Jan. 17, 2012
For the second time in ACC play, the Georgia Tech women’s basketball team (13-5, 3-2 ACC) will take on the fifth-ranked team in the country, this time it will be the Duke Blue Devils (14-2, 5-0 ACC) on Wednesday night at the Arena at Gwinnett Center (7 p.m., ESPN3).
In the Yellow Jackets’ first shot at a top five team this year, Tech built a 20-point second half lead at Maryland, but the Terrapins led by sophomore Alyssa Thomas rallied for a 77-74 win.
In Tech’s last outing, senior Sasha Goodlett finished with game- and career-highs of 26 points and 16 rebounds to lead the Yellow Jackets to a 68-58 win at Boston College. Sophomore Tyaunna Marshall and senior Metra Walthour each had a big second half and finished with 15 and 14 points, respectively. Goodlett earned her second ACC Player of the Week honor after averaging 21.3 points and 10.7 rebounds an outing.
Duke, which currently sits atop the ACC standings, is coming off a 61-34 win at Virginia Tech, led by freshman Elizabeth Williams’ 20 points, seven rebounds and four blocks. The Blue Devils have won eight straight games since an early December loss to No. 10 Kentucky.
ACC-olades: Senior center Sasha Goodlett earned her second ACC Player of the Week honor of the 2011-12 season on January 16. She averaged 21.3 points and 10.7 rebounds in a 2-1 week for the Yellow Jackets.
Goodlett was named ACC Co-Player of the Week Dec. 26 following her performance in the Bahamas. It was Goodlett’s first career ACC Player of the Week honor. During her freshman season on The Flats, Goodlett earned ACC Rookie of the Week once.
Pack The House: Georgia Tech will be hosting “Pack The House” night next Wednesday, Jan. 18, when the No. 7/6 Duke Blue Devils come to the Arena at Gwinnett Center for a 7 p.m. showdown. Fans are encouraged to wear gold to the game and free gold shakers will be given away. Fans can use the promotional code “SELLOUT” to get a $2 ticket.
Prior to the game, fans can also make their own posters in the lobby of the arena. Georgia Tech will provide poster board, stencils and markers for fans to get creative in showing their support of the Yellow Jackets.
Handy Helpers: Sophomore Dawnn Maye (4th, 4.2) and senior Metra Walthour (5th, 4.1) are the only pair of teammates to rank in the top five in assists per game in the ACC in all games. They are the only pair of teammates in the top 10 in ACC games (Walthour, 5th, 4.4; Maye, T-8, 3.6).
Conference ACC-ension: In ACC games through January 15, Goodlett is third in scoring (18.4 ppg), tied for first in rebounding (10.0) and second in blocks (2.0). Goodlett is the only player in the conference to rank in the top five in all three categories.
Triple Threat: Sophomore Ty Marshall is only one of three players in the ACC to rank in the top 15 of the conference in scoring, rebounding and steals. Marshall is tied for fourth in scoring (16.2 ppg), 15th in rebounding (6.5 rpg) and 13th in steals (2.1 spg).
Miami’s Shenise Johnson is also tied for fourth in scoring (16.2 ppg), ninth in rebounding (7.3 rpg) and first in steals (4.0 spg). Fellow Hurricane Morgan Stroman is 12th in scoring (13.1 ppg), 14th in rebounding (6.6 rpg) and 12th in steals (2.2 spg).
In ACC-only games, Marshall and North Carolina’s Chay Shegog are the only two to rank in the top 10 in all three categories. In league play, Shegog is second in scoring (18.5), while Marshall is fifth (17.0), Marshall is seventh in rebounding (8.0) and Shegog is 10th (7.8), and in steals, Marshall is sixth (2.2) and Shegog is in a logjam for eighth (2.0).
