December 2, 2015

@GTWBB Falls at Indiana, 69-60

Dec. 2, 2015

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Senior Aaliyah Whiteside recorded a double-double with 22 points and 15 rebounds as the Georgia Tech women’s basketball team (5-3) fell short at Indiana (5-2), 69-60, at Assembly Hall during the Big Ten/ACC Challenge.

“Obviously we are disappointed and we came up short,” head coach MaChelle Joseph said. “It feels like we couldn’t overcome those 30 free throws that they got. Any time a team gets to the free throw 30 times, it’s hard to overcome that. I thought Aaliyah Whiteside and Irene Gari stepped up and made some big shots down the stretch. I thought that our young kids battled.”

How it Happened
The first 10 minutes were close between the two teams, with Indiana slipping out of the first period with a 15-13 lead. The Hoosiers took a 6-0 run into the second period and held the Jackets scoreless for 4:50 minutes. That all changed when Whiteside completed at three point play at 6:38 in the second frame that sparked an 10-0 Tech run that lasted2:41 and put the Jackets back in the lead, 23-19. The Hoosiers would catch back up to the Jackets and the two teams would trade baskets until halftime, when IU took a one point lead, 29-28, into half.

The third period stayed close with neither team leading by more than four points. The Hoosiers took another one point lead into the break in between the third period, 47-46.

The Yellow Jackets came out on fire after the last break, scoring six straight unanswered points in the fourth period to take a 52-47 advantage. It was a battle for the rest of the fourth period until the Hoosiers scored 10 unanswered points in the final 3:44 to defeat the Jackets, 69-60.

Roddreka “Rebounds” Rogers
Senior Roddreka Rogers cracked the top 10 on Georgia Tech’s all-time career rebounding list with her five boards against Indiana. Rogers now has 764 career rebounds, which ties her for ninth on the all-time list. Heading into tonight’s game, Rogers only needed one rebound to tie Sasha Goodlett for 10^th with 760 career rebounds.

20 Point Streak Stays Alive
Senior Aaliyah Whiteside’s streak of scoring at least 20 points was extended against the Hoosiers after scoring 22 points. Whiteside has scored at least 21 points in every game this season, which is the most by any player in the ACC. She is averaging a team-high 21.6 points per game. Whiteside has scored at least 20 points in 15 games in her career. She has led the Jackets in scoring in seven games this season.

Whiteside’s double-double was the first of the season and the sixth of her career. Her 15 rebounds were a career-high, beating her previous career-high of 12 which occurred against Lipscomb on Dec. 29, 2014.

Hoosier State Ties
There were a lot of familiar faces in Assembly Hall tonight for Coach Joseph. The Georgia Tech cheering section was full of the Auburn, Ind., native’s family but there was an incredibly familiar face on the opposing bench. Indiana head Coach Teri Moren was the associate head coach under Joseph at Georgia Tech from 2007-10 and the two were teammates at Purdue from 1989-91. Moren coached alongside Joseph for three years at Georgia Tech, aiding Tech to three NCAA Tournament appearances and three consecutive 20-win seasons from 2007-10 before heading to Indiana State to become the head coach in 2010.. Moren and Joseph are both members of the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame.

Tech Tidbits

Georgia Tech is now 6-3 in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge
With five rebounds in tonight’s game, senior Roddreka Rogers cracked the top-10 of Georgia Tech’s all-time career rebound list. Rogers, who now has 764 career rebounds, is tied for ninth on the all-time list with Joyce Pierce. She needs 37 more rebounds to tie Regina Tate (1988-2002) and LeeAnn Woodhull (1980-83) for seventh with 801.
Senior Aaliyah Whiteside now ranks 21st on Georgia Tech’s all-time scoring list with 1,109 career points after scoring 22 points against the Hoosiers. Earlier this season, Whiteside became the 29^th Yellow Jacket to score 1,000 career points.
With her five made free throws in tonight’s game, Whiteside moved up a spot on the all-time career made free throws chart. Whiteside has 341 made free throws which puts her at sixth on the career list. She needs to make four more free throws to tie Stephanie Higgs for fifth on the list.
Two Yellow Jackets grabbed double-figure rebounds – Aaliyah Whiteside (15) and Katarina Vuckovic (10). The last time two Jackets had double-figure rebounds was when Roddreka Rogers (11) and Zaire O’Neil (10) achieved the feat against North Carolina on March 5, 2015 in the ACC Tournament.
The Yellow Jackets won the rebounding battle, 48-37. Tech has won the rebounding battle six times this season.