Feb. 16, 2012
Winston-Salem, N.C. – Georgia Tech won the opening tip, senior Metra Walthour knocked down a 3-pointer barely 15 seconds into the game and the 20th-ranked Yellow Jackets (19-7, 9-4 ACC) didn’t look back en route to a 67-52 win over Wake Forest (15-11, 5-8 ACC) Thursday night at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Winston-Salem, N.C.
Sophomore Dawnn Maye led four Yellow Jackets in double digits with a career-high 23 points. Sophomore Tyaunna Marshall finished with her fourth double-double of the season with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Senior Sasha Goodlett added 16 points and Walthour tossed in 10.
The win is Tech’s fifth straight over Wake Forest and the Jackets can now clinch their sixth consecutive 20-win season when they host Boston College at 2 p.m. Sunday at the Arena at Gwinnett Center. With the victory, the Yellow Jackets tied the school record for most ACC wins in a season, nine, and can best that against the Eagles.
The Yellow Jackets opened the game on a 7-2 run over the first four-and-a-half minutes. Tech grabbed its largest lead of the first half, 11, when Walthour made her second 3-pointer of the frame to put the Yellow Jackets up 20-9. The Demon Deacons went without a field goal from the 11:11 mark of the first half to the 4:31 point as Tech built a 22-12 lead.
“I think the start we had was really important, especially when you’re playing a team like Wake Forest on their home floor,” head coach MaChelle Joseph said. “I give Wake a lot of credit. I was really pleased with our defensive effort. To hold Wake to 52 points after they’ve been averaging almost 75 points per game the last three games, I think that’s a huge complement to our team and our team defense.”
The Jackets held off a late first half surge by Wake Forest and carried a 27-20 lead into the halftime break. Tonight was the 18th time this season the Jackets have led at the break and own a 16-2 record in those contests.
Tech began the second half as quickly as it began the first. The Demon Deacons had the ball to begin the break, but Walthour grabbed a quick steal and finished with a layup. Maye added one of her five steals and finished with a layup of her own, putting the Jackets up 31-20 and forcing a Wake Forest timeout not even 30 seconds into the half.
“I really challenged our players at halftime to step it up on the defensive end and on the boards,” Joseph added. “I thought Dawnn Maye came out and set the tone for us the first couple minutes of the half and really got active and we were able to capitalize on some of the steals and the turnovers Wake had.”
After Tech extended its lead to 16, 43-27, on Maye’s jumper with 15:51 to play. The Demon Deacons cut their deficit to eight, 55-47, with 8:12 to go, but Tech held Wake Forest to only one field goal the rest of the way on its way to a 15-point win.
Sunday’s game against BC will serve as Georgia Tech’s annual Play4Kay game in which the Yellow Jackets will sport pink jerseys, encourage all fans to wear pink and will be raising money for the Kay Yow Foundation in support of breast cancer research and awareness. Tech will also be accepting donations for former softball player Amy Hosier, who at the age of 28, was diagnosed with breast cancer. To read more about Amy’s story, please visit www.amysangels21.com.
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