Jan. 25, 2013
TALLAHASSEE, FLA. – Junior Tyaunna Marshall led three Yellow Jackets in double digits with 26 points but it wasn’t enough as Georgia Tech (8-11, 1-7 ACC) dropped a 76-71 decision to No. 22/21 Florida State (16-3, 6-2 ACC) Friday night at the Tucker Center in Tallahassee, Fla.
In three games at Florida State during her career, Marshall has scored 62 points on 27-of-44 shooting. It was Marshall’s 18th career game with at least 20 points and she narrowly missed her ninth career double-double with eight rebounds, including six offensive.
Despite starting four freshmen and a sophomore for the second straight game, the Jackets battled throughout. There were five ties and 14 lead changes, and Tech out-rebounded the Seminoles 36-34.
Freshman Brittany Jackson tossed in 17 points on 7-of-16 shooting and Sydney Wallace added 13 points.
“I’m really proud of my team, proud of their effort,” head coach MaChelle Joseph said. “We have 11 losses with 10 of those to top 25 teams. This an extremely young team. We’re in a transition year, but I can’t ask for more than what they did tonight, out-rebounding a team like Florida State on their home floor. They are a team that averages five players in double figures and we held them to only three in double figures, and basically shut down their perimeter game. There really isn’t much more I could ask from my team. I’m really proud of their effort.
“That is the first game I’ve seen all year where Ty played the way she’s capable of playing,” Joseph added. “She needs to play that way the rest of the way. She has to understand that it’s hard work at this level to be a go-to player and she has to accept that responsibility.”
Despite not scoring for the first three minutes of the game and falling behind 6-0, Georgia Tech quickly found its groove offensively in the opening 20 minutes against Florida State.
Jackson, first off the bench against FSU, and Marshall scored nine of Tech’s first 11 points and the Jackets quickly evened the scoreboard. Dawnn Maye’s jumper at the 12:52 mark gave Tech its first lead of the day, 13-12, and neither team would take a lead larger than four the rest of the first half as there were two ties and 11 lead changes.
Florida State opened the second half on an 8-2 run and took a 41-36 lead just three minutes into the period.
The Jackets fought back and pulled within one, 41-40, on a Marshall fastbreak layup less than a minute later. FSU re-gained a six point lead, 56-50, on a Lauren Coleman jumper with 11:53 left.
Tech again did not quit and battled back to force the fourth tie of the game at 60-60 on a banked in Jackson jumper. Marshall stole the ensuing inbounds pass and converted it into a fastbreak layup. A Wallace 3-pointer 30 seconds later gave Tech its biggest lead of the game, five, at 65-60 with 7:35 to play.
“There are teams that have come in here and lost by 20,” Joseph said. “My team never laid down. We fought until the bitter end. They punched us in the mouth and we were able to come back and tie the score up. We got down again and came back and tied the score up. We battled. We’re scrappy and we play hard. Good things are going to happen when you do that. We have to continue to get better and have some great opportunities ahead of us.”
A late 8-0 run gave Florida State a 73-68 lead with 2:11 to play, and Tech would only get a jumper from Jackson and a free throw from Marshall down the stretch.
Georgia Tech returns home to face the NC State Wolfpack at 2 p.m. Sunday. The Yellow Jackets will be celebrating National Girls and Women In Sports Day and honoring the 2013 class of Women Out Front. The contest with the Pack can be seen on ESPN3 and heard on WREK 91.1 FM.
Fans are encouraged to follow Georgia Tech women’s basketball on Twitter, @GTWBB, and like the Yellow Jackets on Facebook, GTWomensBasketball, for an inside look at the program.
–RamblinWreck.com–
