Clemson Women’s Basketball Falls At Georgia Tech, 49-41

Feb. 1, 2009

ATLANTA, GA – The Clemson women’s basketball team fell in a defensive struggle at Georgia Tech on Sunday afternoon by a 49-41 margin. The Lady Tigers held the Yellow Jackets to just 16 field goals and won the rebounding battle but they couldn’t take advantage and hit shots of their own.

The teams combined for just 13 points in the first 10 minutes of the game and then totaled 55 turnovers between them.

“I thought the zone defense was really effective in the first 10-12 minutes,” said Clemson Head Coach Cristy McKinney, “but we just couldn’t do anything on the offensive end. We just have to figure out how to make good shots and score points.”

Lele Hardy led Clemson (12-11, 2-7 ACC) with 15 points and scored four of the Lady Tigers final six field goals. She was 6-for-9 from the field with five rebounds, four assists and four steals. The Clemson junior moved into the program’s top-20 scoring list and now sits at 1,015 for her career.

“Lele is a great player,” McKinney added. “We need to work hard to get her some help because she’s working hard out there every day.”

Jacqua Williams had 12 points to lead three double figure scorers for Georgia Tech, which notched its 100th win under Head Coach MaChelle Joseph on Sunday afternoon. The Yellow Jackets moved to 16-5 on the year with a 4-3 record in conference action.

Both teams struggled offensively in the first half as the Lady Tigers made three of their first 10 shots and the Yellow Jackets missed their first 10 field goals. Christy Brown drove for a lay-up at the 6:23 mark and Tasha Taylor put Clemson on top 13-9 with 5:33 remaining. Georgia Tech then found success with its inside game and scored four straight field goals in the paint en route to a 9-0 run. The Yellow Jackets took the 20-16 lead in the break.

Georgia Tech scored its first basket of the second half much quicker, as Jacqua Williams drove for a field goal on the Yellow Jackets’ opening possession. They scored the first five points of the half until a lay-up by Jasmine Tate ended the Clemson drought. Georgia Tech’s lead stretched to nine points at 33-24 at the 10:45 mark, but the Lady Tigers went on a 9-2 run that cut the deficit to just two (35-33) with 6:18 remaining. Kirstyn Wright drained a three-pointer.

However, Clemson scored just eight points the rest of the way while the Yellow Jackets hit shots and knocked down free throws in the closing minutes to seal the victory.

Clemson will return to the court on Wednesday night as the Lady Tigers will take on Western Carolina in their final non-conference game of the season. The teams are slated for a 7:00 pm tip-off in Cullowhee, NC.