@GTWBB Travels to Indiana for Big Ten/ACC Challenge

Dec. 1, 2015

STARTING FIVE

1. Georgia Tech heads to Indiana on Wednesday to face the Hoosiers in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge at 7 p.m. The game can be heard on WREK 91.1/WREK.org or seen live on btn2go.com.
2. This will be the first meeting between Georgia Tech and Indiana.
3. Indiana head coach Teri Moren was a former associate head coach under MaChelle Joseph at Georgia Tech from 2007-10. Moren coached alongside Joseph for three years, 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. Senior Aaliyah Whiteside is averaging a team-best 21.6 points per game which leads the ACC and is 18th in the nation. She became the 29th Yellow Jacket to score 1,000 career points against Southeastern Louisiana. She has scored at least 21 points in all seven games.
4. Head coach MaChelle Joseph became the all-time winningest coach in Georgia Tech women’s basketball history last year and has a career record of 237-151 and the highest winning percentage in Yellow Jacket history at 61.1 percent. She is currently in her 13th season at the helm of the Jackets.

a win would…
– Be the first-ever win against Indiana and give Georgia Tech the series lead, 1-0.
– Give the Jackets a 7-2 record in the Big Ten/Challenge and a 3-2 record when playing in challenge games on the road.
– Be the 238th win of Coach Joseph’s career and her 388th game at the helm of the Jackets putting her just 12 games away from hitting the 400 mark.
– Give Georgia Tech its 614th program win and put Georgia Tech at 613-578 overall over 41 years of women’s basketball.

big ten/acc challenge history
The Yellow Jackets have a 6-2 record during the Big Ten/ACC Challenge, including an 4-0 record at home. Tech’s two losses in the challenge came at #14/13 Purdue in 2012 and at #16/16 Michigan State in OT in 2014. The Jackets have recorded wins against Nebraska, Northwestern, Penn State, Michigan State, Iowa and Illinois.

old friends reunited
When the Jackets face Indiana in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge, the will be a familiar face on the opposing bench, former Tech associate head coach and current head coach of Indiana, Teri Moren. Moren coached alongside Joseph for three years, 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 was then tabbed as Indiana’s head coach on August 9, 2014. Moren, like Joseph, was a four-year letter winner at Purdue and is a member of the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame.

hello, indiana
The Georgia Tech women’s basketball team will be very used to the state of Indiana by the end of December. All three of Georgia Tech’s road trips in the month of December are to Coach Joseph’s home-state of Indiana – Dec. 2 at Indiana, Dec. 20 at IUPUI and Dec. 30 at Notre Dame. It will be the first meeting in school history against Indiana and IUPUI and the fifth in the seires against Notre Dame.

coach jo’s home state
There is also another huge Indiana tie with the Yellow Jackets – head coach MaChelle Joseph was born and raised there and was inducted into the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame in April 2015. Joseph, a native of Auburn, Indiana, played at DeKalb High School and at Purdue University.

A four-year starter for the Boilermakers from 1989-1992, Joseph is one of the most decorated players in Purdue and Big Ten Conference history as she garnered numerous conference and national accolades. After earning Big Ten Freshman of the Year honors, Joseph was a first-team all-Big Ten selection in 1990, 1991 and 1992 and was named the Big Ten Player of the Year as a senior. She also earned Kodak All-America honors in 1992, when she was tabbed the Women’s Basketball News’ College Player of the Year.

Joseph graduated from Purdue as the all-time leading scorer in school (men or women) and Big Ten Conference history (2,405 points) and was the only player in conference history to rank in the top-10 in both points and assists.

elite company
Senior Aaliyah Whiteside is the top-scorer in the ACC, averaging 21.6 points per game. Her scoring average is 18th in the nation. Whiteside is the only player in the ACC to rank in the top 15 in scoring, rebounding and steals. Along with her 21.6 points per game, Whiteside is averaging 6.7 rebounds per game (14th in the ACC) and 2.1 steals per game (t-15th in the ACC).

Approaching Milestones
Senior Aaliyah Whiteside became the 29th Yellow Jacket to score 1,000 career points on Nov. 18. The Memphis, Tenn., native accomplished the feat in 97 career games. Whiteside’s 1,087 career points rank 27th on GT’s all-time list. She is also quickly moving up Tech’s all-time career free throws made list. She began this season ranked 10th with 286 made free throws but has quickly catapulted to seventh with 336 made free throws. She needs four more to tie for sixth with Ida Neal (1986-89).

Fellow senior Roddreka Rogers is on pace to crack into the top 10 of Georgia Tech’s all-time leading rebounding list. Rogers has accumulated 759 boards in her four seasons so far. She needs just two rebounds to surpass Sasha Goodlett for 10th place on Georgia Tech’s career list. In order to become GT’s all-time leading rebounder, Rogers needs 281 boards this season. She tallied 335 in her junior year.

pick pockets
As a team, Georgia Tech is averaging 13.6 steals per game, which ranks second in the conference, and has had the most total steals (95) out of all ACC teams this season. The 13.6 steals per game rank eighth in the NCAA.

Sophomore guard Imani Tilford is averaging a team-best 3.6 steals per game, which is third in the ACC and 19th in the nation. Tilford has grabbed at least three steals in six out of the seven games this season and has recorded five steals on two different occasions.

leading by example

With Tech’s roster featuring nine freshmen and sophomores, seniors Aaliyah Whiteside and Roddreka Rogers’ leadership is key. The veteran duo has teamed up to score 40 percent of GT’s offensive output this season and have pulled down 29 percent of the Jackets’ rebounds this season. Whiteside has scored at least 21 points in every game so far while Rogers has tallied two double-doubles. Whiteside leads Tech in scoring (21. 6 ppg) and Rogers leads GT on the boards (7.1 rpg).