Boston College women’s basketball started its game against Georgia Tech with 11 straight missed shots.
The Eagles trailed 10–3 after Amirah Anderson made BC’s first field goal in the seventh minute of the game.
“They weren’t making shots,” BC head coach Joanna Bernabei-McNamee said. “And that was frustrating. But I didn’t think we took bad shots. But we also didn’t get second opportunities. If you’re not going to make threes, you better at least get one or two offensive boards to go with those.”
The Eagles (4–20, 0–11 Atlantic Coast) scored five points in the first quarter to the Yellow Jackets’ 17, as Georgia Tech (10–13, 5–6) ran away with a 70–60 win over BC.
“They held Georgia Tech scoreless for, like, the first four minutes of the game as well,” Bernabei-McNamee said. “They didn’t let the offense seep into how hard they were playing defense. But then I do think the last five minutes of that first quarter we continued not to shoot well on the offensive end, and then we let that lack of momentum carry into our adrenaline on the defensive end.”
Talayah Walker scored 18 points on 9 of 13 attempts and grabbed 8 rebounds. Georgia Tech opened the fourth quarter on an 8–0 scoring run and Walker scored six of the points, which ultimately led to the 10-point victory.
“I was a little bit mad at our team in that second half, especially fourth quarter, because our game plan was to limit [Walker’s] touches in at least six different defensive possessions,” Bernabei-McNamee said. “We weren’t locked in on that.”
The Yellow Jackets scored 50 points in the paint and shot 2 of 16 from three-point range. The Eagles matched that with 24 in the paint, a testament to the lack of height on the roster.
“There should have never been a possession where we weren’t in the help—where they see a group of Boston College players clogging up the inside position,” Bernabei-McNamee said. “There really would never be a time where a post player should be able to get the ball inside, and we don’t come in and double them in this game. And I thought we missed our opportunities multiple times, not doubling in.”
Lily Carmody scored two points through the first half, but she finished as the game’s second-leading scorer with 19 behind eight field goals.
Jocelyne Grier scored the final points of the game with 29 seconds remaining, ending the game with 20 points after shooting 1 of 6 in the first quarter.
“I said, ‘You got to keep shooting,’” Bernabei-McNamee said. “‘You’re a scorer, go in there and take your time.’ I thought in the first half, she rushed a lot of shots. For her, there’s no need to rush, because she has a very quick release.”
The Eagles have not won an Atlantic Coast game and now own a 16-game losing streak.
“They’re focused on continuing to improve as individuals and as a team,” Bernabei-McNamee said. “I’m thankful for that as their coach, because you need to have something in a stretch like this when, you know, it’s miserable losing. Losing is no fun, but it’s manageable if you’re with players that continue to work to try to get better and learn from each of the losses.”