Wright St. @ Georgia Tech preview

It was yet another shaky second half for Georgia Tech on Tuesday against in-state rival Georgia, a theme that has continued to crop up throughout the Yellow Jackets’ nonconference schedule. Georgia Tech hosts Wright State on Friday, its penultimate game before ACC action begins next weekend, and after being outscored by 19 points in the final 20 minutes of an 80-59 blowout loss at Georgia, the Yellow Jackets are seeking answers as they have dropped four of their past five contests.

“They just kicked our butts in the second half,” Georgia Tech coach Josh Pastner told reporters after the loss, which dropped the Yellow Jackets to .500 on the season. “They really punched us in the mouth and kept punching us and we did not respond real well.” One positive is sophomore guard Josh Okogie, who played in just his second game of the season and scored 19 points against the Bulldogs. An area of growing concern is center Ben Lammers, who scored six points or fewer for the third time in his past eight games while dealing with an ankle injury the senior described postgame Tuesday as, “very frustrating.” The Raiders fell behind by 18 points at halftime Tuesday in a 66-50 loss to Missouri State, ending a three-game winning streak.

TV: 9 p.m. ET, RSN

ABOUT WRIGHT STATE (7-5): The Raiders have played disciplined defense this season, allowing just 64 points per game (35th in the nation) while committing only 15.4 fouls per contest (19th in the country). Grant Benzinger leads Wright State in scoring at 13.8 points per game, and Justin Mitchell scored 18 points in the loss to Missouri State. The Raiders have won seven of their past nine following an 0-3 start.

ABOUT GEORGIA TECH (5-5): Lammers, who averaged 14.2 points and 9.2 rebounds per game last season, is scoring 8.6 points with 8.2 rebounds in his past five contests. Okogie has 40 points in two games on 11-of-29 shooting from the field, while guard Tadric Jackson scored 17 points against Georgia after missing the second half of Sunday’s victory over Florida A&M with an ankle injury. The Yellow Jackets are 25th nationally in scoring defense (62.9 points per game) but 334th in scoring offense (64.9 points per contest).

TIP-INS

1. Lammers is shooting 49.5 percent from the field, but is at 34.1 percent in his past five contests.

2. The Yellow Jackets finished with a season-low five assists against Georgia.

3. Georgia Tech shot 25 percent from the field in the second half Tuesday.

PREDICTION: Georgia Tech 65, Wright State 61