Georgia Tech Basketball Set To Play In The Emerald Coast Classic on Thanksgiving Weekend

Mar 12, 2025; Charlotte, NC, USA; Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets head coach Damon Stoudamire reacts in the first half at Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

Damon Stoudamire and Georgia Tech are going to be busy on Thanksgiving weekend.

Georgia Tech’s will play in the Emerald Coast Classic presented by Global Sports the weekend after Thanksgiving as part of its non-conference schedule in 2025-26. The Yellow Jackets are part of a field that includes DePaul, Drake and LSU for the Nov. 28-29 event at Raider Arena on the campus of Northwest Florida State College in Niceville, Fla.

Tech will face DePaul in one semifinal round game at 7 p.m. Eastern time on Friday, Nov. 28, while Drake will play LSU at 9:30 p.m. The third-place game will be played at 4 p.m. on Saturday Nov. 29 with the championship game scheduled for that Saturday.

Both of the semifinal round games as well as the championship game will be televised on CBS Sports Network.

LSU will be making its second appearance in the Emerald Coast Classic, claiming the 2021 title after beating Wake Forest, 75-61, in the championship. Drake is coming off a school-record 31-4 mark, sweeping the Missouri Valley Conference regular season and tournament titles along with a trip to the second round of the 2025 NCAA Tournament. Georgia Tech, under third-year coach Damon Stoudamire, posted a 17-17 record last season, advancing to the National Invitational Tournament. DePaul competed in the first round of the 2025 College Basketball Crown, marking the school's first appearance in the postseason tournament since the 2018-19 season.

Tech and DePaul have split four meetings in their hardcourt history, last meeting in the first round of the 1991 NCAA Midwest Regional in Dayton, Ohio with the Yellow Jackets taking an 87-70 victory. The Jackets are 14-22 all-time against LSU, with the Tigers winning the last meeting, 69-53, in the 2021 Holiday Hoopsgiving event at State Farm Arena in Atlanta. Tech and Drake have never met.

Emerald Coast Classic History
2023 — Ohio State, champion; Santa Clara, runner-up
2022 — TCU, champion; Iowa, runner-up
2021 — LSU, champion; Wake Forest, runner-up
2019 — Florida State, champion; Purdue, runner-up
2018 — Cincinnati, champion; Ole Miss, runner-up
2017 — TCU, champion; St. Bonaventure, runner-up
2016 — Virginia, champion; Providence, runner-up
2015 — Iowa State, champion; Illinois, runner-up
2014 — Ole Miss, champion; Cincinnati, runner-up

Tech, which won 17 games and finished eighth in the ACC at 10-10 last season, will be led by 6-9 junior forward Baye Ndongo (Mboro, Senegal), a third-team All-ACC performer who averaged a double-double in conference games, who is the conference top returning big man in scoring (13.4 ppg), rebounding (8.9 rpg) and field goal percentage (53.6%). Also returning is 6-7 wing man Kowacie Reeves, Jr. (Macon, Ga.), who played just six games last season after sustaining a foot injury (averaged 9.8 points, 3.9 rebounds in 2023-24), and 6-5 sophomore guard Jaeden Mustaf (Bowie, Md.), who averaged 8.6 points and 1.6 assists over 26 games.

The Jackets have added four transfer players to the roster in 6-3 guard Chas Kelley (Boston College), 6-6 wing Kam Craft (Miami, Ohio), 6-4 guard Lamar Washington (Pacific), and 7-0 center Peyton Marshall (Missouri). They are among 10 newcomers to the Yellow Jackets’ roster for the 2025-26 season.