Florida A&M @ Georgia Tech preview

Last Meeting ( Nov 11, 2011 ) Florida A&M 59, Georgia Tech 92

Georgia Tech has played six games so far decided by seven points or fewer and six contests not decided until the final minute, but the Yellow Jackets enter Sunday’s home matchup with Florida A&M looking for a better finish and an end to their three-game losing streak. The Yellow Jackets blew a 10-point lead with less than six minutes to go in a Dec. 6 loss at Wofford, the latest in a series of second-half struggles.

“It’s just one of those games,” Georgia Tech coach Josh Pastner told reporters after the Wofford loss. “We played well for the most part, but we just didn’t get it done.” The Yellow Jackets remain without Josh Okogie, last season’s leading scorer who has yet to play this season due to a suspension and an injured finger, and standout center Ben Lammers continues to be hampered by an ankle injury. Georgia Tech plays three times in the next six days, including a matchup with in-state rival Georgia on Tuesday, so there is urgency to snap out of the skid. The odds favor a breakthough Sunday against a Florida A&M team that has dropped 11 of its first 12 games this season and is 0-11 on the road.

TV: 4 p.m. ET, ESPNU

ABOUT FLORIDA A&M (1-12): It has been a rough season for the Rattlers, who are 343rd in the nation in scoring offense (61.5 points per game) and 303rd in scoring defense (79.4 points per contest). Florida A&M led by five points early in the second half Thursday against Southern before giving up a 28-3 run, shooting 1-for-10 with six turnovers in that stretch. Leading scorer Marcus Barham, averaging 16.9 points per game and the reigning MEAC player of the week, did not play Thursday.

ABOUT GEORGIA TECH (4-4): The Yellow Jackets have rallied from deficits in two of the losses on the current skid, but poor execution led to home defeats to Grambling State and Tennessee before the Wofford loss. Guard Tadric Jackson leads Georgia Tech in scoring at 16.8 points per game, while Lammers is scoring 14.3 points with 8.1 rebounds while shooting 54.4 percent from the field. Pastner told reporters a big focus during the 11-day break between facing Wofford and Florida A&M has been on reducing turnovers.

TIP-INS

1. Georgia Tech has lost three straight non-conference games for the first time since Dec. 22, 2011-Jan. 2, 2012.

2. The Yellow Jackets are allowing 61.9 points per game, 20th in the nation, and are 43rd in opposing field-goal percentage (39.2).

3. Lammers is eighth nationally in blocks per game (3.38).

PREDICTION: Georgia Tech 79, Florida A&M 59