Defense, rebounding propel Georgia Tech women into WNIT final
Is there room for two NIT trophies in Georgia Tech’s Edge Athletic Center? They may have to make room now that the school’s women’s basketball team has found its way into the tournament’s championship game.
The Georgia Tech women erased an 11-point second-half deficit to beat Washington State 69-61 on Wednesday at McCamish Pavilion and reach the WNIT final.
Georgia Tech will meet Michigan on Saturday for the championship. The Yellow Jackets lost to the Wolverines 92-52 on Dec. 1 in perhaps the worst performance of head coach MaChelle Joseph’s 14-year tenure.
The difference in the semifinal was Georgia Tech’s dominance on the boards. The Yellow Jackets outrebounded Washington State 50-35, which allowed them to go on a 20-2 run and turn the game around.
Three who mattered
Georgia Tech center Zaire O’Neil: The junior bullied her way to 20 points and 16 rebounds, her third double-double of the season. It might have been unworldly if she had done better than 6-for-13 at the line.
Georgia Tech guard Francesco Pan: The freshman never really found the range, making 6-for-15 from the floor, but she had three assists to go with her 14 points.
Georgia Tech guard Imani Tilford: The junior showed her ability create with some key points during the comeback stretch. She finished 12 points, five steals and two assists.
Turning point
The Georgia Tech defense was outstanding to start the fourth period. Washington State didn’t score until the 3:48 mark, by which time the Yellow Jackets had taken a seven-point lead.
Observations
Free throws costly to Yellow Jackets: The Yellow Jackets could have made it easier with a few more free throws. They made only 12-of-26 at the line.
O’Neil makes it go: She’s only 5-foot-11, but O’Neil is a force under the basket. She’s powerful enough to play underneath and athletic enough to outjump taller girls for rebounds.
So long, Kat: Katarina Vuckovic played her final game at McCamish and finished with four points and seven rebounds in another workmanlike effort. She and Joseph shared an emotional hug when Vuckovic came out of the game for the final time.
Worth mentioning
Washington State was a longshot: The Cougars were 12-19 when they got invited to the WNIT. But they had won two of their final three games in the Pac 10. They are without four players who averaged a total of 40 points but had their seasons end prematurely because of injury.
Paul Johnson honored: The Georgia Tech football head coach was honored in the first half as the honorary coach. Johnson came over after football practice to watch the game and support the women’s team.
They said it
Joseph on the turnaround in the second half: “I thought for the first two quarters, we played not to lose instead of two win. One of the things I talked about at halftime was how we’ve got to play to win.”
Joseph on O’Neil: ”Zaire O’Neal sort of put us on her back and gave us our confidence back.”
Joseph on the rebounding difference: “I told the players we weren’t going to beat them without outrebounding them. We’ve got to get second second and third shots, because they do such a great job of keeping you off the boards.”
What’s next?
Georgia Tech plays at Michigan on Saturday at 3 p.m. for the WNIT Championship.
This story was originally published March 29, 2017 at 10:05 PM with the headline "Defense, rebounding propel Georgia Tech women into WNIT final."