Lance Terry scored a game-high 23 points, helping lead Georgia Tech to a 77-70 victory over visiting No. 21 Louisville in Atlantic Coast Conference play on Saturday in Atlanta.
Naithan George added 15 points and nine assists, while Baye Ndongo collected 12 points and 11 rebounds as Georgia Tech (10-12, 4-7 ACC) rallied from a 13-point deficit for its first win over a ranked team this season. Javian McCollum had 12 points and Duncan Powell — Georgia Tech’s only reserve — chipped in 11.
Louisville (16-6, 9-2) was led by Terrence Edwards Jr.’s 22 points and Chucky Hepburn’s 17. J’Vonne Hadley scored 16, Aboubacar Traore had 10 and James Scott collected a team-high 11 rebounds for the Cardinals, who had their 10-game winning streak snapped.
After Edwards’ 3-pointer put Louisville ahead 5-4, George’s triple and Ibrahim Souare’s layup gave Georgia Tech a 9-5 edge.
With 14:35 left in the first half, George’s mid-range jumper extended the Yellow Jackets’ lead to 16-12, but Edwards and Hepburn knocked down a pair of triples each, building a 24-16 Louisville advantage with 12:25 remaining.
The Cardinals’ run continued as Traore’s free throws grew the lead to 31-18 at the 7:39 mark. Georgia Tech then snapped a six-minute scoring drought with Terry’s four straight points, followed by Ndongo’s layup, trimming the Yellow Jackets’ deficit to 31-25.
Reyne Smith’s 3-pointer followed by Hepburn’s mid-range jumper gave Louisville a 38-27 halftime lead.
After trailing by 11 at halftime, Georgia Tech cut the deficit to 43-36 on Terry’s 3-pointer and Powell’s layup with 17:24 left. Traore’s dunk and Hepburn’s jumper pushed the Cardinals’ lead back to 10 before Ndongo’s layup and another Terry triple jump-started a 10-0 Georgia Tech run, knotting the score at 49 with 12:49 remaining.
Traore’s free throw gave Louisville a one-point lead, but McCollum’s ensuing layup gave Georgia Tech its first lead since the game’s opening minutes. After Headley’s layup, George’s pair of pullup jumpers stamped a 9-0 Georgia Tech run, as the Yellow Jackets held a 60-52 edge with 8:18 left.
Following five straight Louisville points, Terry’s 3-pointer extended Georgia Tech’s lead to 63-57.
Trailing 74-66 at the 1:59 mark, Edwards and Hepburn’s pair of free throws pulled the Cardinals within four points, but Powell made three free throws in the final 40 seconds to seal the win.
–Field Level Media
