By beating Ohio State, Tech can turn haters into bee-lievers
Gani Lawal is among the reasons Georgia Tech has an inside edge. (AP photo)
Milwaukee – For no apparent reason, a Georgia Tech fan stood in the Bradley Center on Friday and, during pregame warm-ups, exhorted the Jackets by yelling, “History!” Turns out the guy was just premature.
History wasn’t on the line in Round 1 — No. 10 seeds oust No. 7’s all the time — but it will be Sunday. And it’s not history of the NCAA tournament factoid sort; it’s history as in memory, in legacy. If the Jackets lose tomorrow, we’ll recall them as a team that flirted with its potential but didn’t quite deliver. If it wins, everything changes.
If the Jackets win, we won’t much care that they were 7-9 in the ACC and were swept by Florida State and finished the regular season with consecutive losses. We’ll see them as a team that took its time learning how to play but one that, at the last possible moment, aced the final exam. We’ll see this as the second-best team of Paul Hewitt’s tenure, the team that reminded us — at a time when we’d all but forgotten — that this coach is more than a man with a golden contract.
The Jackets who were 20 minutes from missing the Big Dance stand 40 minutes from the Midwest Regional semis in St. Louis. They won’t be favored against Ohio State — then again, they weren’t favored against Oklahoma State on Friday — but they’ll have much in their favor.
They’re bigger than this OSU. (Let’s face it: Tech’s bigger than just about anybody.) They’re deeper. They have a guard in Iman Shumpert who defused Big 12 player of the year James Anderson of Oklahoma State in Round 1, and as it happens the Buckeyes’ best player also is a tall guard. His name: Evan Turner.
More than matchups, there’s also this: The team that Hewitt has described as “snakebit” during its regular season has played five close games in nine days and won four. The Jackets beat Maryland on a night they generated more turnovers than hoops. They beat North Carolina after trailing by 10 at the half. They beat Oklahoma State without scoring a basket in the final eight minutes. They are, as the saying goes, finding a way.
Forget snakebit. There’s a growing sense that these Jackets are coalescing in a way Hewitt’s finest team did. Tech reached the 2004 Final Four by winning five games that could have been lost in the final minute. Back then it was Jarrett Jack and Will Bynum making outrageous shots and everyone defending. There’s no Jack or Bynum on this roster, but the defense has been similarly unyielding.
Loading ...“This is no slap on Ohio State,” Gani Lawal said Saturday, “but the way our defense has been we feel like we can stop anybody, even the player of the year.”
To stop now would leave potential unmet. The Jackets didn’t convene in October hoping to slip into the NCAA tournament as a 10th seed and leave after the first weekend. “We did have expectations of how good we could be,” Zachery Peacock said. “And now we’re becoming a unit. We’re all working together.”
They are. But our lasting view of these Jackets will turn on what happens, or doesn’t happen, against the Buckeyes and Evan Turner. “If we win, and we do plan to win, we can get a lot of people riding behind us,” Peacock said. “I guess you could could them ‘haters’. We can win a lot of people over.”
At stake Sunday: A berth in the Sweet Sixteen and the biggest NCAA upset ever posted by a Tech team, but for these Jackets there’s something even more essential at play. They can validate themselves. They can turn haters into fans. They can rewrite their chapter of history.
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269 comments Add your comment
Dave from GT
March 20th, 2010
7:08 pm
Mark….. you are part of the drive bye media…… we expect you to expect Kansas to win.
That’s what keeps you honest!
Technophobia
March 20th, 2010
7:11 pm
We have Cremins arena because before he came to Tech, Tech basketball was NOTHING! Getting into the ACC brought him here and he built the program.
todd grantham
March 20th, 2010
7:13 pm
Mark, who are you picking to take Kansas down?
todd grantham
March 20th, 2010
7:15 pm
I predict that Georgia will be in the NCAA tourney in 2012. And a force to be reckoned with.
Technophobia
March 20th, 2010
7:34 pm
Kansas coming back. Still plenty of time but not too much of a margin of error.
Technophobia
March 20th, 2010
7:38 pm
Hmmm, Northern Iowa is having a lot of trouble getting the ball in bounds.
pantherswin
March 20th, 2010
7:43 pm
way to bradley pick kansas again next year
pantherswin
March 20th, 2010
7:43 pm
he goy shoved out
pantherswin
March 20th, 2010
7:45 pm
fiasco! ku is pu
pantherswin
March 20th, 2010
7:47 pm
bradley is tearing up his bracket sheet
By beating Ohio State, Tech can turn haters into bee-lievers … Contact
March 20th, 2010
7:47 pm
[...] rest is here: By beating Ohio State, Tech can turn haters into bee-lievers … Limos, helicopters, aides turn around after Obama scuttles Asia …Bus safety: school [...]
NCAA: Northern Iowa leads Kansas early
March 20th, 2010
7:48 pm
[...] By beating Ohio State, Tech can turn haters into bee-lievers … [...]
pantherswin
March 20th, 2010
7:49 pm
ku falls
Technophobia
March 20th, 2010
7:53 pm
Another 1 bites the dust.
pantherswin
March 20th, 2010
7:54 pm
ha ha ha
BravesFan79
March 20th, 2010
7:55 pm
Now that Kansas is knocked off, if GT beats OSU they have a clear path to the Final 4!!
GOOD JOB N. IOWA!! A collection of white dudes no major school would give a chance to because because they were “un-athletic”. Never count out pure shooters!
pantherswin
March 20th, 2010
7:56 pm
osu and ky in the finals. take it to vegas baby!
BravesFan79
March 20th, 2010
7:57 pm
And 99.9% of all brackets just got screwed up. Love it… ANYTHING is possible in sports!
That’s why college basketball is so much better than college football!
ThrowdownG
March 20th, 2010
8:00 pm
Bracket Busted! Hey Northern Iowa, how do you like your BBQ’d Jayhawk?
MarchRules
March 20th, 2010
8:01 pm
Rock, CHOKE, Jayhawk! Rock, CHOKE, Jayhawk! Ahahahahaha
BravesFan79
March 20th, 2010
8:01 pm
IndianaMan: So im guessing OSU has 2 future first round draft picks in their frountcourt… whats that? Face it, your team is from a weak league, and dosent have the NBA talent that GT has!
pantherswin
March 20th, 2010
8:02 pm
cant wait to read bradleys collum
Tech vs. Round 2
March 20th, 2010
8:05 pm
“Now that Kansas is knocked off, if GT beats OSU they have a clear path to the Final 4!!”
I bet Kansas thought that too “Northern Iowa? East street to the Sweet 16!”
Technophobia
March 20th, 2010
8:05 pm
March madness!
pantherswin
March 20th, 2010
8:06 pm
osu doesnt have someone who tech has….HEWITT. OSU WINS
pantherswin
March 20th, 2010
8:08 pm
go mo valley conference!
Technophobia
March 20th, 2010
8:10 pm
Yeah, pantherswin, don’t worry about Tech at all, lol.
bake
March 20th, 2010
8:17 pm
wreck tech! gt fans are about as loyal as falcons fans. GO BUCKS!!!
Technophobia
March 20th, 2010
8:17 pm
Earliest loss for a #1 seed since Kentucky in 2004.
Technophobia
March 20th, 2010
8:18 pm
Bake, my comment was sarcasm in case it didn’t come through.
Satchmo
March 20th, 2010
8:21 pm
Why not Ga. Tech. How’s everybody’s bracket doing?
Gordon
March 20th, 2010
8:27 pm
Proud of the heart the team is showing, but 2 weeks don’t cancel out 5 years. There is just too much statistical evidence over too long a time to believe that Hewitt is a good coach. However, this team is talented enough to beat anyone on a given night. I’m enjoying this as long as I can.
Technophobia
March 20th, 2010
8:28 pm
The #1 and #3 seeds are out in our region. #4 Maryland plays #5 Mich St tomorrow. #6 Tenn is in the sweet 16. So if we win tomorrow our region will have either 4 or 5, 6, 9 and 10 for next week.
Kansas Loses
March 20th, 2010
8:34 pm
Last time when Kentucky as a #1 lost in 2004 that helped pave the way for GT in their bracket.
pantherswin
March 20th, 2010
8:34 pm
techno….the sweatbees will not win. they are either over rated or under coached. probably both!
pantherswin
March 20th, 2010
8:37 pm
ga beat tech this year!
Bucky
March 20th, 2010
8:39 pm
We will swat the yellow jackets!!!!
THWGT!!!!!!!!
pantherswin
March 20th, 2010
8:43 pm
hewitt is the willie martinez of college basketball
RickyBobbyOnFire
March 20th, 2010
8:43 pm
I don’t think 3 wins in Greensboro and a Sweet Sixteen appearance (IF they beat Ohio State) erases five years of mediocrity and failure. By all means we should credit Coach Hewitt and the team with an exceptional (so far) post-season. It is not clear if it is a sign of things to come or an aberration. If Hewitt can present a credible plan which addresses the regular season shortcomings, ensures the recruiting of true STUDENT-athletes, establishes academic commitment, hires strong assistants, and provides for continu
Before winning back this fan (and I suspect many others) Hewitt must provide some evidence that he realizes his mistakes and knows how to correct them. Among the issues is the academic commitment of the program, the recruiting of true STUDENT-athletes, correcting trends of underachievement, hiring and keeping quality assistants, and improved performance on the court in such basic areas as free-throw shooting and turnovers. I resent being called a “hater.” I supported Hewitt’s hire and his first several years. Then for a couple of years I was pretty much indifferent. The last five years I have been increasing critical of him, and I still believe the smart move was to fire him last season. But emotion has not entered into the equation and I’ve never really doubted the man’s integrity…just his ability to lead at Georgia Tech. Waiting another five years before making a tournament splash will destroy this program through erosion of fan support and apathy.
Brock
March 20th, 2010
8:47 pm
Bucky- don’t lower your standards to dawg level by saying THWGT.
I like the bucks. Should be a good game.
RickyBobbyOnFire
March 20th, 2010
8:49 pm
Pardon the sloppy semantics…I should have proofread!
pantherswin
March 20th, 2010
8:53 pm
well, if not-yawn-bloviatingrickybobby
Jackets2010
March 20th, 2010
8:53 pm
There isn’t much sportsmanship on blogs.
They brag they’ll win.
They’ll show the next day to gloat if they do.
Disappear if they don’t.
This includes some Tech big mouths as well.
In person, most will complement the other team when they win and be decent about it.
Not on a blog does that happen very often.
Dawg in Delusion-ville
March 20th, 2010
8:55 pm
Good Luck Tech!
http://classreunionprogram.com/classyprogram/uploaded_images/gators-732565.jpg
RickyBobbyOnFire
March 20th, 2010
8:59 pm
If Hewitt continues to diss the media and genuinely concerned fans, he will be toast with or without a contract. Like most academically challenging schools, Tech considers the perception of integrity, academic responsibility, and intelligent play in its athletic programs almost as important as win-loss records.
RickyBobbyOnFire
March 20th, 2010
9:01 pm
pantherswin: since you don’t seem to know who you are cheering for between cats and dogs, you’ll pardon me if I ignore your s**t-for-brains comments.
rainman
March 20th, 2010
9:02 pm
Go Wake! — screw the whole thing up!
A road of OSU, Tenn., Maryland, Wake, Duke – and a national championship season!!
Wounln’t that be the irony of all time — to have to beat three ACC teams in a row to win the national championship.
Lommer3
March 20th, 2010
9:07 pm
Tuck Fech!!! All they have his roundball and they get their a$$es whipped in ovalball – especially in bowl games. The joke by coke is just that – a joke!
RickyBobbyOnFire
March 20th, 2010
9:08 pm
pantherswin: I can excuse your being here on a Georgia Tech blog due to your obvious lack of intelligence and good manners. I doubt that your crack-ho mother returning home from working the streets will be so forgiving when she gets home and finds you wearing her soiled underwear using her computer when you are supposed to be at work cleaning the restrooms at the local Waffle House.
RickyBobbyOnFire
March 20th, 2010
9:11 pm
Lommer3: as a pedophile you should be more careful commenting on things you know nothing about on blogs where you don’t belong. That’s what got you in trouble last time.