By: by KSU Sports Information
DULUTH, Ga. - Redshirt Freshman Taylor Mills led all scorers with 17 points as the Kennesaw State women's basketball team fell, 94-51, to No. 25 Georgia Tech on Tuesday night at The Arena At Gwinnett Center.
Mills connected on 5-of-14 from beyond the 3-point arc and also dished out three assists. Reigning Atlantic Sun Conference Newcomer of the Week Kristina Wells chipped in 12 points and had a team-best seven rebounds.
While Georgia Tech (4-0) opened the game by scoring 11 of the first 13 points, the Lady Owls showed the resolve that would become a hallmark for the rest of the contest. Down 13-4, a steal by Ashley Holliday led to a fast-break bucket for Wells. A few seconds later, Lisa Capellan earned a steal and kicked the ball to Holliday on the fast break for an open 3-pointer, bringing KSU within four early, 13-9.
Still, it was Georgia Tech's size advantage that proved to be too much for the Lady Owls to handle. The Yellow Jackets scored 38 of their 51 first-half points in the paint to take a, 51-25, lead into the locker room.
Georgia Tech's lead would get as high as 50 in the second half, but the Lady Owls closed the game by scoring the final seven points. Mills connected on her fifth 3-pointer of the game to spark the run, and a pair of free throws by Capellan and a fast break basket by Gideon sealed the scoring.
The Lady Owls forced Georgia Tech into 17 turnovers in the contest, and scored 15 points off of those miscues by the Yellow Jackets. Capellan and Holliday each had a pair of steals as KSU had eight as a team.
Tamasha Bolden came off the bench to score seven points for the Lady Owls (2-2). Gideon and Holliday each added six, while Capellan scored three to complete KSU's scoring.
The Yellow Jackets shot 40-of-63 (63.5 percent) from the field. Of Tech's 94 points, 70 came in the paint. KSU was also out-rebounded by a 45-28 margin.
"I knew coming into tonight's game and our next game that I'd learn a lot about our team," said KSU head coach Colby Tilley. "For the most part, we kept working hard all night. A little bit of frustration set in at times, but I'm hoping that this game and our next game are two that we can learn from and that will help us get ready for conference play."
The Lady Owls will return to action this Sunday at 2 p.m. in Chapel Hill, N.C., when they face No. 16 North Carolina.
