Georgia Tech WBB Stays Undefeated in Hawaii

Hawaii North Shore Showcase champs!

Georgia Tech Women’s Basketball made Hawaii a haven to keep up their great form, beating both South Dakota State (71-57) and #21 Oregon (74-58) stay undefeated at 6-0 in the young season at the Hawaii North Shore Showcase. Tech, South Dakota State, and Oregon were the teams comprising the showcase, so the two wins made them champions of the event.

For a team that in it’s past best form barely would get to 60 points, this offense dominant Yellow Jacket team under Nell Fortner hasn’t scored less than 67 points in any game this season with an average margin of victory of 24.5 points, including two games against Power 4 opponents (Georgia/Oregon).

The win over Oregon marks only Tech’s 3rd win over a ranked team in the last three seasons and first over a non-conference opponent since beating #3 UConn in 2021, where they had also beat #20 Georgia a few days prior. It was also Tech’s first ranked win over a Big 10 team since 2008 when they beat #21 Michigan State (excluding a 2011 Maryland win when the Terrapins were still in the ACC).

As of writing, only three other ACC teams are undefeated this season: Cal (6-0), Miami (5-0), and #3 Notre Dame (5-0).

As we’ve come to love, Tonie Morgan was a force in both of these games, winning the MVP of the showcase, scoring 21 points with nine rebounds against South Dakota State and 10 points plus nine rebounds again and six assists against Oregon.

Freshman Dani Carnegie continued to be the most productive addition from the freshman class, scoring 16 with eight rebounds against the Jackrabbits.

For now, the rotation for Fortner has Ariadna Termis starting at center, Zoesha Smith at forward, and Tonie Morgan, Ines Noguero, and Kara Dunn all at guard. Termis and Smith moving into starting roles has put Blackshear on the bench, but she easily is the best first player off the bench Tech has had since probably Sarah Bates in 2021. Both Carnegie and Chit Chat Wright have been frequent scorers off the bench, providing offensive consistency down the roster befitting of what Tech has wanted to do the last couple of seasons.

Against Oregon, four Jackets reached double figures in scoring (Smith, Morgan, Termis, Noguero) with Kara Dunn just one field goal away from reaching a double-double at eight points and 12 rebounds.

While Morgan without a doubt is de facto primary weapon on this team, Tech was able to share the ball well against the Ducks with all five starters hovering around a 20% usage rate, a great sign that no one had to be ball dominant, and it translated to a balanced scoring attack across the starters as well.

While early season tends to give Power 4 teams plenty of winnable games as they fill out the schedule, Tech has looked convincingly good regardless of who they play. They’ve been ahead going into every 4th quarter and haven’t needed to be stressed late in games. This team, so far, has hit the gas significantly harder than the last two Morgan/Dunn/Noguero teams, and those that know this team will tell you that’s no accident.

One of Tech’s key advantages this season will be that four of these players have played together for three years now (Noguero/Dunn/Blackshear/Morgan) and five for two years. This team knows who they are and is going to be more consistent than they’ve ever been with this roster. Better yet, having the best freshman recruits we’ve seen since Morgan join the team during a moment of consistent play is fantastic. Carnegie/Wright/Grooms/Thompson won’t have to bear the brunt of the season like the the core before them had to. It’s allowing this team to play for right now and build for the future, setting up the beginning stages of a reload cycle instead of having to rebuild again.

The win over Oregon marked only the 13th ever head to head matchup against Oregon (per TechStats) and the third in women’s basketball. The women have won all three games, the other two coming in 2008 and 2009. Up until today, only women’s tennis had faced the Ducks in the 2010s or later. In the truly random/useless info department, this was the first time Georgia Tech and Oregon have played in the month of November in any sport.

Tech WBB will take off the rest of the week as they return from Hawaii, next playing Florida A&M on Sunday, December 1 at 2 p.m. in McCamish Pavilion.