Tech ends home losing streak

ATLANTA - Cornell's Ka'Ron Barnes spent most of Wednesday night's game guarding Tony Akins, so his question was understandable.

``Did he miss any 3s?'' Barnes asked.

Yes, he missed two.

``Whenever they needed a shot, he was there to take it,'' Barnes said.

Akins made his first five 3-pointers and came within two rebounds of the fourth triple-double in school history as Georgia Tech beat the Big Red 86-68, snapping the Yellow Jackets' two-game home losing streak.

Akins, a 5-foot-11 point guard, had 20 points and 10 assists. Kenny Anderson was the last Georgia Tech player to reach double figures in three statistical categories, putting up those numbers against Pittsburgh on Dec. 28, 1989.

``I wish somebody would've told me I needed two rebounds,'' Akins said. ``I would've been fouling and everything to get those rebounds.''

Marvin Lewis and Anthony McHenry added 13 apiece for the Yellow Jackets (7-7), who lost to IUPUI in their last game. With the bulk of their Atlantic Coast Conference schedule starting Saturday, they couldn't afford another loss to an unheralded team.

``I'm just glad we got to .500,'' Akins said. ``We needed this win. It was big. Now everybody is feeling good about themselves.''

Wallace Prather, from the Atlanta suburb of Decatur, led the Big Red (2-10) with 12 points.

``At this point, they just have more talent and more athletes to be able to win a game like this,'' said Cornell coach Steve Donahue.

A winter storm that brought snow and sleet to most of the South led to a crowd of just 1,283 almost 8,000 short of a sellout.

Georgia Tech opened the second half with 11 straight points to take a 20-point lead, then expanded that to 55-30. Akins had back-to-back 3-pointers during the spurt, and Robert Brooks had three points.

Meanwhile, Cornell missed its first three shots of the half and had a five-second violation while trying to get the ball in-bounds.

``Early in the second half, we did some things that we're capable of doing,'' said Georgia Tech coach Paul Hewitt. ``We moved the ball well, shot the ball pretty well and were very active.''

Cornell got back in it with the 3-point shooting of Prather, Jacques Vigneault and Grant Harrell, closing to 63-53 with 8:46 left. They combined for five 3s during the run, but Prather missed three straight free throws.

``If we could have made our free throws during that stretch and got the lead down to single digits, it might have been a different game,'' Donahue said.

The Yellow Jackets steadily pulled away after that, handing the Big Red their third straight loss and fifth in six games.

Georgia Tech struggled throughout most of the game despite a size and quickness advantage. Freshman forward Ed Nelson, normally a complementary player who concentrates on rebounds and defense, was more offensive-minded early and missed his first five shots.

Brooks wasn't any better, finishing 1-for-5.

The Yellow Jackets play host to Clemson on Saturday.