Damon Stoudamire Reflects on Georgia Tech’s ACC Tournament Loss to Duke
Georgia Tech’s head coach Damon Stoudamire addressed the media after his team’s 78-70 loss to Duke in the ACC Tournament. Despite holding a strong lead early, the Yellow Jackets couldn’t hold on, with Duke ultimately rallying to secure the victory. Here’s a breakdown of Stoudamire’s comments following the game:
Opening Statement: “I’m really proud of my guys. They played hard and fought through a lot of adversity this season, with injuries and other challenges. We didn’t make excuses, and I’m honored to have coached them. They fought until the end. The game got away from us after the first few minutes of the second half. Duke is a team that goes on runs, and we just couldn’t stop them. When we couldn’t score during our drought, it reminded me of a time when I played for the Portland Trail Blazers. We had an opportunity to break the run, but it spiraled, and we couldn’t recover. However, my team kept fighting. I’m proud of their resilience.”
On the Cooper Flagg Injury: “Cooper’s injury was unfortunate, but Duke is a talented team with a lot of players who can step up. We’ve faced challenges with injuries this season too, but you have to take a next-man-up approach. It’s unfortunate when players get hurt, but that’s part of the game. If we had won, we would’ve still respected the fact that Cooper was hurt, but Duke has other talented players who can hurt you. We don’t want anyone injured, but it doesn’t change how we approached the game.”
On Year-to-Year Progress for the Program: “Progress is all about perspective. I focus on the positives. With the transfer portal, building a program can be a bit like free agency, so you need to retain your core players while carefully selecting new ones. It’s a balance, and it’s vital not to rush decisions. A wrong move can set your program back, so you have to be smart. Building something solid takes time, but it’s important to keep that foundation intact while improving year by year.”
On the Last Six Weeks of the Season: “Yes, the last few weeks are a glimpse of what we can be. As a coach, you need to adapt to the talent you have, and we’ve made some changes to our approach. This season has been one of growth for me, and even though we’ve had a lot of injuries, we’ve had to adapt and find different ways to win. I’ve learned patience, perseverance, and how to better understand my players. Despite the challenges, this has been a really rewarding year.”
On Defensive Success in the Second Half: “We wanted to be really physical with Duke, similar to what Clemson did against them. For the first 17 minutes of the game, our defense was solid, making it tough for Duke to get comfortable. Duke is a team that doesn’t rely on gimmicks. They play straightforward, and we did a good job of making it hard for them early on.”
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