Wake Forest Athletics
Basketball Gameday - Wake Forest at Georgia Tech
1/18/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
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| Wake Forest at Georgia Tech Wednesday, January 19, 7:00 p.m. Alexander Memorial Coliseum | Atlanta, Ga. |
Wake Forest Game Notes  | Georgia Tech Game Notes | Radio: Listen Live | TV: ESPNU | Tickets |
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - Wake Forest hits the road for the third time in four games, as the Demon Deacons travel to Atlanta to face the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets on Wednesday evening at Alexander Memorial Coliseum.
Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. The game will be televised on ESPNU and can also be heard on the Wake Forest Sports Network from IMG College.
The Demon Deacons (7-11, 0-3) are coming off a 94-65 loss at Virginia Tech on Saturday. The setback was the third straight for Wake Forest.
Gary Clark led the Deacons on Saturday, scoring 16 points on 4-of-6 shooting. Clark went 3-for-4 from beyond the arc to push his season mark to 64.6 percent (31-of-48). He leads the nation and is the only player in the country above 60 percent for the season.
C.J. Harris and Travis McKie scored 15 points apiece, and J.T. Terrell added 13 to give the Deacons four players in double figures. McKie led Wake with four rebounds, while Harris and Terrell dished out three assists each to lead the team. Harris went 8-for-10 from the free throw line.
McKie took over the team scoring lead at 13.3 points per game. He now leads all ACC freshmen in scoring and double-doubles and ranks second among the rookies in rebounding, trailing only NC State's C.J. Leslie.
Wake Forest still has an ACC-leading five players averaging double figures in scoring. Terrell is just one point behind McKie for the team and ACC rookie lead.
Georgia Tech (8-8, 1-2) comes in following a 78-58 defeat of North Carolina on Sunday in Atlanta. The Yellow Jackets snapped a three-game losing streak and pushed their record to 6-2 at Alexander Memorial Coliseum.
Wake Forest leads the all-time series with Georgia Tech, 36-33. The teams have split the season series in six of the past seven years, including each of the past two seasons. Last season, Georgia Tech won in Atlanta, 79-58, before Wake returned the favor with a 75-64 win in Winston-Salem.
| STATISTICAL COMPARISON | ||
| Wake | GT | |
| Overall Record | 7-11 | 8-8 |
| Conference Record | 0-3 | 1-2 |
| Scoring Offense | 71.6 | 71.1 |
| Scoring Defense | 75.8 | 68.5 |
| Scoring Margin | -4.3 | +2.6 |
| Rebounding Offense | 34.1 | 36.4 |
| Rebounding Defense | 37.1 | 34.6 |
| Rebound Margin | -3.0 | +1.8 |
| FG Percentage | .439 | .416 |
| 3-pt FG Percentage | .383 | .293 |
| FT Percentage | .773 | .717 |
| FG Percentage Defense | .446 | .440 |
| 3-Pointers Per Game | 6.2 | 5.9 |
| Assists Ger Game | 11.6 | 14.1 |
| Turnovers Per Game | 15.7 | 13.6 |
| Turnover Margin | -3.4 | +3.5 |
| Assist/Turnover Ratio | 0.7 | 1.0 |
| Steals Per Game | 5.4 | 10.0 |
| Blocked Shots Per Game | 6.1 | 4.6 |
Wake Forest will return home to host No. 4 Duke on Saturday at 4 p.m. The game will be nationally televised on ESPN. The Deacons will then have the mid-week off before wrapping up the month of January by hosting Virginia on Saturday, Jan. 29, at 4 p.m. The game will be televised on the ACC Network.
Last Time Out
Wake Forest's evening looked promising at the start, but the Demon Deacons could not capitalize on their early momentum, as Virginia Tech cruised to a 94-65 victory on Saturday at Cassell Coliseum.
Wake Forest scored the first seven points of the game and held Virginia Tech scoreless for over three minutes. However, the Hokies used a decisive 17-2 run midway through the first period to take control of the game.
Gary Clark led four Deacons in double figures with 16 points. Clark went 4-for-6 from the field, including a 3-for-4 performance from 3-point range.
C.J. Harris and Travis McKie scored 15 points apiece, and J.T. Terrell added 13 for the Deacons. McKie led Wake with four rebounds, while Harris and Terrell dished out three assists each to lead the team. Harris went 8-for-10 from the free throw line.
Virginia Tech shot 58.6 percent (34-of-58) from the field, the best shooting night for a Deacon opponent this season. Wake Forest was at 40 percent (20-of-50) from the field, including a 7-for-21 mark (33.3 percent) from 3-point range.
The Hokies out-rebounded the Deacons 30-23 and won the turnover battle with 10 miscues to 16 for Wake.
Wake Forest opened the game with a bang, scoring the first seven points in three minutes. Clark fueled the opening run by scoring five of the seven points.
Virginia Tech quickly fought back with six straight points of its own, leading into a 17-2 run over a span of six minutes.
Virginia Tech then used a 21-6 run to push its advantage to 20 (38-18) at the 4:21 mark. The Hokies took a 44-24 advantage into halftime and did not let the Deacons closer than 18 in the second period.
McKie Earns 3rd ACC Rookie of the Week Honor
Freshman forward Travis McKie has been named the ACC Rookie of the Week after averaging 14 points, seven rebounds and two blocks in Wake Forest's two games last week.
In Wake Forest's loss to Maryland on Wednesday, McKie posted his fifth double-double of the season with 13 points and 10 rebounds to lead the team in both categories. McKie also added two assists, two blocks and a steal on the night.
In Wake Forest's loss at Virginia Tech on Saturday, McKie finished with 15 points and a team-high four rebounds. He had a pair of blocks and a steal on the night.
This marks McKie's third ACC Rookie of the Week award this season. The 6-7 forward also earned the honor on Nov. 22 following his performances against Hampton, VCU and Elon and on Jan. 4 following his performances against Richmond and Gonzaga.
Wake Forest Owns ACC Rookie of the Week Award
Wake Forest has dominated the ACC Rookie of the Week award over the past four seasons. Since 2007-08, the Deacons have earned the honor a league-high 18 times.
That total easily out-distances Duke and NC State, who are second during that span with eight rookie awards apiece.
Wake Forest is the only team in the ACC with multiple rookie awards in each of the past four seasons. The Deacons earned the honor five times in each 2008, 2009 and 2010.
Six Deacons have combined to earn the 18 awards: James Johnson (1) and Jeff Teague (4) in 2008, Al-Farouq Aminu (5) in 2009, C.J. Harris (4) and Ari Stewart (1) in 2010 and McKie (3) in 2011.
Wake Boasts Some of ACC's Top Freshmen
Wake Forest's freshmen class was ranked as the No. 8 recruiting haul in the country last season. The young Deacs have wasted no time in trying to live up to the hype.
Forward Travis McKie and guard J.T. Terrell have proven to be two of the ACC's biggest impact rookies this season, and center Carson Desrosiers is coming on strong as the conference season begins.
McKie is an ACC Rookie of the Year candidate, as he has been one of the league's most consistent freshmen. McKie leads all rookies in scoring (13.3 ppg) and in double-doubles (5) and ranks second in rebounding (7.6 rpg). He has led his team in scoring eight times, which tops all ACC freshmen.
Terrell is second among all conference freshmen in scoring at 13.3 points per game, trailing McKie by just a single point. Terrell's 32 points vs. Iowa are the most for an ACC freshman this season. He is also second among the rookies in leading his team in scoring (5 games).
Desrosiers ranks second among ACC freshmen in blocks with 1.7 per game. He only trails Georgia Tech's Daniel Miller, who averages 2.0 per contest.
What's Up Next...
Following the Georgia Tech game, the Deacons will host No. 5-ranked Duke on Saturday, Jan. 22, at 4 p.m. The game will be nationally televised on ESPN.
The Blue Devils are 15-1 overall and 2-1 in the ACC following Wednesday night's loss at Florida State.
Wake Forest has won each of its past two home games against Duke, posting upset victories in 2007-08 and again in 2008-09. The Blue Devils have won the past two meetings overall, but both of those games were played in Durham.
Following the Duke game, Wake Forest will have the mid-week off before hosting Virginia on Saturday, Jan. 29, at 4 p.m. The game will be televised on the ACC Network.
The Cavaliers are 10-7 overall and 1-2 in the ACC entering Wednesday's game at Boston College. UVa has lost two straight conference games after opening league play with a win at rival Virginia Tech in December.
Wake Forest has won five straight meetings with Virginia and leads the all-time series 68-59. The Deacons have won eight straight meetings at the Joel Coliseum, with their last home loss to the Cavs coming during the 1999-2000 season.
Desrosiers Coming on Strong
Freshman center Carson Desrosiers has been coming into his own this month. In the three games prior to Virginia Tech, Desrosiers averaged 6.3 points, 6.0 rebounds and 4.7 blocks.
During the stretch, Desrosiers averaged 29.7 minutes per game which ranked second on the team behind C.J. Harris. Prior to the stretch, Desrosiers had played 20+ minutes in a game just twice.
Desrosiers played 30 minutes at Virginia Tech and finished with two points, two rebounds, two assists and a block.
The Windham, N.H. native had his best performance to-date on Jan. 12 against Maryland. He finished with career-highs of nine rebounds, seven blocks and two assists.
Desrosiers' seven blocks were one shy of Tim Duncan's freshman record and were the most by a Wake Forest freshman since Duncan recorded seven blocks at Virginia on Feb. 26, 1994.
Desrosiers has started each of the past five games after missing the Richmond game due to a bout of bronchitis.
