Nov. 21, 2010
ATLANTA – A 14-0 run midway through the first half for the top-ranked Connecticut Huskies gave the visiting team a large lead and the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets were never able to recover Sunday afternoon at Alexander Memorial as UConn won its 81st straight game, 71-51. 7,325 people saw the Jackets take on the two time defending champions, a record crowd for Tech women’s basketball.
We’re disappointed in the outcome today but there are so many positives for us to take away,” head coach MaChelle Joseph said. “We want to thank our fans and our administrators and our supporters for everything they did to help us set the record for the highest attendance in the history of our program. I’m very proud of that.
“There are a couple of things we can build on, like to out-rebound Connecticut is a major accomplishment for us and to hold them for 3-of-23 from the three point line,” Joseph added. “I thought that our matchup zone defense was pretty effective, but we have got to develop an inside game. I was very impressed with Ty Marshall, for a freshman to step up and make the plays she did against a very good UConn team bodes well for the future.”
A Tyaunna Marshall jumper at 13:29 of the second half cut the UConn lead to 11 points, but the Jackets were not able to get any closer the rest of the way.
All-American Maya Moore was sensational in her return to her hometown, scoring a game-high 30 points and adding eight rebounds. The senior forward played her high school basketball at nearby Collins Hill in Gwinnett, and had a large contingent of fans in the arena to see her first return home.
The Jackets were led by freshman Tyaunna Marshall. The guard, in her first year of collegiate basketball, scored a new career high with 23 points and also had six rebounds. She has reached double figures in points in four of five games played.
Both teams struggled with turning the ball over. Georgia Tech had 24 turnovers and UConn had 19 of their own. The Huskies were better able to take advantage of Tech’s mistakes, however, as they scored 23 points off of turnovers compared to just 11 for Tech. The Huskies’ ball movement, 23 assists on 31 field goals, helped them pull away from the Yellow Jackets. Against a stiff UConn defense, Tech managed only seven assists on 19 field goals.
UConn did most of its damage in the paint, outscoring the Jackets 50-20. Neither team shot well from three-point land, with UConn making 3-of-23 and Tech making 1-of-10.
Senior guard Alex Montgomery struggled with foul trouble all game, but still managed to score 13 points and grab eight rebounds. The team co-captain picked up her third foul before halftime, but was able to make an impact in limited minutes in the second half.
The Jackets were able to do well on the boards, out-rebounding UConn 40-38. Sasha Goodlett led Tech with 9, while Maya Moore had 8 for the Huskies.
With the loss, Georgia Tech drops to 3-2 on the season and 0-2 all-time against UConn. The win improves the Huskies to 3-0 on the season.
Georgia Tech next heads to the U.S. Virginia Islands to take part in the Paradise Jam. The Jackets take on #13/13 Georgetown on Thursday, #4/4 Tennessee on Friday, and Missouri on Saturday.
— RamblinWreck.com —
