Dec. 10, 2003
ATLANTA – Game No. 7: Central Florida
Georgia Tech (5-1) vs. Central Florida (2-3)
December 14, 2003 * 2 p.m. * Alexander Memorial Coliseum * Atlanta, Ga.
WREK-FM 91.1
Tech Hosts UCF in Second Home Game
The Yellow Jackets will host Central Florida in their second home game of the 2003-04 season before hitting the road for games against Old Dominion and Princeton next week. It will be the first game for both Tech and UCF in over a week as both schools have been off for finals. The two teams will tip-off at 2 p.m. Sunday afternoon in Alexander Memorial Coliseum. The Yellow Jackets enter the contest with a 5-1 record on the season, while the Golden Knights stand at 2-3. Georgia Tech will be broadcasting the game on WREK-Radio, 91.1 FM in Atlanta, and online at www.wrek.org while UCF will broadcast over the internet at wnsc.ucf.edu.
Series Notes
Georgia Tech and Central Florida will be meeting for just the second time in history this afternoon. The two teams first met December 15th of last year on the Golden Knights’ home court, with Tech squeaking out a 62-58 victory. This afternoon’s contest is the third meeting against an Atlantic Sun team this season for the Yellow Jackets. Tech opened the regular season with a 73-62 over Florida Atlantic in Boca Raton and defeated Georgia State, 69-64 in its last game. Today’s game will mark the first time that the Jackets face an A-Sun opponent on their home court however, as last Saturday’s game with the Lady Panthers was at GSU’s Sports Complex. With the wins against Florida Atlantic and Georgia State, the Yellow Jackets hold a 35-18 edge over Atlantic Sun opponents.
Last Time Out for Tech
Georgia Tech traveled across town for a match-up with Georgia State and survived a late comeback by the Lady Panthers to win 69-64 despite State’s three three-pointers in the last minute. Solid shooting from the charity stripe by Alex Stewart (9-for-13) and Fallon Stokes (9-for-12) helped the Jackets earn their fifth win of the season. Tech was led in scoring by Fallon Stokes, who tied a season-high with 25 points while becoming just the 19th player in Georgia Tech women’s basketball history to score 1,000 points in her career. Stewart scored 11 points, pulled down nine rebounds, and had five assists and three steals for Tech in the contest. The Jackets converted on 13-of 18 from the free-throw line over the last 1:38 of the game to ensure the victory after trailing by as many as five during the first half. The Jackets outrebounded the Lady Panthers, 41-38 and blocked eight shots in the game, including four by sophomore Kasha Terry and three by Megan Isom.
Central Florida Preview
Central Florida opened its Atlantic Sun play with a 72-61 win over Florida Atlantic last Thursday night in Boca Raton, Fla. The Golden Knights were led by four players in double figures, including 16 by Celeste Hudson, 12 by Takira Allen, and 11 from LaShay King. Shelby Weber scored 10 points and had seven rebounds off the bench for the Golden Knights, while Adrienne Billings added eight. Hudson hit on three-of-four from beyond the arc, and King added five assists and five steals for UCF. The Golden Knights opened the season with losses to Manhattan College and Purdue before earning their first win with a 85-49 victory over Nicholls State. They then faced Tech’s ACC-foe Florida State but couldn’t overcome the Seminoles’ tough defense. UCF came as close as two points to FSU early in the second half before the Seminoles pulled away with a 72-59 win.
Golden Knights Threats: Hudson: 12.4 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 9-of-27 treys, 10 assists, three blocks, three steals; Allen: 9.4 ppg, 5.0 rpg; King: 8.0 ppg, 15 assists, seven steals; Weber: 6.4 ppg, 6.2 rpg, six blocks, three steals.
Yellow Jacket Injury Update
Georgia Tech senior guard Nina B?rlin has been sidelined indefinitely as she continues to recover from her second knee surgery in two years to repair a torn ACL. B?rlin missed the final 12 games of the 2002 season with a torn ligament in the same left knee and suffered the second tear just two minutes into the season-opener with Charlotte in November, 2002. She underwent a successful surgery and continues to recover at this time.
She’s Not a New Kid on the Block
Yellow Jacket sophomore Kasha Terry played in 30 games in the 2002-03 season, and recorded 40 blocks along the way, establishing herself as a solid shot blocker within the ACC by averaging 1.3 per game. This season, the Douglasville, Ga., native has stepped it up even more, averaging 2.0 blocks per contest, including two games with three or more blocks recorded. She tied a career high of four blocks, set against Maryland last season, against Georgia State in the Jackets’ last contest. Terry is currently second in the Atlantic Coast Conference in blocks per game.
The Magic Number is 70
While Georgia Tech is led by scorers Fallon Stokes and Alex Stewart, a huge part of the success of the Yellow Jackets has come at the other end of the court. Through the first six games, Tech has kept four of its opponents under 70 points, with one of those being held to under 60. In those four games, Georgia Tech is a perfect 4-0, with the closest game being a 69-64 contest against Georgia State last weekend. A year ago, Tech held 20 opponents under 70 points, with the Jackets’ winning 17 of those contests.
Stokes Having a “Grand” Senior Year
Senior Fallon Stokes was expected to step in and pick up the slack when Sonja Mallory left due to eligibility, and she hasn’t disappointed. Through six games this season, Stokes is averaging 20.3 points and 7.7 rebounds per game, both of which far exceed her career averages. Coming into the 2003-04 season, she was averaging 10.1 points per game while pulling down 4.9 rebounds per contest. She has had a season-high of 25 points on two occasions this season, with the most recent one coming against cross-town rival Georgia State. With a little over 17 minutes left in that game, Stokes also set a career mark, becoming just the 19th player in Georgia Tech history to score 1,000 points in their career. She currently has 1,008 points during her four years at Tech.
Stewart Looking For Milestones
Yellow Jackets senior guard Alex Stewart keeps moving up the Georgia Tech career charts with a stellar senior campaign. With 30 assists already this season, Stewart brings her career total to 370, which is now the fourth-highest career average in Tech history. She is just 32 assists away from Tory Ehle, who has 402 behind Tiffany Martin (559) and Georgia Tech Hall of Famer, Ida Neal, who had 508. Martin stills stands sixth in the ACC record books while Neal is 15th. When she suits up for today’s game, Stewart will be playing in the 99th game during her career at Georgia Tech. She is on pace to break the Tech career mark of 119 games, set by Karen Lounsbury in 1992, in the last game of the regular season against Wake Forest.
“Ice” Breaks 100
Tech senior Megan Isom hit three from beyond the three-point arc against Georgia State to raise her career total to 101 made three-pointers, which ties her for fourth on Tech’s career list. She is currently tied with Selena Baldwin, who played for the Jackets from 1990-93 and is behind Danielle Donehew (241), Karen Lounsbury (205) and Carla Munnion, with 165. Isom also stands fourth in Tech history in three-point field goals attempted, with 298.
Stokes Named ACC Player of the Week For December 8th
Georgia Tech senior Fallon Stokes was named the Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Week for Women’s Basketball for the week of December 8, 2003. It marked the second time this season that she earned the honor, after she shared the honor with Duke senior Alana Beard following the first week of play in November.
The pre-season all-ACC selection recorded her second double-double of the year in a 60-54 victory over Davidson in Tech’s home opener for the season. The senior led all scorers with 23 points while pulling down 13 rebounds in the contest. She scored 19 of the Jackets second-half points to lead Tech to the win. In her second game of the week, Stokes led Tech to a 69-64 win over cross-town rival Georgia State. She tied a season-high with 25 points in the game, and became just the 19th player in Georgia Tech women’s basketball history to score more than 1,000 points in her career. Overall, Stokes scored 48 points, had 20 rebounds, and shot 44% from the field on the week.
Tech Hot in Home Openers With its win against Davidson on December 2nd, Tech is now 19-7 in home openers dating back to the 1978-79 season. From 1974-78, it is not known where the Yellow Jackets’ games were played, but during that time, Tech was 50-52. The first home victory came against Georgia College on November 18, 1978 as the Jackets won, 85-49, while Tech won 67-57 over Charlotte on November 15, 2002 for the last home-opener victory before this season. The last time that Tech lost a home-opener was in 2001 against Kansas State, by a score of 74-70.
We Be Jammin’
Georgia Tech traveled to St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, to participate in the Paradise Jam over the Thanksgiving holiday. The Jackets opened the tournament with a 60-53 victory over James Madison, led by senior point guard Alex Stewart. Stewart had 18 points in the contest, along with three steals and two rebounds. Fallon Stokes and April Johnson contributed 12 and 11 points, respectively. The following night, Tech dropped a 75-61 decision to West Virginia. The Mountaineers hurt the Jackets by converting on 7-of-15 from three-point range, including three from senior Kate Bulger. Tech was led by Stokes, who had 19 points and eight rebounds, and sophomore Mallorie Winn (12 points.) The Jackets went into the final game with a 1-1 record against the undefeated Southwest Missouri State, and emerged with a 78-71 victory over the Lady Bears. Senior Megan Isom led the Jackets with 22 points, including five from beyond the arc. Isom and Stokes combined for 28 second-half points in Tech’s come-from-behind victory to force a tie-breaker in determining the tournament winner. Because SMS, West Virginia, and Tech all finished with a 2-1 record, point deferential was the determining factor in the event. Georgia Tech earned a third place finish, and placed two players on the all-tournament team in Stokes and Stewart.
Joseph Begins First Year on Winning Note
Georgia Tech Head Coach MaChelle Joseph began her first season as a head coach with a 73-62 victory at Florida Atlantic. Prior to her promotion, Joseph served two years as an assistant at Tech under Agnus Berenato. Joseph became just the sixth head coach in Georgia Tech’s 29 years of women’s basketball and only the third to win their season opener in their first year. She holds a 3-1 record to open the 2003-04 season.
Stokes Named ACC Co-Player of the Week
Georgia Tech senior Fallon Stokes was named the Atlantic Coast Conference Co-Player of the Week for Women’s Basketball for the week of November 24, 2003. She shared the honor with Duke senior Alana Beard.
The pre-season all-ACC selection recorded her first double-double of the year in a 73-62 road victory over Florida Atlantic University. The senior forward led all Yellow Jacket players with 25 points and 14 rebounds. In the first half of play, Stokes scored 16 points and pulled down 11 boards to give Georgia Tech a 21-point halftime advantage. For the game, the Atlanta, Ga., native was 9-of-14 from the floor, including 7-of-9 from the free throw line.
Jackets Selected Fourth in ACC Preseason Poll
The Yellow Jackets were selected fourth, one spot ahead of their 2002-03 finish, in the preseason Atlantic Coast Conference Poll, which tied for their highest preseason selection ever. Tech’s 1992 team finished fourth in the ACC race after being selected in that spot during the preseason. Duke was picked to finish first in the conference for the fourth consecutive year, earning all 36 first place votes, followed by North Carolina and Virginia. Florida State was picked to finish fifth, followed by NC State and Clemson, with Maryland and Wake Forest rounding out the standings.
Stokes Earns Preseason Honors
Senior Fallon Stokes was named to the five-member preseason all-ACC team, along with Duke’s Alana Beard and Iciss Tillis, Virginia’s Brandi Teamer and Nikita Bell of North Carolina. Stokes was named third-team all-ACC following her junior year.
Jackets Ink Three During Early Signing Period
Georgia Tech signed three high school women’s basketball All-Americans, including a point guard, a guard/forward, and a center, during the early signing period. The 2004 recruiting class was ranked the 5th-best nationally, according to the All Star Girls Report in Thursday’s edition of the USA Today, as Tech inked three of the top-25 players in the country. The Jackets signed Jillian Ingram, a 5-9 guard from Providence Day School in Charlotte, NC, Daphne Mitchell, a 6-3 center from Woodward Academy in Atlanta, Ga., and Janie Mitchell, a 6-0 guard/forward from Callaway High School in Jackson, Miss. Ingram and Janie Mitchell will add depth to the Yellow Jacket backcourt, which loses four seniors following the 2003-04 season. A fourth team All-American according to All Star Girls Report, Ingram averaged 18 points, seven rebounds, four steals, and 3.5 assists per game her junior season after breaking the 1,000 point mark her sophomore year. She was tabbed 24th in the nation and rated the 5th-best point guard in the country, according to the All Star Girls Report. A 2003 Street & Smith Honorable Mention All-American, Ingram has been a member of the two-time national champion Team North Carolina in AAU basketball. She was tabbed 26th in the nation, according to the National Roundball Journal while the Blue Star Index ranks her 47th. She was selected NCISAA all-state for the third time in 2003, while earning CISAA all-conference four years in a row. In addition to Ingram, Tech signed another All Star Girls Report fourth-team All-American in forward/center Daphne Mitchell. Mitchell was named a 2003 Street & Smith Honorable Mention All-American and tabbed the 25th-best prospect by the All Star Girls Report while averaging 14.3 points, nine rebounds, and 1.5 blocks per game her junior season. All Star Girls Report tabbed Mitchell as the No. 3 power forward in the class of 2004. She is the second-leading rebounder in school history, has earned all-region honors two years in a row, and was named the Most Outstanding Player while earning the Coaches Award her junior year. Fifth-team All-American selection Janie Mitchell will be another power forward addition to the Yellow Jacket frontcourt next season. A year ago, the Street & Smith Honorable Mention All-American averaged 22.5 points, 12.5 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 3 blocks, and 2.5 steals per game en route to earning an All Star Girls Report ranking as the No. 4 power forward in the class of 2004. Her sophomore year, she averaged 20.6 points, 10.7 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 2 blocks, and 2.5 assists per game, which earned her 2002 Honorable Mention All-American honors, according to Street & Smith. The All Star Girls Report 39th-best prospect in the nation, Mitchell was tabbed 21st nationally, according Full Court Press, and 54th by the National Roundball Journal, while the Blue Star Index ranked her 57th.
