THE FLATS — Georgia Tech women’s basketball hits the road for a Sunday matinee at No. 7/7 Notre Dame. Tip is slated for 1 p.m. in the Purcell Pavilion on RSN. Fans can watch locally on Fox Sports South.
THE STARTING FIVE…
1. Georgia Tech returns to the road for a 1 p.m. for a tilt on Sunday at Notre Dame. Fans can listen live on WREK 91.1/WREK.org or watch on Fox Sports South locally in Atlanta.
2. Notre Dame carries a No. 7 national ranking into the weekend and sits second on the leaderboard in the league with a 10-1 league record, having only lost to NC State.
3. Notre Dame leads the all-time series over Tech 7-0 dating back to 1996. The Jackets have visited Notre Dame on three occasions.
4. Zaire O’Neil has recorded three straight games scoring 20+ points, topping her career-high in back-to-back contests. O’Neil poured in a personal-best 28 points against NC State for a new record.
5. Head coach MaChelle Joseph is in her 14th season on The Flats and carries an all-time career record of 266-172. Joseph is the all-time winningest coach in program history and holds the highest winning percentage in Yellow Jacket history at 61.4 percent.
A WIN WOULD…
-Move Georgia Tech to 15-10 on the season and push its road record to 4-5
-Mark the first win over Notre Dame in program history
-Be the second win over a nationally-ranked team this season
-Mark the first win over a top-10 opponent since a 71-70 victory over No. 8/8 North Carolina on Jan. 6, 2011
-Mark Coach Joseph’s 267th career win at Georgia Tech and give Georgia Tech its 642nd all-time program win
LAST TIME THEY MET
Notre Dame took a 55-38 decision over Tech to open ACC play in early January in the team’s first meeting of the season. The Fighting Irish held Tech to its lowest offensive total since a 69-32 loss at Duke on Jan. 21, 2011. At home, it marked the lowest scoring performance since 2005. Tech shot just 24.1 percent (14-58) from the field in the loss compared to Notre Dame’s 40.4 percent efficiency. The teams finished tied on the boards, each with 40 rebounds.
LAST TIME OUT
Georgia Tech took No. 17/17 NC State to overtime, but could not hold on the for the win despite Zaire O’Neil contributing a career-high 28 points in the contest. The Jackets gained the early lead, but a tough Wolfpack team battled back and held Tech scoreless over a three minute span in the final period of regulation, regaining the lead. O’Neil knotted the score at the free throw line, but NC State outscored the Jackets 14-6 in the extra period for the win.
