ATLANTA – The Georgia Tech women’s basketball team got its 2000-01 season off on the right foot by winning its first exhibition game of the year by a 95-73 score over the Norrkoping Flamingos of Sweden on Friday night at Alexander Memorial Coliseum.
The Yellow Jackets opened the margin in a close contest late in the first half, as they used a 17-10 run to gain a 32-22 advantage with 3:43 remaining following a pair of free throws by sophomore Niesha Butler. Eleven first half points by sophomore Alex Stewart and nine more from senior Jaime Kruppa staked the Yellow Jackets to a 39-31 halftime edge.
The second half brought even more success for the Jackets, as they upped their field goal percentage to .500 on 22-of-44 shooting in the second period and outscored the Flamingos 56-42. Junior Milli Martinez had the hot hand in the second half, as she hit for 14 of her game-high 20 points on 5-for-9 shooting from the field and 4-of-5 shooting at the free throw line.
Tech had two players record double-doubles in the game, as sophomore Tamika Boatner finished with 10 points and 12 rebounds, 11 of which came on the offensive glass. Freshman Fallon Stokes also hit for 10 points in her Yellow Jacket debut and had 12 rebounds in the contest.
The Yellow Jackets held the edge in the game in a number of statistical categories, including rebounds, where Tech claimed an impressive 49-29 edge.
Tech will next be in action on Thursday, November 9 when it concludes the exhibition season by facing Athletes in Action at 5 p.m. at Alexander Memorial Coliseum. The Jackets will open their regular season schedule on November 24 by facing Cornell at 2 p.m. in the opening game of the Atlanta Marriott Northwest Classic.
