Dec. 12, 2004
Tulsa, OK – Jillian Robbins had 20 points, 18 rebounds and nine blocks to lead Tulsa (7-0) to a 55-47 victory over Georgia Tech (5-1) Sunday at Donald W. Reynolds Center on the campus of Tulsa.
Tulsa converted on 15-of-17 from the free-throw line and was 11-for-12 in the second half, while the Yellow Jackets shot a season-low 38.9 percent from the charity stripe, including going 5-for-13 in the second frame. Tandem Mays was a perfect 6-for-6 from the line while Robbins converted on 6-of-7. b Georgia Tech was led offensively by freshman Chioma Nnamaka, with 14 points, and sophomore Stephanie Higgs, who added 10. Jessica Williams led the Jackets on the boards with eight rebounds, while Nnamaka and Janie Mitchell pulled down seven apiece. Tulsa outrebounded the Yellow Jackets 50-45.
“I thought it was a great game both ways and I thought that both teams battled,” said Tech head coach MaChelle Joseph. “I really thought Jillian Robbins took the game over. You can’t ask for more than [she did] in 39 minutes, and if nothing else she earned a lot of respect for herself in the game. She battled in there and carried her team at times.”
Tulsa’s Kara Pongonis hit a three-pointer with 13:01 left in the game to give the Golden Hurricane their first lead, 38-37, since the Yellow Jackets went ahead 18-14 with 4:14 remaining in the first half. With Georgia Tech leading 37-32 at 15:36, the Golden Hurricane went on a 6-0 run when Megan Moody and Pongonis hit a pair of three-pointers within 45 seconds of each other. The Jackets tied the game at 38-38 at 11:59 before Tulsa’s Robbins converted on a pair of free throws to give the Golden Hurricane a two-point lead. After Williams hit a jumper at 11:34 to tie the game, Tulsa went on a 9-3 run, led by Mays with four points.
Georgia Tech fell behind early in the first half when Tulsa went on a 5-0 run beginning at 18:59. After trailing by as many as six points at 13:46 and again at 12:52, the Yellow Jackets went on an 8-0 run coming out of the third media timeout to take their first lead of the game. Leading by four at the final media timeout of the frame, Georgia Tech made the final two field goals, including a three-pointer by Higgs with less than 10 seconds remaining, to take a 27-20 led into the locker room at the half.
The Yellow Jackets return to action Friday at 7 p.m. when they play their second road contest of the season at St. John’s in New York. The game will be broadcast on WREK-Radio, 91.1 FM in Atlanta, and online at www.wrek.org. Livestats for the contest will be available at www.ramblinwreck.com.
