Naithan George scored 18 points and dished out eight assists, helping Georgia Tech post a 91-82 victory over visiting UMBC in Atlanta on Wednesday.
Baye Ndongo added 17 points and nine rebounds for the Yellow Jackets (5-6), who snapped a three-game skid. Jaeden Mustaf and Lance Terry had 15 points apiece.
Bryce Johnson led the Retrievers (7-6) with 21 points, followed by Louie Jordan’s 17. Ace Valentine chipped in 16 points for UMBC, which had its two-game winning streak snapped.
Trailing by 19 at halftime, UMBC cut its deficit to 58-41 on Marcus Banks Jr.’s 3-pointer with 16:03 remaining. After George’s 3-pointer pushed the Yellow Jackets’ advantage to 63-41, an 8-2 UMBC run pulled the Retrievers within 16 at the 12:04 mark.
Following a pair of Javian McCollum free throws for Georgia Tech, Marlon Short’s layup began an 11-1 UMBC spurt, forcing a Yellow Jackets timeout after their lead was trimmed to 68-60 at the 6:54 mark.
After consecutive Johnson layups cut Georgia Tech’s lead to six with 5:53 left, George’s jumper stamped a 7-2 Yellow Jackets run to extend their advantage to 77-66 with 3:49 remaining. The Retrievers pulled within six again, but Ndongo’s dunk and Luke O’Brien’s 3-pointer helped Georgia Tech pull away for good.
UMBC started hot, jumping out to an 11-2 lead on Jordan’s triple at the 16:34 mark. Ndongo and Terry’s dunks jump started a 19-0 Georgia Tech run that lasted until Johnson’s jumper with 11:52 left, bringing the Retrievers within eight at 21-13.
After Josh Odunowo’s layup trimmed the Yellow Jackets’ lead to 27-20, Georgia Tech answered with an 11-3 run, capped with Mustaf’s five straight points. The Yellow Jackets’ advantage ballooned to 21 following a 7-0 spurt that included Ryan Mutumbo’s consecutive baskets followed by O’Brien’s 3-pointer.
Georgia Tech led 53-34 at halftime thanks to Ndongo’s 13 first-half points. Jordan led the Retrievers with nine points at the break.
–Field Level Media
