THE FLATS – Four Yellow Jackets scored in double-figures and Elizabeth Dixon recorded her second-straight double-double as the Georgia Tech women’s basketball team upset No. 14 Georgia, 63-53, Sunday afternoon in McCamish Pavilion. Tech has captured two-straight wins in McCamish Pavilion over Georgia with the victory and improved to 3-1 on the season, while Georgia dropped to 2-2.
“I’m really proud of the way we competed today,” commented head coach MaChelle Joseph. “[Lorela] Cubaj kind of struggled in the first half and I challenged her down the stretch in the fourth quarter. I felt like she stepped up and took over the game in the fourth quarter and gave us some momentum on the offensive end. I thought today was a great team win. I thought we shared the basketball extremely well and we got some good minutes from our young players. Anytime you beat Georgia in anything, it’s a great win for our program. We’re really excited about this team and every day, moving forward, just getting better.”
How It Happened
Georgia held the lead for the first 3:06 of the game before Elizabeth Balogun connected on a three-pointer that pushed Tech in the lead for the first time in the game, 7-5, with 5:49 to play. The Jackets would never relinquish the lead thereafter, leading by as many as 13 points in the second quarter. After the teams kept it close in the first stanza, the Jackets put together a 9-0 run in the second frame that resulted in a 24-11 Tech lead. Tech would lead 31-23 at halftime.
In the third quarter, the Lady Bulldogs used an 11-2 run to slice the score to 42-39 in favor of the Jackets with 57.3 left in the frame. Kierra Fletcher would hit the back end of a pair of free throws to send Tech into the fourth quarter leading, 43-39. Jenna Staiti hit a jumper to open the final frame, setting up a one possession ballgame, 43-41, but Tech would push its lead back out 10 points off a Daijah Jefferson bucket at the 2:26 mark. Lorela Cubaj followed with her fifth field goal of the afternoon to return a 57-45 advantage to the Jackets before the Lady Bulldogs made their final push. Georgia closed back within six points twice in the final two minutes, but Tech held strong and sealed the game going 6-for-6 from the charity stripe in the final minute of the game.
The win marked the first over a ranked opponent since Jan. 15, 2017 when Tech downed then-No. 24 Syracuse, 75-66. It also marked the first win over a ranked Georgia team since Dec. 5, 2010.
Tech Tidbits
* Dixon finished with a game-high 11 rebounds and 10 points for her second double-double of the season
* Cubaj posted a team-best 13 points, while pulling down seven rebounds
* Balogun and Fletcher each added 10 points to the scoreboard
* Fletcher and Francesca Pan each swiped four steals as Tech finished with 12 steals for the game
* Georgia shot 41.8 percent (23-55) from the field compared to Tech’s 31.3 percent (21-67) effort
* Georgia Tech finished strong from the free throw line, going 18-for-22 (81.8 percent), while Georgia was limited to a 3-of-11 showing
* The Lady Bulldogs finished with just two players in double-figures: Taja Cole (10 points) and Gabby Connally (10 points)
Next Up
The Yellow Jackets prepare for a trip to Mexico next, taking part in the Cancun Challenge where they will face George Washington and Idaho State.
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