Hokies topple Duke, advance to program’s first-ever ACC Tournament title game
from www.hokiesports.com
Elizabeth Kitley, from Northwest Guilford High School, with 8 points and 11 rebounds, plus Cayla King, from Northwest Guilford High School, had two 3’s and 7 points total for Tech, as the VA Tech Hokies took down the Duke Blue Devils, on Saturday afternoon at the Greensboro Coliseum…Kitley and King, helping the Hokies reach the ACC Women’s Tournament Championship Game vs. Louisville, on Sunday afternoon, at the Greensboro Coliseum….King and Kitley helping the VA Tech Hokies reach their first-ever ACC Women’s Title Tilt….
GREENSBORO, NC – The Virginia Tech women’s basketball team shot 52.9 percent from three-point range on the way to a convincing 58-37 victory against Duke in a 2023 Ally ACC Women’s Basketball Tournament semifinal contest at Greensboro Coliseum Complex Saturday.
The third-seeded Hokies punched their ticket to their first-ever ACC Tournament title game, where they will face No. 4 seed Louisville at 1 p.m. ET tomorrow, Mar. 5, on ESPN.
Georgia Amoore led Tech (26-4) with 24 points and seven assists, including 16 first-half points. Elizabeth Kitley(Northwest Guilford HS) just missed out on another double-double, finishing with eight points and 11 rebounds and Kayana Traylor chipped in with eight points and six assists.
Virginia Tech was dominant on the glass, out-rebounding Duke 41-22 in Saturday’s game, led by Kitley’s 11 boards.
The Hokies’ defense held Duke to just 26.8 percent from the field, including 1-of-15 from three-point range. The Blue Devils did not get many second opportunities on the offensive end, as they grabbed only nine offensive rebounds and scored two second chance points while Virginia Tech pulled down 35 defensive rebounds.
How It Happened
After playing to a 6-6 tie early in the game, Virginia Tech went on a 5-0 run with 3:18 left in the first quarter, culminating in a bucket from Amoore, to take an 11-6 lead. The Hokies then lost some of that lead, but still entered the quarter break with a 13-9 advantage. Virginia Tech relied on its three-point shooting in the period, knocking down two shots to account for six of its 13 points.
Virginia Tech kept its first quarter lead intact before going on a 17-0 run starting at the 5:48 mark in the second period, highlighted by a bucket from Traylor, to increase its lead to 36-18, a score that would hold until halftime. Virginia Tech was strong from deep in the period, knocking down five three-point shots to account for 15 of its 23 points.
Tech continued to preserve its halftime lead before going on a 5-0 run, punctuated by a three from Amoore, to expand its lead further to 41-24 with 4:02 to go in the third. Before the third period was over, the Hokies added one point to that lead and entered the fourth quarter with a 48-30 edge. Virginia Tech knocked down two three-pointers in the quarter to score six of its 12 total points.
A jumper from Kitley punctuated a 6-0 run late in the fourth quarter as the Hokies punched their ticket to tomorrow’s conference title game.
Game Notes
» Tech made over half of their attempts from three point range, knocking down nine of 17 shots.
» The Hokies never trailed after taking a 13-9 first quarter lead.
» Virginia Tech tallied 15 total assists in the game.
» Amoore’s six made three-pointers set a new program record for triples in an ACC Tournament game.
» Duke’s 37 points were the fewest allowed by Virginia Tech in an ACC Tournament contest.
Up Next
The Hokies will play for their first-ever ACC Tournament crown tomorrow afternoon, but will have to face a tough Louisville squad who is making its fourth apperance in the league’s title game and have won eight of its last 10 outings.