But KU-Georgia Tech – thanks to a pair of classic overtime contests in 2004 and ’05 – has the word “rivalry” written all over it.

Yes, there could be a budding “rivalry” blossoming between the Big 12 and ACC schools despite the fact KU leads the all-time series by a mere four games to one.

“It’s a rivalry as far as I’m concerned,” KU graduate student manager Michael Lee said matter-of-factly.

He played in both KU’s 79-71 overtime loss to Tech in an Elite Eight thriller on March 28, 2004, in St. Louis, as well as the Jayhawks’ 70-68 OT victory over the Yellow Jackets on Jan. 1, 2005, in Allen Fieldhouse.

Thad Allender

The two teams, who did not meet the past two seasons, will tangle again at 6 tonight in Alexander Memorial Coliseum.

“I think after you lose to a team, then come back and beat them, it turns into a rivalry, maybe not by everybody’s standards, but it’s a rivalry,” Lee said. “I know it’s fresh in the coach’s head (Paul Hewitt) he lost the last time he came here (to KU). He’s going to remind his players, and we’re still reminding ours about the time we lost to them in the tournament.”

For pure enjoyment, the past two KU-Tech games were hard to beat.

In ’04 on the biggest stage – with a Final Four berth at stake – KU’s J.R. Giddens accepted a pass from Jeff Graves and drilled a three-pointer with 16 seconds left, erasing a 66-63 deficit and ultimately forcing OT.

In the extra session, Georgia Tech’s Jarrett Jack, who had a career-high 29 points, drove to the goal then kicked to the top where Will Bynum hit a three to bust a 71-71 tie with 1:53 remaining.

Jack converted four free throws without a miss in the final 47 seconds to seal the victory for the No. 3-seeded Yellowjackets and end the season of the No. 4-seeded Jayhawks.

“I remember it being a crazy, crazy game. It was exciting, but it was just a heartbreaker to lose,” said fifth-year KU senior Jeremy Case. “We fought so hard and lost in overtime.”

It put an end to Lee’s junior season, KU’s first season under Bill Self, whose squad went 24-9.

“I wouldn’t call it shock. Obviously nobody expected to lose,” said Lee, who had reached the Final Four with Aaron Miles, Wayne Simien and Keith Langford his first two years at KU. “We were upset because we fell short.”

Langford was especially disturbed after getting called for a questionable charging foul – his fifth – after making contact with Ismail Muhammad early in overtime.

“I try to live this way … this is my little rule now … you can’t win ’em all, you can only win most of them,” Lee said. “That’s how I try to look at things. That doesn’t help too much. We were upset we got beat. (They had a) good team, though.”

It was a team that defeated Oklahoma State, 67-65, in the national semifinals before falling to UConn, 82-73, in the final.

“I remember how loud crowd was in that dome at a neutral site,” Georgia Tech coach Hewitt said of the KU game in the Edward Jones Dome that allowed Tech to advance.

“I remember us not playing very well. We had no rhythm,” KU coach Bill Self said. “(Then) our guys played unbelievable down the stretch to get it to overtime. From there they controlled the overtime. That team they had was loaded,” Self added. “They had some outstanding guys.”

The very next season, Georgia Tech carried a 9-1 record and No. 9 national ranking to 8-0, No. 2-rated KU to for a regular-season rematch on New Year’s Day.

“I remember the night before they put us in a hotel. There were a lot of distractions leading up to that one – New Year’s, so much going on, Georgia Tech is in town, get us in a different environment to focus,” Lee said. “It was a big game.”

And what a game it was.

Langford hit a twisting shot in the lane with three seconds left in overtime to ice a game that once appeared lost. KU, which was playing its second straight game without an injured Simien, trailed by as many as 16 points the first half.

Langford, whose steal set up an Alex Galindo bucket that gave KU a one-point lead with 1:38 left in overtime, finished with 18 points after a slow start, while Miles scored 14 with eight assists. Jack had 26 for a Tech team that lost B.J. Elder to a leg injury midway through the first half.

“I wish he (Jack) was back for this game. The two times he played against Kansas were special performances,” said Hewitt, whose 2007-08 squad is off to a 4-4 start. “The game in Lawrence was obviously a great ballgame, but it was a down time for our program when B.J. Elder tore his hamstring in the game. It torpedoed a great season for him and our club. So my memories of Allen are not that great.”

Not as pleasant as the Jayhawks’ memories of that New Year’s Day for sure.

“The only thing I remember about it is Keith hit a big shot that either won the game or sent the game into overtime,” senior Darnell Jackson said. “Keith was always a guy that would hit the big shot, and if it wasn’t him it was always Aaron or Wayne.”

“Keith saved us a lot of times,” Lee said of the guard now starring for the Austin (Texas) Toros of the NBA Developmental League.

Langford’s acrobatic shot definitely sent the crowd home happy after some anxious moments most of the day against the team that ended KU’s season prematurely nine months before.

“It’s maybe the best atmosphere in the fieldhouse since I’ve been here,” Self said of the enthusiastic sellout crowd that desperately wanted KU to beat the team that prevented a Final Four berth.

“I guess you could call it revenge. It really wasn’t. The stakes were a lot different from the previous year,” Lee said.

“Even though it wasn’t in the tournament, like we wanted it to be, it felt good beating them,” Case said. “It also kind of hurt knowing that we could have beaten them then (in Elite Eight), but beat them the next year.

“I think they’re going to be wanting to get us back (tonight) for beating them here. When you get beat in an overtime game like we beat them, it always sticks in the back of your mind and you always want to get back at that team. I think it’s going to be a great game,” Case added.

“They’re probably going to have a little grudge against us because we beat them when they came down here. Now we have the chance to go there and play them in their house,” Jackson stated.

Lee won’t get to play this time, but he will watch the game with great interest.

“Nah,” Lee said, asked if he hated Tech for what happened in March of ’04. “Believe me, if I wanted to hate anybody over some tournament games it wouldn’t be them. I’ve got some other names on that list,” he added of Maryland and Syracuse – teams that knocked KU off in the Final Four. “They (Yellowjackets) are always prepared, have athletes, play hard, play smart. They do a lot of things right.

“Regardless of the records (4-4 to KU’s 10-0) they are going to come and play. Every year they are pretty consistent. I don’t care what their record is. Playing us they’ll come out and play. They have athletes that can run up and down just like our athletes. They are never a team to take lightly,” Lee added.

As to whether tonight’s game is another thriller which could fuel the possibility of a real “rivalry” between the schools, Hewitt said: “Those other two games were pretty good ballgames. Let’s see if something memorable transpires.”