ATLANTA – Brian Gregory knew there would be some tough times when he took over a major rebuilding project at Georgia Tech.
This one was really, really tough.
The Yellow Jackets were held to their lowest point total in nearly 30 years, an embarrassing 70-38 at the hands of No. 15 Virginia on Thursday night.
"When you're trying to rebuild a program and do some things, unfortunately there's going to be some nights like this," said Gregory, the team's first-year coach. "As a competitor, it ticks you off. But we've got to bounce back."
Mike Scott scored 18 points and Joe Harris added 16 for the Cavaliers, who were never seriously threatened in an impressive bounce-back game after a tough loss at Duke snapped their 12-game winning streak.
"They just attacked us and we weren't ready for it," Georgia Tech center Daniel Miller said. "They were tougher than us.""
The Cavaliers (15-2, 2-1) held Georgia Tech to its lowest-scoring game since a 53-38 loss to Wake Forest on Feb. 6, 1982, during Bobby Cremins' first season as coach.
"We caught them on an off night, and we were right," Virginia coach Tony Bennett said. "I didn't expect it to be like this, but I'll certainly take it and hope we can keep building on it."
Coming off a 61-58 defeat at Cameron Indoor Stadium, Virginia wasted no time getting started on a new streak, taking advantage of a team that doesn't have a true home arena — Georgia Tech is playing at Philips Arena while its campus facility undergoes a major renovation — nor much ACC-level talent.
Kammeon Holsey, with 12 points, was the only player in double figures for Georgia Tech (8-10, 1-3), which shot only 29 percent (14 of 48) from the field, was 1 of 15 from beyond the 3-point arc and was outrebounded by a staggering 45-22 margin.
"Obviously we knew we would have some difficulty at times making baskets," Gregory said. "Our margin of error is very small. We almost have to make every open shot we get."
Virginia did have a setback late in the first half when senior center Assane Sene collided with Mfon Udofia slicing toward the hoop. Udofia drew a foul on Sene, who sprained his right ankle and had to be helped to the locker room, his arms draped over two trainers. He was on crutches after the game and it's not known how long he might be out.
"I was going for the block," Sene said. "When I came down, I came down on his ankle."
Sene's injury was about the only thing that dampened the mood for the Cavaliers. Their lone deficit was 3-2, after Holsey converted a three-point play, and they stretched the lead to 21-11 before the game was 10 minutes old.
Virginia is off to its best start since beginning 15-2 in 1982-83 — Ralph Sampson's senior year. This was its largest margin against an ACC opponent since a 104-72 victory over North Carolina State on Jan. 29, 1991.
"Whenever you go on the road in the ACC and get a win, it's great," said guard Sammy Zeglinski, who scored 10 points. "Having a week to prepare to play against Georgia Tech and coming off a loss against Duke, we were ready to compete."
The Cavaliers held Georgia Tech to only two points during a span of nearly 6 minutes in the first half, a stretch that essentially decided the game. The Yellow Jackets made 1 of 7 shots during that drought and never got the margin below double figures the rest of the way.
Led by Harris' 11 points, the Cavaliers went to the locker room in total control, up 35-17. They held Georgia Tech to 8-of-26 shooting (31 percent), outrebounded the Yellow Jackets 23-12 and turned it over only once.
Virginia kept it up in the second half, going 28 of 58 (48 percent) from the field. Harris finished with 16 points, while Jontel Evans gave Georgia Tech fits with his quickness and ability to penetrate.
"We couldn't keep him in front of us," Gregory moaned.
The coach wasn't so peeved about the terrible shooting. He was more concerned about the lack of effort and clearly let that be known to his players.
"They brought more energy than we did," Holsey said. "You can miss shots, but you've still got to play hard."
The Cavaliers have taken command of the rivalry, winning five straight over the Yellow Jackets and six of the last seven. This trip also provided Virginia with a chance to get an advance look at Philips Arena, the home of the NBA's Atlanta Hawks and site of this year's ACC tournament.
The Yellow Jackets lost for the sixth time in seven games, including four straight in Atlanta. They have failed to reach 60 points four times during that slide, which has sent them tumbling toward a second straight losing season. That was largely the expectation when Gregory took over as coach from Paul Hewitt, who was fired after going 13-18 last season and didn't leave behind much hope for a quick turnaround.
Gregory doesn't want to hear excuses. The only saving grace for the players is they'll be back in action Saturday at Clemson, so their coach can't work them too hard beforehand.
"It's an advantage for the guys," Gregory said. "They would be in deep, deep, deep trouble."
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