Georgia Tech @ Miami preview

Last Meeting ( Jan 3, 2018 ) Miami-Florida 54, Georgia Tech 64

Miami briefly halted its slide toward the bottom of the ACC standings by snapping a five-game losing streak, but it has dropped two of three since that game entering Saturday’s home contest against Georgia Tech. The Hurricanes fell 64-57 on Sunday at Boston College, their 10th conference loss in 13 games, and Miami begins the weekend in a three-way tie for 12th with road games still looming at top-ranked Duke and No. 18 Virginia Tech.

The Hurricanes need far better shooting in the stretch run then they displayed against the Eagles, finishing just 36.7 percent from the field and a season-worst 15.4 percent from 3-point range. “Bottom line is if you’re open and you’ve got a shot, it’s not the offense,” Miami coach Jim Larranaga told the media afterward. “It’s whether the shot goes in or not.” The Yellow Jackets are one game ahead of Miami in the standings after snapping a seven-game losing streak Wednesday, downing last-place Pittsburgh 73-65. “I think we’ve gotten better, and we have gotten better,” Georgia Tech coach Josh Pastner told the media after his club’s first victory since Jan. 22. “It just hasn’t shown up in the win column.”

TV: 2 p.m. ET, FS South (Atlanta), FS Sun (Miami)

ABOUT GEORGIA TECH (12-15, 4-10 ACC): Sophomore guard Jose Alvarado, the Yellow Jackets’ leading scorer at 12.3 points per game, finished with a career-high 29 points against Pittsburgh. Junior forward James Banks III blocked five shots Wednesday and is ninth nationally at 2.58 per contest. The Yellow Jackets have shot 37 percent from 3-point range in their past four games after hitting just 14.6 percent of their attempts in the previous five games.

ABOUT MIAMI (11-14, 3-10): Senior center Ebuka Izundu scored 14 points against Boston College and added nine rebounds, entering the weekend fourth in the conference in rebounding per game (8.8). Sophomore guard and leading scorer Chris Lykes ranks seventh in the ACC in scoring at 16.8 points per game, reaching double figures 22 times this season. The Hurricanes are eighth nationally in fewest fouls per game (14.4).

TIP-INS

1. Alvarado has scored 46 points in his past two games on 15-of-24 shooting from the field after totaling just 24 points on 10-of 59 shooting in his previous six games.

2. Miami’s four 3-pointers and 21 first-half points Sunday matched season lows.

3. Izundu’s 3.4 offensive rebounds per game ranks second in the ACC and 17th in the nation.

PREDICTION: Miami 65, Georgia Tech 61