 2002-2003
Record: 16-15, 7-9 ACC, NIT Third Round)
2003 Round-Up:
Last season was supposed to be the start of
a potential new era of greatness for Georgia
Tech. With prize recruits Chris Bosh and
Jarrett Jack in to complement his group of
high-flying scorers, Paul Hewitt's team was
looking to crack the ACC's first division. Instead,
the Jackets finished fifth in a mediocre year
for the conference, and Bosh went pro after a
superb freshman year. Ironically, his early
defection was the kind of circumstance that
wound up driving Hewitt's predecessor, Bobby Cremins,
out of coaching. Cremins built his teams
around a few ultra-talented players and
sprinkled in role players to do the dirty work, a
formula that earned him 3 ACC titles and a trip to the Final Four. When his
players started turning pro earlier and earlier (Dennis Scott: 3 years, Kenny Anderson: 2 years, Stephon Marbury: 1
year), he could no longer keep up with the
league's powers. A similar thing might occur
with Hewitt if he's not careful.
Compounding Bosh's early departure is the fact
that the team's only other true inside
presence, gritty forward Ed Nelson, decided to transfer.
Hewitt will face a year deciding on whether to go with a nearly all-perimeter attack or trying to juryrig a post
game. A larger
difficulty looms over his personnel problems, however: despite the fact that he had a lot of talent last year, his squad
was still just barely over .500 for the
season. Tech had three double-digit scorers
and a fourth at 9.5 ppg, but also lost a lot
of close games and had trouble taking care of
the ball, with a slight negative turnover margin. Tech's biggest sin was simply their youth; with no senior
leadership on the team, the team frequently
struggled in the clutch or folded when elite teams made
huge runs on them.
Tech lost an opportunity for momentum early in the
year after they upset an excellent Georgia
club. Behind frosh Bosh's double-double and
24 points from BJ Elder, Tech won a close won
down the stretch. The Jackets then lost by 1 to Minnesota on the road, thanks to
a late Rick Rickert shot, and then to
Tennessee on a last-second miracle fling. That
loss reverbrated for awhile as it started a
slump where Tech lost three of four, all on
the road. Going into the ACC season, Tech was
5-5 and on the edge of disaster.
The Jackets responded with dominant home wins over
NC State and Florida State. Tech's home-away disparity was another sub-theme
for their season, and another quality
indicative of a young team. The Jackets were
an impressive 13-2 at home and a disastrous
2-11 on the road. They defeated everyone except Duke and Wake Forest at home and
only managed to beat a flaky Virginia squad
and Iowa in the NIT on the road. Georgia
Tech managed to keep their heads above water
in January, rising to 11-7 overall on
February 1st. With Bosh now starting to tap
his full potential, scorers like Lewis and
Elder complementing him and Jack doing a nice job running
the show, Tech was not only winning but pounding their foes. They crushed
talented UNC and Virginia clubs by 20 and gave league regular season champ Wake Forest a tough time. Tech only looked outmatched in a game against Duke where Bosh got in early foul
trouble.
 After a frustrating road loss to lowly Clemson,
Tech pulled off their most stunning win: a
huge upset against Maryland. That game was a
total team effort, with Elder leading in
scoring while Bosh & Nelson outplayed Maryland's
impressive frontcourt. After that impressive
win where Tech scored 90 points, the team
suddenly had a power outage that lasted five games--all
defeats. The Jackets could only manage 61 ppg
during this stretch, with the worst defeat
coming at UNC, where they coughed up a 10 point
lead in the waning minutes of the game. With
a 12-13 record, Tech had to win their last
couple of games to even think about making the NIT. The
Jackets came through in wins against Virginia and Clemson, making the postseason despite dropping their ACC Tournament
opener against NC State.
Tech beat very solid Ohio State and Iowa squads
and only fell in a road game against Texas
Tech. The Jackets had started to coalesce a
bit after their losing streak and were
looking like a team on the rise...until Bosh and
Nelson left. Tech's overall team strength was
rebounding, with a +3.5 margin on the season. The Bosh-Nelson tandem wasa big reason why. In everything else, Tech was good but not great.
They were fourth in the league in scoring,
sixth in FG%, seventh in turnover margin, 3rd in blocked
shots and 5th in steals. Their numbers
reflected an up-and-down but ultimately
middle of the road team. We'll see if such a
performance is looked upon nostalgically in
2004.
Team MVP: Chris Bosh
Best Wins: Georgia, Maryland, NC State
Worst Losses: Clemson, Florida State
2004 Scouting
Report:
Who's Leaving: F Ed Nelson (8.1 ppg, 6.5 rpg), C
Chris Bosh (15.6 ppg, 9 rpg, 67 blocks)
Who's Coming Back: G Jarrett Jack (9.5 ppg, 3.5
rpg, 185 assists), G Marvin Lewis (12.2 ppg,
3.5 rpg), G David Nelson (.3 ppg), SF BJ Elder (15 ppg),
SF Jim Nystrom (1.2 ppg), SF Anthony McHenry (2 ppg), SF David Ewing (.5 ppg), F Isma'il Muhammad (8.1 ppg, 6.5 rpg),
F Robert Brooks (.7 ppg), PF Theodis Tarver
(2.8 ppg, 1.9 rpg), C Luke Schenscher (3.7 ppg, 3.1 rpg)
Who's New: G Will Bynum (Arizona transfer,
eligible in January 2004), G Mario West
(redshirt frosh), Clarence Moore (last played in 2002, 9.4 ppg, 5.4 rpg)
Losing
24 ppg and 15.5 rpg in the form of Bosh and Nelson is a huge blow for the Jackets.
Bosh's overall numbers were simply sensataionl. He shot 56% from the floor, 49% from three, 73% from the
line and was an easy choice for ACC rookie of
the year. Nelson's role diminished with the arrival of Bosh, but he still started 12 times and
did the dirty work inside. Stepping into their places will be 7 footer
Schenscher, a somewhat gangly
work-in-progress who must be prepared for big minutes this
year. He has certainly had his
moments in his career and he can certainly block
shots (25 in '03), but he'll need to do a whole lot more this season. Tarver
is a young forward who also showed flashes in his 10
minutes a game as a frosh, demonstrating nice athleticism and shotblocking abilities. Potential
will need to become reality rather quickly, though. He
did average 7 ppg and 4 rpg in the NIT and in general looked good down the stretch, giving some hope that he'll improve
the way that many sophomores do. That NIT run might have a more positive
long-range effect than anyone would have
suspected.
While the post is problematic, the Jackets have
some nice players at wing. Foremost is 2/3 Elder, who was second on the team
in scoring and shot 40% from three. He quickly developed into a go-to player who
wasn't afraid to take the final shot. Elder led the team in FG attempts last year and that number will only rise in his junior
year. Presenting a different look is high-flying Isma'il Muhammad, a
superb athlete who loves attacking the rim. While not a great shooter (40% overall and 20%
from three) or reliable scorer, he makes for
a perfect backup and change of pace. Also at wing is lanky Anthony McHenry, who had a
disappointing sophomore year. He will probably get a lot more playing time this
year, though I imagine some of it will be in
the post.
Two other forwards of note include senior Robert
Brooks, a tough but undersized player who
only got 5 minutes of PT a game; and Clarence Moore.
Moore has only played a couple of years of basketball, but decided to quit last year. Recently,
he has rediscovered his love of the game and may wind
up playing for the Jackets this year. They
could certain use his help inside. Moore was always a very good defender and this
team will need him in that role.
Tech's backcourt will be extremely skilled. In addition to Elder playing some minutes at the two, the Jackets will
also have senior Marvin Lewis, who will no
doubt also be the team captain once again. Lewis
was the team's other double-digit scorer,
shooting 37% from three. The team will lean on him quite heavily. Tech's best hope for the year will be soph PG Jack, who had an excellent frosh campaign. He will need to step up his shooting (28% from three) and cut down on
his turnovers (106), but most frosh improve
dramatically in their sophomore years. Jack
will need to average in double-figures for
Tech to have a chance this year. He'll get some help from Arizona transfer Will Bynum, a
talented point who can also really score. He's a shooting guard in a point guard's body
(5-11), but should be able to help Tech at
both positions as a reserve. He'll need to improve his three point marksmanship (29%
for his career).
 Georgia Tech is certainly not without talent. The problem is that it's almost entirely in the backcourt and on the wings. Schenscher and Tarver aren't scaring anyone in the league, even Clemson. Smart teams will
overload the perimeter on defense in an attempt to jam shooters. Without having
to worry about defending a balanced offense, teams will simply ignore Schenscher and concentrate on shutting
down the other scorers. Offensively, smart
teams will attack inside and try to get Tech's bigs in
quick foul trouble, and send a bunch of guys to the offensive boards. If I'm
Paul Hewitt, I put my 5 best players on the floor at the same time, regardless of position. Yes, that will get Tech in trouble against some teams, but having three top scorers in Elder,
Lewis & Jack alongside a high-flier (and
solid rebounder, with 49 offensive boards) like Muhammad
could cause matchup problems for some.
Defensively, Tech needs to compensate
for its lack of rebounding by forcing more turnovers with a
press; this is where deep reserves like McHenry, Brooks and Moore could come in handy.
In a year where most of the teams in the league will be better, it's a dangerous time for Tech. We'll see what Hewitt's team is really made of rather quickly.
Projected Starting Lineup: C
Schenscher, F Tarver, G BJ Elder, G Marvin Lewis,
G Jarrett Jack
Strength of Schedule: .72
Marquee Matchups: @ Georgia
Mid-Majors: Louisiana-Lafayette (Preseason NIT), @
Ohio State, St Louis, St John's
Low-Majors: Marist, VCU
Tune-Ups: @ Cornell, Tennessee State, Alabama
A&M
(Other first round NIT matchups: Vermont @ Nevada,
St Francis @ UMASS, Hofstra @ Marist,
Davidson @ Texas Tech, Yale @ UConn, Georgia State @
Utah, UMKC @ Minnesota. Since
this is a single elimination tournament, there's
no telling how many good teams Tech could face. UConn
and Utah would both be marquee matchups and
most of the other teams are low major at
worst. For the purposes of this exercise, I
will assume one victory and that Tech's
second round opponent will also be a mid-major.)
Comments: A schedule that's stronger in the middle than at
the top, it's probably an appropriate one for
a weakened Tech squad. That could change, however, depending on how well Tech does in the
preseason NIT. There aren't exactly a ton of great teams in this field,
with #1 UConn the best possible foe, and
solid squads like Utah, Texas Tech and Minnesota likely
to provide fairly stiff challenges. Of
course, the Yellow Jackets drew a tough first
round opponent in Louisiana-Lafayette, a 20 game winner that features former Georgia Tech recruit Michael
Southall. Southall had signed a letter of intent with Kentucky and then later
Tech, but was released from both schools
thanks to drug and alcohol-related run-ins with the law.
He's done rather well at ULL, however.
Speaking of familiar faces, Ohio State (whom Tech
beat in last year's NIT) will now have former
Clemson gunner Tony Stockman eligible for play. St
John's won the NIT but will sorely miss leading scorer Marcus Hatten. St Louis was yet another NIT squad that will be
looking to rebuild. Marist didn't have a
great record but did have a top 200 RPI, while VCU won
18 games under rookie coach Jeff Capel III. Capel
is so young that he will be coaching his
youngest brother this year!
If Tech gets to the NIT Final Four and plays
UConn, their schedule rating would rise to
.92, good for fourth best in the league. They
would be guaranteed of playing at least twice
in the NIT if they got that far, which would
be a huge boost for their RPI. This goal is
quite realistic given the competition in this
year's NIT; getting homecourt advantage in the
second round could be a crucial component in making it to the Final Four. A
convincing win over ULL in front of a large crowd could make this happen.
Reported by Rob Clough, tmc@duke.edu
Rob's Archive
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