THE FLATS – Following a thrilling season opener, Georgia Tech women's basketball returns to the court to face Samford Thursday, Nov. 5 inside McCamish Pavilion.
Last time out, the Yellow Jackets were led by Talayah Walker, who cemented one of the best performances in program history, securing 40 points - the first Jacket to do so since Jan. 2, 1999. She also set the ACC record for points scored in a season opener, besting the previous mark of 34. Tech defeated Hofstra, 80-65, to start 1-0 for the seventh-straight season.
La'Nya Foster and Jordan Ode (who made her first collegiate start Monday) also shined for Tech, scoring 19 and 12 points, respectively. Foster finished one rebound shy of her fifth career double-double.
Tech is set for its duel with Samford, who won the SoCon crown last season. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. on ACC Network Extra.
GAMEDAY INFORMATION
- Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (1-0, 0-0 ACC) vs. Samford Bulldogs (1-0, 0-0 SoCon)
- Thursday, Nov. 5 | 7 p.m. ET
- TV: ACC Network Extra
- PxP: Nick Klos | Analyst: Fallon Stokes
- Radio: Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets App | SiriusXM 989 or on the SiriusXM App | Listen Here
- PxP: Richard Musterer | Analyst: Kurt Hoyt
- Live Stats
- Game Notes: Georgia Tech | Samford
- Media Center
- Purchase Tickets
SERIES HISTORY
Thursday is the fifth meeting between Tech and Samford, and the first since the 2016-17 season. Tech holds a 4-0 series advantage, with all victories coming on The Flats. Last time out, the Jackets won 62-57 inside McCamish Pavilion (Nov. 11, 2016).
Sofia Muñoz is the only current Yellow Jacket to have faced Samford, having earned a victory over the Bulldogs last season with UAB.
INSIDE THE SCHEDULE
Karen Blair’s squad will never back down from a challenge, and the 2026-27 schedule is full of challenging opponents from top-to-bottom. The Jackets have 16 games (15 opponents) against teams that made the 2026 NCAA Tournament, tied for the most in the ACC (Notre Dame) and seventh-most among Power Four programs.
Tech faces six of those teams in the non-conference and eight inside McCamish Pavilion. Seven of Tech’s 2026-27 foes (Duke, Louisville, Princeton, West Virginia, Samford, TCU and Hofstra) either won their conferences tournament and/or regular season title and/or were the runner-up in the conference title game.
HOME COOKIN’
McCamish Pavilion was a difficult place for opponents last season, where Tech produced the second-best home FG defense in the ACC (34.7%) and the second-best home three-point defense (24.7%). The Jackets’ nine home games with at least 30 defensive boards were tied for the third-most in the country and Tech led the ACC with nine home games accruing at least 20 assists last season.
The Yellow Jackets are 157-68 (.698) all-time inside McCamish Pavilion and 94-12 (.887) against non-conference opponents. Against in-state foes at home, the Yellow Jackets are 53-12 since 1983-84, 40-5 since 2000-01, and 20-4 inside McCamish Pavilion.
THE 2026-27 YELLOW JACKETS
Tech returns seven from last season, four of its starting five and over 50 percent of both its minutes played and points scored. That number more than doubles from the returners Coach Blair had in her first season (2025-26), where Tech brought back just three from the previous season.
Talayah Walker, Inés Noguero, La’Nya Foster, Erica Moon, Ariadna Termis, Leyre Urdiain and Déborah Mukeba are back in White and Gold in 2026-27, more than doubling the returning production that Tech had going into 2025-26 (3 to 7). Urdiain and Mukeba will be making their debut in a Tech uniform this season.
In addition to Tech’s seven returners, Blair’s Yellow Jackets welcome seven newcomers to The Flats this season. Fifth-year Antonia Bates (G/F, Rutgers), senior Anna Conza (G, Oglethorpe), junior Kyndal Walker (G, Maryland), sophomores Sofia Muñoz (G, UAB), Penda Dieng (F, Xavier), Jordan Ode (G, Michigan State) and freshman Autumn Washington all join the Jackets.
2025-26 RECAP
Georgia Tech looks to build on a 2025-26 campaign where it won 10 games on home court and earned a trip to the 2026 WBIT. Head Coach Karen Blair became the first head coach in program history to lead Tech to a postseason berth in their first season.
Tech captured key victories over No. 18 Notre Dame, Clemson, Miami, Stanford and an ACC Tournament win over Florida State in Blair’s first season. Talayah Walker led the offensive charge, scoring 576 points - the most by a Jacket since 2015-16.
Georgia Tech posted the highest average attendance in the program’s history at McCamish Pavilion last season, and the Jan. 11 game vs. Clemson was the second-highest attended game in Tech history for its current venue (6,125).
UP NEXT
Tech is back in action Sunday, Nov. 8 for a pivotal early-season clash with No. 24 West Virginia inside McCamsh Pavilion. Tip-off against the reigning Big 12 Champs is set for 2 p.m. on ACC Network Extra.