Nov. 20, 2006
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LAHAINA, Hawaii (AP) - Freshman point guard Javaris Crittenton scored 10 of his 20 points in a four-minute stretch late in the second half to lead No. 19 Georgia Tech to a 79-61 victory over Purdue on Monday in the opening round of the EA Sports Maui Invitational.
The 6-foot-5 Crittenton took over the game with some impressive penetrating moves, scoring all but two of the Yellow Jackets' points in a 12-2 run that gave them a 72-54 lead with 3:44 to play.
Georgia Tech (4-0) will play No. 12 Memphis, which beat Oklahoma 77-65, in Tuesday's semifinals.
Purdue (2-1) used physical defense to stay with Georgia Tech until Crittenton took over. He had two moves where he penetrated through three defenders and flipped the ball underhanded up to the rim for baskets. He added a one-handed move to the right side of the rim that made it 70-54 with 5:10 left and then capped his personal run with two free throws that gave Georgia Tech the 18-point lead with 3:44 to go.
"Javaris Crittenton put it on himself and took over the game," Purdue guard Chris Kramer said.
Crittenton, who entered the game averaging 15.7 points and 8.0 assists, had five assists and finished 11-for-12 from the free throw line, all in the second half.
Carl Landry had 14 points for the Boilermakers, who finished 4-for-24 from 3-point range.
"Their pressure sped us up a lot," Kramer said, "and then when we started missing those 3s with the long rebounds they were able to get their offensive transition going in the second half."
Lewis Clinch had 14 points for the Yellow Jackets, while freshmen Thaddeus Young and Zack Peacock each had 13. Young had 10 rebounds as Georgia Tech finished with a 48-29 advantage on the boards.
Crittenton, Young and Peacock, the three freshmen starters, combined for 13 of Georgia Tech's 21 turnovers.
The Boilermakers had a 24-17 lead, but the Yellow Jackets closed the first half on an 11-0 run. Georgia Tech went 4-for-6 from the field over the closing 3:43, while Purdue missed all six shots it took and committed two turnovers.
"I thought the key to the game was the end of the first half," Purdue coach Matt Painter said. "The last three, four minutes we took some quick shots. I thought it was really important for us to keep Georgia Tech playing from behind.
"They took over with 12, 13 minutes to go, and it kind of snowballed from there."