Golden Knights drop semifinal game to M. Georgia Tech
WEST GEORGIA TECH WOMEN END SEASON WITH SEMIFINAL LOSS IN REGION 17 TOURNAMENT TO MIDDLE GEORGIA TECH, 62-59
WARNER ROBINS, Ga. -- The West Georgia Tech women’s basketball season ended Saturday afternoon as they were bounced from the Georgia Collegiate Athletic Association / Region 17 Division III Women’s Basketball Tournament by homestanding Middle Georgia Tech 62-59.
The Golden Knights finished with an 11-16 overall record.
Middle Georgia Tech will move on to play the winner of No. 1 seed Georgia Northwestern and No. 4 seed Southern Crescent in Sunday’s championship game at 2 p.m.
The Golden Knights nearly made an improbable comeback in the game’s final seconds. Trailing 62-56, a three-pointer by West Georgia Tech with 6 seconds on the clock pulled them to within three.
Sharika Pennamon then stole the inbounds pass which set up an open three-point try with just two seconds left, which would have tied the game, but it missed.
WGTC still had a chance, as they maintained possession with less than a second on the clock because the ball went out of bounds off a MGTC player.
The Golden Knights called timeout but were unable to get off a shot attempt, and Middle Georgia Tech won the ballgame 62-59.
“We came out flat today, but we still had shots at the end and that is a testament to how hard we play,” said WGTC women’s head coach Kenny Edwards. “I think the two-week layoff between our last regular-season game and today hurt us. It seemed that it took us about ten minutes to really get going. But give Middle Georgia Tech credit, they played well.”
Middle Georgia Tech led for much of the game, never trailing after the 9:30 mark in the first half. They led by as many as ten in the first half (27-17) but a late run by the Golden Knights narrowed the margin to 29-24 at halftime.
In the second half, West Georgia Tech tied the game at 48-48 on a Nicole Marshall three-pointer with 6:30 remaining. But the Lady Titans pulled ahead on a three-point play just seconds later and then stretched the lead to eight, 60-52, with 2:40 left.
The Golden Knights clawed back, but ran out of time.
Marshall led the Golden Knights with 13 points as she connected on 3-of-5 three-pointers. Victoria Conner added 11 points and Sha’Ron Forte, playing in the last game of her WGTC career, scored 10 to round out the double-figure scoring for West Georgia Tech.
West Georgia Tech’s leading scorer, Sharika Pennamon, was held to six points.
Middle Georgia Tech was led by current Region 17 Division III Player of the Year Ashley West, who had a double-double with 21 points and 14 rebounds.
The Golden Knights forced 36 turnovers, 17 of those coming from steals, which kept them in the ballgame despite shooting just 26.8 percent from the field compared to 47-percent shooting from Middle Georgia Tech.
West Georgia Tech was stone-cold from the free throw line as the connected on only 16-of-31 attempts.
Two West Georgia Tech players finished their careers in a Golden Knights uniform. Sha’Ron Forte and Bria Hollins (5 points) are the only sophomores on this year’s squad.
“I’m proud of our sophomores,” Edwards said. “We’ll miss them. They were a big piece of the puzzle this year for us, and they laid the foundation for future success. They gave us great leadership, which we needed since we were such a youthful team.”
The West Georgia Tech men’s team will play the final game of the day against No. 1 seed Middle Georgia Tech with the winner advancing to Sunday’s championship game. Tip time is scheduled for 6 p.m. but it will likely start later due to the pace of play in games thus far today.