ed Davis broke his wrist in a loss against Duke last week and is probably done for the year. (And possibly for his undergraduate career. He was projected as a lottery pick not so long ago.)
Fun fact: If Carolina, which is 14-11, loses tonight, Roy Williams will have suffered a 12th loss for only the second time in 22 seasons as a head coach. His first Kansas team, inherited from the deserter Larry Brown, finished 19-12. These Heels will finish a lot worse than those Jayhawks, a realization that led Ol’ Roy, regrettably, to liken his team’s losing to the plight of Haitians. (Williams has since apologized.)
There’s so much about this game that feels bizarre. It’s the first time since March 1, 2003, that Tech has faced an unranked Carolina. (Williams was still at KU then, and Matt Doherty was about to be deposed.) The Jackets are unranked — they disappeared from the major polls yesterday — but are 6 1/2-point favorites. But I’m guessing there’ll be a goodly complement of folks wearing baby blue at the Thrillerdome nonetheless. Just wondering how many Tech fans show.
And with that, I’ll be happy to take your questions, your comments and your money. (Just kidding about the latter.) I’ll be here until the final horn, which stands to come a bit after 11 p.m. Join me, won’t you?
P.S. If you haven’t participated in today’s burning discussion — who’s having the better season, Tech or Georgia? – please avail yourself of the opportunity. We’ll hold your place in line.
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424 comments Add your comment
FullMetalJacket
February 16th, 2010
8:51 pm
Woodie: play on, friend….play on. And I would like to thank Coach Hewitt for giving me much more free time to spend with my family and working on my project car these past couple of years.
todd grantham
February 16th, 2010
8:52 pm
who is roy williams
Brian
February 16th, 2010
8:53 pm
Mark,
Is Carolina blue everywhere yet?
Mark Bradley
February 16th, 2010
8:53 pm
It’s interesting that Hewitt pretty much wrote off last season’s debacle to the absence of Bell.
EPt Buzzer
February 16th, 2010
8:53 pm
Tonight’s drinking game: Every time Ol’Roy turns his back to the floor to let the bench guys have it…Drink.
FullMetalJacket
February 16th, 2010
8:53 pm
Having sat behind Ol’ Roy’s bench a few times, he can make a sailor blush but I’ve always heard he’s a good enough guy.
Mark Bradley
February 16th, 2010
8:54 pm
No, Carolina blue is not everywhere. Much more gold than baby blue.
Place is filling up.
Jon Contract
February 16th, 2010
8:54 pm
I dont think the recruiting situations at Nevada and UGA are all that similar
The southeast is full of great players. If Fox can get a few of em especially some Georgia guys I think he will be successful. So far he has done alot with very very little.
FullMetalJacket
February 16th, 2010
8:55 pm
Yeah. I guess if we’d have had Bell last year there would have been absolutely no problems getting the ball inbounds. hehe
Mark Bradley
February 16th, 2010
8:56 pm
That’s the key, Jon Contract. Can Fox get and keep the instate players Felton could not?
Speaking of whom … Dennis Felton is here tonight, scouting for the Suns. You might recall that his three biggest wins as UGA’s coach came in this building. (None of them against Tech.)
RatchetMan
February 16th, 2010
8:56 pm
If you’re sitting behind the UNC bench and posting here also, let us know how many F-bombs Roy drops in the first 10 mins of the game.
Mark Bradley
February 16th, 2010
8:57 pm
Seated in Row 1 across the way (though not adjacent to one another): Dr. Sid Williams, Taz Anderson and Bertis Downs, who’s the lawyer for R.E.M.
EPt Buzzer
February 16th, 2010
8:57 pm
WOW! Felton has a job and I don’T?!?!?
RatchetMan
February 16th, 2010
8:57 pm
Is Lawyer Jeff there, too?
jaymin
February 16th, 2010
8:58 pm
So you’re saying if Fox does’t win a Title by his 3rd year than he’ll never win one huh? Why can’t he find talent when Atlanta is one of the most talent laden cities in the US and probably only behind NY and LA.
louisville slugger
February 16th, 2010
8:58 pm
Hey Mark, looking forward to tonight’s blog, hope to stay on for a while. Do you have a sense for the mood of the team?
Mark Bradley
February 16th, 2010
8:58 pm
We used to sit close to the visiting bench. We’re farther away now. Sitting next to Gary Williams gave me a nice calm feeling — I knew I was only the second-best candidate in the building to have a nervous breakdown.
Mark Bradley
February 16th, 2010
8:59 pm
The Jackets seemed loose in warmups, louisville slugger. But every team always does.
RatchetMan
February 16th, 2010
9:01 pm
Whenever Fox wins a title at UGA, it will be his last year there, because better jobs will come a-courtin’. I’d say the same thing about a Kentucky football coach….great conference, wrong sport, wrong school.
EPt Buzzer
February 16th, 2010
9:02 pm
I think I think that Bob Rathbun is the best TV man in all of basketball and a darn sharp dresser!
louisville slugger
February 16th, 2010
9:03 pm
Thank God for ESPN 360, otherwise I’d be out of luck tonight!
Jon Contract
February 16th, 2010
9:03 pm
UK in Starkville tonight. Could be a good game.
Dogs face a Vols team looking for payback tomorrow.
jaymin
February 16th, 2010
9:03 pm
hey mark what do you think are the chances of Hewitt being canned if he doesn’t get past the first round in the tournament? He’ll probably be a 7/8 seed in the tournament playing against probably a Illinois or Pitt/Uconn and he loses against of any of those teams
RatchetMan
February 16th, 2010
9:04 pm
Hey, Mark!!! I see you there. Man, what are you doing in that Yellow Fright Wig and with red body paint on? Oh, that’s not body paint, you just have your shirt off….it is a little cold out, eh?
Mark Bradley
February 16th, 2010
9:04 pm
I’m not sure I said that about Fox, jaymin. I just said he did his biggest winning in Reno with Nick Fazekas, whom he inherited from T. Johnson. (Who’s having issues of his own at LSU.)
Mark Bradley
February 16th, 2010
9:05 pm
Good crowd. Not quite full, but close.
RatchetMan
February 16th, 2010
9:05 pm
Sorry, Mark. I was mistaken. The good news is that it wasn’t you after all. The bad news is that it wasn’t a wig, and the shirtless “guy” was actually a homeless UGA alumna.
Mark Bradley
February 16th, 2010
9:05 pm
Tech wearing white. I like this uniform.
And Ginyard with a foul two seconds in.
Jon Contract
February 16th, 2010
9:06 pm
Whenever Fox wins a title at UGA, it will be his last year there, because better jobs will come a-courtin’.
That maybe so but I do know he has a pretty big buyout.
*Tim Tucker of the AJC has obtained details of the “Memorandum of Understanding” between new basketball head coach Mark Fox and the University of Georgia. According to the report, Fox must pay the UGA Athletic Association $2 million if he resigns his position while under contract*
RatchetMan
February 16th, 2010
9:07 pm
UNC looks very young.
Mark Bradley
February 16th, 2010
9:08 pm
Larry Drew II starts for the Heels. His dad is Mike Woodson’s chief assistant.
Henson airballs a free throw for UNC.
The Dude
February 16th, 2010
9:08 pm
Hahaha… Favors picks up a foul inside 2 minutes.
Mark Bradley
February 16th, 2010
9:08 pm
First Favors foul. Second Favors turnover.
David
February 16th, 2010
9:08 pm
Here we go again, everyone standing around!!!!!!!!!
The Dude
February 16th, 2010
9:09 pm
How about we bet on Favors’s second?
Mark Bradley
February 16th, 2010
9:09 pm
Shumpert second foul. Not two minutes gone.
The Dude
February 16th, 2010
9:09 pm
Sorry to join late… but throw-back unis?
EPt Buzzer
February 16th, 2010
9:09 pm
A turnover by Larry Drew II=Drink II!
louisville slugger
February 16th, 2010
9:10 pm
Man, Favors looks lost…
Mark Bradley
February 16th, 2010
9:10 pm
Favors gets fouled. Makes a move to the goal.
The Dude
February 16th, 2010
9:10 pm
Wow… where has that Favors been?
jaymin
February 16th, 2010
9:11 pm
Hey Joe Contract, any top tier program would pay that to get a good head coach. Don’t you think Kentucky or UNC or UConn would pay that to land their man. May be not a Nebraska or a Texas Tech but definitely a top tier program. I also believe Fox will leave if given the chance.
The Dude
February 16th, 2010
9:11 pm
Mark, you got a mention on SportsNite tonight… Hewitt numbers, or lack there of.
Paul Hewitt's Wife
February 16th, 2010
9:11 pm
money….money….money……………moooooooooooooonnnnnnnneeeeyyyyy
That’s Paul and Mine’s favorite song….then ramblin wreck
Mark Bradley
February 16th, 2010
9:11 pm
Rice with a fullcourt burst and a dunk on Deon Thompson.
RatchetMan
February 16th, 2010
9:11 pm
You may be right, JC, but $2 Mil buyout wouldn’t dissuade most schools that would be capable of tempting him away from UGA, I think. BTW, I think that UGA is actually a good place to coach BB: lots of potential, reasonable expectations, and healthy AA budget. I don’t necessarily think it would be a good thing for him to leave Athens.
louisville slugger
February 16th, 2010
9:11 pm
That’s better from Favors…
The Dude
February 16th, 2010
9:11 pm
Power move by Junior.
Paul Hewitt's Wife
February 16th, 2010
9:12 pm
my husband said that he’s tired of coaching….but he can’t quit because we still have that 7 million to worry about
Mark Bradley
February 16th, 2010
9:12 pm
Carolina with a dunk off the inbounds. And now Rice turns it over.