ACC team-by-team previews: Notre Dame, Duke battle for the top

Georgia Tech

Projected finish: 9th

Last year’s record: 21-14, 5-11 ACC

Key Returners (last season’s stats)

F- Zaire O’Neil, 5’11, (Newark, NJ), SR- 12.9 PPG, 5.7 RPG, 24.1 MPG; led team offensively 16-17 season, averaged a double-double throughout WNIT.  

G- Francesca Pan, 6’1, (Bassano del Grappa, ITALY), SO- 11.5 PPG, 3.8 RPG, 26.8 MPG; ACC Freshman of the Year.

G- Imani Tilford, 5’5, (Greenburgh, NY), SR- 9.4 PPG, 3.4 RPG, 27.6 MPG.

Newcomers

F- Breanna Brown, 6’3, (Oakland, CA), GR- Oregon State transfer, Pac-12 Defensive Honorable Mention; Final Four experience.

G- Kierra Fletcher, 5’9, (Warren, MI), FR- espnW HoopGurlz 51st ranked recruit,  AP Class A Player of the Year, McDonald’s All-American nominee.

G- Taja Cummings, 5’6, (Alpharetta, GA), FR- ranked 123rd by All-Star Girls Basketball Report.

F- Daijah Jefferson, 6’2, (Hopewell, VA), FR- ranked 56th by ESPN, McDonald’s All-American Nominee.

F- Lorela Cubaj, 6’4, (Terni, Italy), FR- Prospects Nation 2nd ranked international player, 14th ranked player in Italy.

Head Coach

MaChelle Joseph, 15th season

“My biggest challenge this year is going to be to figure out roles and figure out who’s going to play,” Joseph said. “Right now, I could start ten different people. I’ve got five seniors that could come off the bench or five seniors that could start. It’s a challenge, but a great situation to be in.”

Key non-conference games

Nov 30- Purdue

Dec 17- Georgia

Outlook

Georgia Tech did not lose any significant piece of their puzzle from last year.  They are returning nine letter winners and four out of five starters. They will also receive an abundance of new talent due to transfers and incoming freshmen. 

“There is a sense of urgency,” O’Neil said. “We lost games last year that could have put us in the NCAA where we were the deciding factor- little things like missing free throws and rebounds…We [now] know what it takes and what we have to go to get [to the NCAA]. “

The Yellow Jackets have the advantage of having nearly the same team from last year, so they are focusing on those elements they lacked previously.  In addition to the consistency of the roster, they acquired Breanna Brown, an Oregon State transfer who has Final Four experience.

Never having been to the Big Dance, this group of seniors will try to steer fate in their favor, as this is their last chance to fulfill their hopes of the NCAA.

The size of their additions, particularly Brown, should help shore up rebounding, a weakness last year.

Best case scenario:

Georgia Tech’s offensive leader, O’Neil, is now a senior and they have all the pieces they need to push for better conference play and an NCAA bid. Brown is that perfect fit with size and experience to take them there. Georgia Tech has learned the importance of making free throws and snatching rebounds and their improvement leads to reward.

Worst case scenario:

The Yellow Jackets undergo the same struggles as the previous year and can’t seem to beat teams in the top half of the ACC.