Dec. 30, 2004
ATLANTA – Kasha Terry had 14 points, seven rebounds and five blocks and the Yellow Jackets had four players to score in double figures as Georgia Tech (7-2) defeated Mississippi Valley State (2-6), 74-41, in the first round of the Seventh Annual Georgia Tech/Atlanta Marriott Northwest Holiday Invitational Thursday at Alexander Memorial Coliseum. With the win, the Jackets advance to the championship game tomorrow at 3 p.m.
The Yellow Jackets advanced to their seventh championship game in tournament history and have won the final game in four of the previous six championship contests.
Megan Harpring scored a season-high 13 points on 5-of-9 shooting while Kentrina Wilson and Daphne Mitchell added 11 and 10 points, respectively. Wilson led Tech with eight rebounds in the game and Janie Mitchell pulled down seven as the Jackets outrebounded the Delta Devilettes, 43-32. Georgia Tech’s bench outscored MVSU, 42-10 as the Jackets shot a season-high 48.4 percent from the field while Tech converted on 10-of-14 from the charity stripe.
Georgia Tech went on a 21-2 run to begin the game as MVSU converted on just 1-of-20 field goals over the first 13 minutes of the contest. The Delta Devilettes then went on a 10-1 run to pull within eight points with 3:17 on the clock and would eventually pull within six at 42 seconds before entering the locker room at the half behind by nine points, 27-18.
The Jackets went on a 16-2 run with just over 15 minutes remaining in the game and outscored MVSU 47-23 in the half.
Letecha Smith led MVSU with 11 points in the game, while Angela Howard paced the Delta Devilettes with nine rebounds.
The Yellow Jackets await the winner of this afternoon’s Alcorn State-South Carolina State contest, and will play tomorrow at 3 p.m. in the championship game of the 2004 Georgia Tech/Atlanta Marriott Northwest Holiday Invitational. Mississippi Valley State will face the loser of today’s second game in the consolation contest, which will begin at 1 p.m. Friday.
