THE FLATS – Freshman Elizabeth Dixon notched her first collegiate double-double Wednesday night, helping lead Georgia Tech past Western Carolina, 84-49. Dixon, who finished with 13 points and 10 rebounds, was one of three Yellow Jackets to finish in double-figures as Tech improved to 2-1 on the season.
“We have to figure out how to get off to better starts,” said head coach MaChelle Joseph. “I thought the last couple of games, we’ve gotten off to slow starts. Overall, I was pleased to get some more play off our bench. That has been our focus the past week. I thought that Elizabeth Dixon was really effective on the boards. I’ve really been challenging our post players and our guards to rebound.”
How It Happened
The Jackets shook off a slow start, falling behind by seven as the Catamounts came out of the gate with a 9-2 run. Francesca Pan snapped the streak, hitting a triple at 4:48, and ignited a 16-3 run that closed the opening frame to give Tech an 18-12 lead at the first break. Daijah Jefferson connected on a triple to get the second quarter started as the Jackets held WCU to just six points (12.5 percent shooting) in the stanza to open a comfortable 38-18 lead at intermission.
Tech continued to push out their lead in the third quarter, holding WCU scoreless in the frame until the 5:39 mark, setting up a 46-21 tally. The Jackets would extend their advantage to as many as 28 points in the stanza and push out to its largest lead of 40 points, 84-44, on a four-point play from Jefferson with just over a minute left in the fourth quarter.
Tech Tidbits
* Dixon went a perfect 5-for-5 from the charity stripe to finish the evening with 13 points, 10 rebounds, two blocks, two steals and an assist.
* Francesca Pan hit four treys, going 4-for-9 from three-point range, to post a game-high 19 points.
* Redshirt-freshman Daijah Jefferson had a career-night, scoring a personal-best 14 points, hitting three triples in the process. She also recorded four steals.
* As a team, Tech finished 11-of-28 from three-point range and shot 39.2 percent (29-74) from the field.
* The Jackets won the rebounding battle, 48-31, paced by Dixon’s 10 rebounds and Lorela Cubaj with eight.
* WCU was limited to a 31.5 percent (17-54) shooting clip and was led in scoring by Jewel Smalls with 11 points.
* Tech forced 28 WCU turnovers, converting the Catamount miscues into 31 points.
Next Up
Georgia Tech hosts the next edition of ‘Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate’ on Sunday, welcoming No. 14 Georgia to McCamish Pavilion. Tip is slated for 2 p.m. on ACC Network Extra.
For the latest information on the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, follow us on Twitter (@GTWBB), Instagram (GTWBB), Facebook (Georgia Tech Women’s Basketball) or visit us at www.ramblinwreck.com.
