DePaul Opens Emerald Coast Classic Friday

DESTIN, FLA. – DePaul men's basketball opens action at the Emerald Coast Classic, Friday, against Georgia Tech on the campus of Northwester Florida State College. The game tips at 6 p.m. CT on CBS Sports Network with Alex De Barrio and Mike O'Donnell on the call. Zach Zaidman and Dave Corzine have DePaul's radio broadcast on Sirius XM and the DePaul Blue Demons App.

Chris Holtmann returns to the Emerald Coast Classic, after leading Ohio State to a win in the 2023 event.

LAST TIME OUT
DePaul (4-2) posted its strongest offensive showing of the season with a season-high 95 points while shooting over 50 percent with 14 three-pointers. Five Blue Demons notched double-digit scoring efforts in addition to a career-high seven assists from RJ Smith. It marked the first time DePaul had notched back-to-back games with over 93 points since 2021.

The Blue Demons rank second nationally with an assist rate over 70 percent, while averaging 19.5 assists per game which is also a top-25 mark nationally.

SCOUTING GEORGIA TECH
Georgia Tech (5-1) comes off back-to-back wins against Georgia Southern and West Georgia. The Yellow Jackets lone loss game at Georgia, 92-87, as Friday marks their first game outside the state of Georgia this season.

Georgia Tech ranks fourth nationally in field goal percentage defense, holding its opponents to 34.8 percent shooting and 63.5 points per game. The Yellow Jackets average over five blocks and eight steals per game, led by Mouhamed Sylla who is fifth nationally in defensive rebounds (8.33). Offensively, Kowacie Reeves Jr. has a team-high 13.5 points per game. Georgia Tech is led by Damon Stoudamire in his third season as he looks to lead the Yellow Jackets back to the NCAA Tournament after an appearance in the NIT last season.

THE SERIES
Friday marks the first meeting between the two programs in over three decades, as the series is tied 2-2. The teams last met in the 1991 NCAA Tournament where Georgia Tech came away with an 88-70 win.

UP NEXT
DePaul will play either Drake or LSU on Saturday, Nov. 29. The third-place game will be streamed on EmeraldCoastClassic.com at 3 p.m., followed by the Championship game at 6 p.m. on CBS Sports Network.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

RJ Smith

DePaul University Athletics