GTWB: Georgia Tech takes care of business in exhibition

ATLANTA – Georgia Tech women’s basketball opened the season on Thursday with a convincing 93-56 victory over Georgia College in an exhibition matchup inside McCamish Pavilion.

The Yellow Jackets sophomore tandem, Tonie Morgan and Kara Dunn combined for 39 points and nine assists on 15 of 22 shooting from the field.

6-foot-1 junior forward Kayla Blackshear added 18 points and eight rebounds in 27 minutes of action.

12 of 13 players were active for the Yellow Jackets with Cincinnati graduate transfer Caitlyn Wilson, a 5-foot-9 guard, missing the game due to a leg injury, according to head coach Nell Fortner. Wilson’s status for the season opener is unknown.

Let’s unload the notebook from Georgia Tech’s 37-point win, including dives into the importance of Morgan and Dunn to the Yellow Jackets' success in 2023-24.

Morgan quickly emerged as one of the ACC’s top young guards last season, becoming one of two high-major freshmen to record a 30 percent assist rate and a positive assist-to-turnover ratio, according to HerHoopStats.

Morgan is an elite downhill driver with good burst and a versatile ball-handling package. She excels out of pick-and-roll actions, running them on 34.5% of her offensive possessions in 2022-23, per Synergy Sports.

In Georgia Tech’s exhibition win over Georgia College, she filled the box score with 20 points, seven rebounds and six assists on 8 of 12 shooting from the field.

“Tonie’s not there yet, but she’s maturing and continuing to understand what her strengths are and owning them,” Fortner said postgame. “It’s exciting to watch and know what she’s going to become, so yeah, I thought she did some good things tonight.”

Morgan also flashed her improved jumper, knocking down 3 of 6 shots from beyond the arc. Though it was an exhibition, she never took more than four 3-point attempts in a game last season. As a freshman, Morgan shot 19 percent from 3.

“I just had to build that confidence,” Morgan told ACC Network at media day. “My teammates and coaches knew I could shoot, I just didn’t. Now, I’ve hopefully come with the right mindset this year to take those shots.”

Georgia Tech will go as far as Morgan takes them and will need a sophomore leap from her to exceed its preseason expectations as a projected No. 11 seed in the ACC Preseason Coaches Poll.

Dunn is a prototypical modern basketball wing with her positional versatility, off-ball utility and ability as a spot-up shooter.

She averaged 16.5 points on 60 percent shooting from the field in Georgia Tech’s final four games last season and carried that improvement into the exhibition on Thursday. Dunn recorded 19 points, six rebounds and three assists on 7 of 12 shooting from the field and 1 of 5 shooting from beyond the arc in 21 minutes of action.

“She’s probably the one that added the most to her game in the offseason,” Fortner said. “She’s so versatile and we can play her in a lot of spots, it’s nice to have.”

The 5-foot-11 sophomore shot an astounding 70 percent at the rim as a freshman, ranking in the 91st percentile, according to CBB Analytics.

– Georgia Tech starting lineup: Tonie Morgan, Inés Noguero, Kara Dunn, Kayla Blackshear and Aixa Wone Aranaz. Morgan, Dunn, Blackshear and Wone Aranaz were regular starters for the Yellow Jackets last season.

– Dunn opened the game for Georgia Tech with a smooth drive and step-through in the lane, followed by a catch-and-shoot 3 less than a minute later.

– Georgia Tech got out to a 9-0 run before Georgia College guard Jaleah Storr hit a 3 with 6:20 remaining in the first quarter.

– Dunn hit a transition layup and Morgan knocked down a pull-up mid-range jumper to extend the Yellow Jackets lead to 18-11 at the end of the first quarter.

– After finding her groove at the end of the first quarter, it was a lot of the same for Morgan. The 5-foot-9 guard scored 11 points and two assists in the second quarter on 4 of 6 shooting from the field, including a pair of catch-and-shoot 3s.

– Lithuanian freshman guard Rusne Augustinaite recorded her first (unofficial) points as a Yellow Jacket on a relocation spot-up 3 at the 2:20 mark.

– Georgia Tech outscored Georgia College by 14 points in the second quarter to stretch the lead to 19 points at the half.

– In the third quarter, the Yellow Jackets found success with its driving and transition game, scoring 16 of 23 points in the paint.

– With 5:15 remaining in the fourth quarter, Noguero poked the ball loose on defense and finished in semi-transition on a smooth euro-step to the rim.

– Georgia Tech made each of its last five field goals, outscoring the Bobcats by 13 points in the fourth quarter and ending the game with a final score of 93-56.

Georgia Tech opens the regular season on Monday, Nov. 6, when Coastal Carolina visits McCamish Pavilion for an early 11:00 a.m. tip. The Chanticleers went 12-16 last season and were picked No. 10 in this year’s Sun Belt Preseason Coaches Poll.