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Duke, Georgia Tech both shoot for first ACC victory

Jan 10, 2007 - 5:28 PM No. 11 Duke (13-2) at Georgia Tech (11-4) 7:00 pm EST

ATLANTA (Ticker) -- A pair of teams looking to rebound from close losses meet Wednesday when Georgia Tech hosts No. 11 Duke in an Atlantic Coast Conference matchup.

Georgia Tech nearly wiped out the last unbeaten team in Division I on Saturday before losing 75-74 at No. 14 Clemson.

The Yellow Jackets (11-4, 0-2 ACC) already have matched last season's win total thanks in part to freshmen Thaddeus Young and Javaris Crittenton, who lead the team in scoring and have started every game this season.

A 6-8 forward, Young leads Georgia Tech in scoring at 14.3 points per game while Crittenton, a 6-5 point guard, is averaging 13.9 points and ranks second in the ACC with 6.0 assists.

Despite coming off a tough loss, Georgia Tech coach Paul Hewitt doesn't expect his young team to have a hard time getting up for Duke.

"It's early in the year. All ACC games are tough," he said. "I try to impress upon our young guys that all ACC games are going to be one-possession games. Had we both won big or lost big, it's still going to be an ACC game, and guys are going to go out there and play very hard.

"Anytime you play Duke, there's an added motivation. They've been the best program in this league since I've been here. They always bring out a crowd."

The Blue Devils (13-2, 0-1) had won nine straight before losing their ACC opener, 69-67, to Virginia Tech in overtime on Saturday. Duke failed to make a basket in the final 4:50 of the game and committed a season-high 22 turnovers.

As the Virginia Tech game illustrated, the Blue Devils are strong defensively but have had trouble on the offensive end for much of the season.

Duke is allowing just 54.5 points per game, fourth in the nation, but scoring only 68.8 and have not scored more than 79 points in a game since an 86-43 win over Columbia in the season opener.

Duke leads the all-time series with Georgia Tech, 57-21, including a 19-11 record at Alexander Memorial Coliseum. The Blue Devils have dominated the Yellow Jackets lately, winning 20 of the last 21 matchups.