THE FLATS – Behind double-doubles from Talayah Walker and Brianna Turnage, Georgia Tech women’s basketball completed an upset bid of No. 18 Notre Dame, 95-90, in overtime Thursday inside McCamish Pavilion.
Head coach Karen Blair’s Yellow Jackets led 16-14 after the first before Notre Dame took advantage of strong second and third periods but only led Tech 59-53 going into the fourth. In that final frame of regulation is where the Jackets made their mark, out-scoring the 18th-ranked team in the nation, 27-21, to send the game to overtime. The back-and-forth overtime period went in favor of Tech behind opportunistic defensive possessions, handing the Jackets their first ranked victory of the season and first ACC win of the Blair Era.
Tech (6-9, 1-2 ACC) rung in the new year with just its second victory over the Fighting Irish (10-3, 2-1 ACC) in program history and first since Dec. 13, 2020. Walker collected a career-high 33 points on 10-for-17 shooting and 12-for-14 from the free throw line – on top of 10 rebounds. The Odenton, Md. Native also had a new personal mark of six assists. Turnage’s double-double came down the road less-traveled, with 13 rebounds and a career-best 10 assists.
Adding to that was La’Nya Foster, who added a season-high 22 points of her own, just two shy of her career-best. Erica Moon played all 45 minutes Thursday and added a personal-best of her own with 12 points. Catherine Alben entered off the bench with another double-figure game, scoring 18.
Thursday also marked the first victory over Notre Dame at home for the Ramblin’ Wreck.
FIRST HALF
The game’s first points came from an inside layup from Walker, giving Tech an early advantage. She struck again with another inside lay, cutting a 6-0 Irish run. Walker evened the game on free throws at six, with seven minutes on the clock. After Notre Dame managed to retake the lead, Foster tied the game up again, this time eight apiece, on a fastbreak. She added two free throws out of the media timeout to give the Jackets a 10-8 lead. Turnage then made an inside basket to make it 12-8. She then assisted an Ariadna Termis score, now 14-8 in favor of Tech. The Jackets led 16-14 after the first.
Notre Dame tied the game to open the second period. On the next possession, Walker added her fourth make of the game, putting Tech ahead again, 18-16. Moon’s first points of the day came after Notre Dame tied the game at 19, giving Tech a 21-19 lead. She had a quick steal-and-score play on the next possession to put the Jackets ahead 23-19 at the 5:29 media timeout. The Fighting Irish then went on a 5-0 run to retake the lead, before an and-one play from Jada Crawshaw put Tech back in front, 26-24, with 3:46 left. Notre Dame took a 32-28 lead late and got up 36-30 before Alben drilled a triple to make it just 36-33 going into the half.
SECOND HALF
Notre Dame managed to take a 40-35 lead early on in the third and got out to a 45-37 advantage in the first four minutes. Walker managed to get into double figures scoring in those opening minutes. She added another basket with under five left to slice an 11-0 Irish run. On the next offensive possession, Alben drilled a trey to get Tech back within nine, 51-42. That score got the Snellville, Ga. native into double figures. Moon added a pair of free throws moments later to get Tech down seven, 51-44. Notre Dame went ahead 54-46 before the Jackets managed four-straight, including an impressive drive to the basket from Moon, 54-50. Notre Dame added five more but Alben hit a clutch buzzer-beating triple to send the game to the fourth with Tech down just 59-53.
The road team scored the first points of the fourth but were answered on a layup from Termis – her second bucket of the day. A second-chance basket from Walker cut into the Notre Dame lead, now 63-57. Walker struck again moments later, answering another Fighting Irish score, with a triple – sending the score to 65-60. She tied her career-high for points at 22 with two free throws, once again making it a five-point game, 67-62. Notre Dame got to 71 before Walker added her career-best 24th point, now 71-66 with six minutes left. Back-to-back tough scores for Tech made it just a four-point game, 74-70, with under five on the clock. Another clutch steal-and-score from Moon then cut it to 74-72 into the 4:10 media timeout. After ND scored four quick points, a tip from Turnage to Walker once again sliced it to four, 78-74, with under three left. A step-back jumper from Foster on the next possession later put it at two again 78-76. After Turnage forced a jump ball in favor of the Jackets, Moon added her career-best 12th point to even the game at 78 with under two left. Foster answered another Irish basket on an assist from Turnage with under a minute left, evening the game at 80 and sending the game to overtime.
OVERTIME
A single Irish free throw marked the first points of the extra period. Walker evened the game at 81 with a free throw of her own with four minutes left. Foster then gave Tech the lead on a drive to the rim, now ahead 83-81. Notre Dame took an 85-83 lead before Alben sank a trey, once again putting Tech in front, 86-85. Walker then made an inside layup on an assist from Turnage, making it 88-85 with a minute left. Walker drew a foul with 0:58 left and made both free throws, giving Tech a 90-85 lead. No. 21 proved clutch again with two more free throws, now with the Jackets leading 92-85. Notre Dame added a triple but two free throws from Foster kept it a six-point game, 94-88, with 0:13.6 left. Turnage added a free throw as Tech held on for the 95-90 win.
GAME NOTES
- Georgia Tech improved to 6-2 at home this season, now having won four-straight.
- Thursday marked Georgia Tech’s first home win over a ranked ACC foe since Feb. 2, 2023 (#13/15 NC State)
- Georgia Tech shot 53.0% from the floor against the Fighting Irish – the best mark by the team this season and the best by a Notre Dame opponent this season.
- Georgia Tech’s 27 assists were also the most against Notre Dame this season.
- Turnage is the first Yellow Jacket this season with double-digit assists.
- Georgia Tech only led for 12:15 Thursday.
- Tech held Notre Dame to 14 first quarter points, their second-fewest this season.
- The victory was the first overtime win for Georgia Tech since March 3, 2024 (at Miami). Thursday marked Tech’s first overtime game since Jan. 19, 2025.
- Sunday’s 3,759 attendance is the eighth-most for a Tech women’s basketball game inside McCamish Pavilion and second-most this season (Nov. 6 vs. Radford – 5,467).
UP NEXT
Georgia Tech hits the road for the first time in 2026 on Sunday, Jan. 4 at 4 p.m. against SMU – a homecoming for GT head coach and former SMU point guard Karen Blair.
Tech is back home Thursday, Jan. 8 at 7 p.m. against Virginia on ACC Network Extra. Fans can purchase tickets here.
Full Steam Ahead
Full Steam Ahead is a $500 million fundraising initiative to achieve Georgia Tech athletics’ goal of competing for championships at the highest level in the next era of intercollegiate athletics. The initiative will fund transformative projects for Tech athletics, including renovations of Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field (the historic home of Georgia Tech football), the Zelnak Basketball Center (the practice and training facility for Tech basketball) and O’Keefe Gymnasium (the venerable home of Yellow Jackets volleyball), as well as additional projects and initiatives to further advance Georgia Tech athletics through program wide-operational support. All members of the Georgia Tech community are invited to visit atfund.org/FullSteamAhead for full details and renderings of the renovation projects, as well as to learn about opportunities to contribute online.
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