The last time Davion Bradford started a game was Wake Forest’s first game in Jamaica; before Tuesday night’s game, Bradford had played 2 minutes in Wake’s most-recent game.

Naturally, he was the pick to defend UNC’s Armando Bacot, which he did to the praise of coach Steve Forbes.

“We really thought he was the best option to start,” Forbes said of Bradford, the 7-foot, 270-pound transfer from Kansas State. “I didn’t want to double (the post), and we didn’t. We thought as a staff he was the best option, and I think he proved that to be.”

Bacot had 17 points and 11 rebounds against the Deacons, but took 15 shots to get there and had three turnovers. He also spent most of the second half in foul trouble, picking up his third and fourth fouls in the first three minutes.

“DB’s got a pretty strong, big chest,” Forbes said. “Watching the game last time, I thought he did a pretty good job guarding him.”

Bradford is the better defensive center for the Deacons, with Matthew Marsh offering more on the offensive end. When Marsh scores 10 points and Bradford gets eight, and they combine for 8-for-9 shooting, the dichotomy between the two lessens.

The assignments shifts with Saturday’s visit by Georgia Tech.

The Yellow Jackets have gone to a smaller lineup in their last two games, with the biggest starters being Ja’Von Franklin (6-7, 214) and Dallan Coleman (6-6, 218). It’s paid some dividends; GT played a competitive game at N.C. State last weekend and snapped a nine-game losing streak by beating Notre Dame on Wednesday night.

Roles for the Deacons’ big men likely shift for Saturday’s game, with Forbes holding some peace of mind that he can turn to Bradford and/or Marsh if needed.

“They’re different, DB’s a big, strong defender who can score around the basket,” Forbes said. “Matt’s a guy that’s pretty nimble and can catch lobs.”

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Here’s what to know ahead of Saturday’s game:

Time: 5 p.m.

Location: Joel Coliseum.

TV: ACC Network.

Announcers: Mike Monaco (play-by-play) and Randolph Childress (analyst).

Series; last meeting: Georgia Tech leads 46-41; Wake Forest won 80-64 in January last year.

Records: GT 9-15, 2-12 ACC; Wake Forest 16-9, 8-6.

Stat to watch: 31.1% | 8-for-39.

The first number is Georgia Tech’s 3-point percentage, which ranks 312th in the country (per KenPom entering Friday’s games); the second is the combined 3-point shooting of Wake’s last two opponents, Notre Dame and UNC.

If you’re superstitious, maybe skip this section.

Wake Forest has been removed from the 3-point barrage (33 by Virginia and Pittsburgh) for more than just the last two games, as N.C. State and Duke only made eight and six, respectively, against the Deacons.

Georgia Tech isn’t a team with the makings of lighting up the Deacons from the perimeter, either.

A couple of 6-6 sophomores, Miles Kelly and Coleman, are the only Yellow Jackets with more than 100 3-pointers attempted this season. Kelly has made 50 of 146 (34.6%); Coleman has made 37 of 120 (30.8%).

Since GT made 10 3s against Syracuse on Jan. 21, it’s gone 32 of 117 (27.4%) in the last five games.

Matchup to watch: GT’s matchup zone vs. Wake Forest wing Damari Monsanto (and Wake’s other shooters).

The Yellow Jackets’ defense is likely to be a matchup zone, which — if it’s running properly — makes opponents stagnant and keeps them out of the lane.

It’s been better as of late.

GT has only given up double-digit 3s twice this season, and one of those was against Virginia (the ACC’s most-prolific 3-point shooting team). Both of those games came in a three-game stretch that bridged December and January.

Cracking GT’s zone starts with Wake Forest boasting the best shooter in the ACC, who’s made more than half of Wake’s 3s in the last two games.

Monsanto made three of Wake’s five 3-pointers against UNC, and in his blistering 28-point game at Notre Dame last weekend, he made eight of Wake’s 14 3s.

He’s not Wake’s only 3-point threat; he’s just the best one, and lately the onus has been on his shoulders to get the Deacons going.

Wake Forest was 8 of 26 on 3-pointers in last year’s meeting in Atlanta, which happened to be Monsanto’s first game of the season after recovering from his torn Achilles. He had two 3s in that game.

Yellow Jacket to watch: Guard Lance Terry (No. 0).

Both players to watch are the heroes from mid-week wins.

Terry had a game-high 19 points in GT’s win over Notre Dame and that’s only part of why he’s listed here. It was Terry’s buzzer-beating put-back that provided the difference, as the Yellow Jackets won for the first time since beating Miami on Jan. 4.

Terry is a 6-2, 200-pound guard who’s from College Park, Ga., and transferred closer to home after spending three seasons at Gardner-Webb. He’s had a bit of a sporadic season.

There was a 16-point performance in the opener against Clayton, a Division II team, followed by a combined 12 points in GT’s next four games. Terry scored 24 points against Miami and followed it up with 17 against FSU, and then went 5-for-24 with 15 points in GT’s next three games.

Terry missed four games with a hamstring injury during GT’s losing streak, but has scored 29 points in two games since returning.

He’s either due for a step backward or he’ll continue his strong play.

Deacon to watch: Point guard Tyree Appleby (No. 1).

You might as well brace for reality that Appleby will take a step or two back from his tour de force against the Tar Heels.

Appleby was in control of Tuesday night’s win from start to finish, with season-highs of 35 points and 11 assists. For good measure, he added seven rebounds.

Oh, right, and he scored the 2,000th point of a college career that’s included previous stops at Florida and Cleveland State.

It’ll be a different test against GT, which figures to be able to keep Appleby out of the lane better than UNC did for the basic reason of playing zone defense.

Still, with a combined 78 points, 22 assists and 21 rebounds in Wake’s last three games, there’s no reason to think he’s going to come to a screeching halt.

There’s room to improve the non-free-throw-line shooting, though.

Appleby was 6-for-20 from the field, including 0-for-6 from beyond the arc. Seeing as that was Appleby’s third game this season without making a 3, it seems likely he won’t follow it up with another 0-fer.

KenPom prediction: Wake Forest wins 80-67.

Deacons Illustrated prognosis: Coming from Tuesday night’s game of two teams entering in a similar spot and taking a divergent path, this sure isn’t that.

Georgia Tech is hurtling toward its second straight bottom-three finish in the ACC after winning the league tournament in 2021. In the Yellow Jackets’ nine-game losing streak, seven of those came by double-digit margins — including 21- and 43-point drubbings by Clemson and Duke in consecutive games.

This is another one of those dreaded TCOB games for Wake Forest. A win isn’t going to help the Deacons much in the résumé-building category, but a loss would deal a heavy blow.

It’s a little bit of a trap-game scenario with Wake Forest off until next weekend. As long as the Deacons play the same way they have for most of the last 70 minutes of basketball, they’ll be fine.