ATLANTA – There weren’t a lot of people in Georgia Tech’s Alexander Memorial Coliseum to watch the No. 9 Terrapin women’s basketball team play the Yellow Jackets last night. But even if the building had been filled to capacity, it’s a good bet fans still would’ve heard Terp center Lynetta Kizer.
The freshman gave a commanding performance in last night’s 87-79 Terp victory, screaming loudly and enthusiastically after key plays on her way to a career-high 22 points, along with 10 rebounds, five steals, three blocks and two assists.
“One thing I say about myself is just having my teammates feed off of me,” Kizer said. “If I can bring anything to the team, I can bring energy, and that’s what I like to do.”
While senior Marissa Coleman led the team with 23 points, last night’s win marked the first time in the team’s current six-game winning streak that two Terps other than Coleman and guard Kristi Toliver took on such a heavy scoring load.
Guard Marah Strickland, starting for the second-straight game in place of Sa’de Wiley-Gatewood, who did not travel with the team because of an illness, hit four three-pointers and scored 15 total points.
But the story of the game was Kizer’s emergence.
“Lynetta definitely brings a lot of energy to the team,” said Coleman, who was a perfect 11 of 11 from the free throw line. “Just the emotion she has, we definitely fed off it tonight, especially in times of the game when things weren’t going right.”
A quick 12-0 Georgia Tech run with less than seven minutes remaining threatened a once-23-point Terp lead, but after a Strickland 3-pointer with four minutes left, the Terps (22-4, 9-2 ACC) were able to score enough down the stretch to pull out the eight-point win.
Kizer looked as comfortable in the low post as she has all season. On one play in the first half, she smoothly backed down her defender and pump-faked toward the middle of the lane before spinning back to her left for a nifty layup.
In the second half, she backed down again, this time finding a cutting Coleman with an accurate bounce pass for an easy layup.
“She just gave us a tremendous post presence,” coach Brenda Frese said. “You could just tell she was ready from the tip. She was active. She was aggressive.”
The Woodbridge, Va., native McDonald’s High School All-American scored the Terps’ first eight points, setting the tone for her first dominant performance in ACC play.
Tied at 22 with 10:31 left in the first half, the Terps went on a 13-1 run lasting roughly five minutes to wrestle away control of the game from the Yellow Jackets (18-8, 5-6).
Toliver, who finished with 11 points on 4-of-12 shooting, found Kizer running down the floor for easy transition lay-ups. Kizer even asserted herself on the defensive end.
With just less than eight minutes remaining in the half, Kizer deflected an entry pass into the post and quickly recovered the loose ball before being fouled, tilting her head back and letting out another scream of joy.”
I definitely did feel comfortable, and I know my guards feel comfortable giving me the ball in the post, as well,” Kizer said. “The game’s definitely slowing down, and I’m just getting more confidence as each game goes along.”
Coleman and Toliver combined to score 17 points in the half but often deferred to Kizer, who outran her defender down the court on several occasions and beat out Georgia Tech rebounders for offensive boards and put back baskets, shooting 7-of-8 from the field.
“As a guard, she’s definitely a post player who you can find in transition,” Coleman said. “She’ll go one-two to the basket, and she’ll be able to finish it.”
Despite turning the ball over 19 times, the Terps were able to handle Georgia Tech’s full-court press, which the Yellow Jackets ran for the majority of last night’s game. The Terps shot nearly 53 percent from the field.
And while only 1,361 spectators were there to witness it, much fewer than the number expected for the Terps’ showdown with No. 7 Duke on Sunday at Comcast Center, Kizer made a lot of noise and a big statement with her performance.
“This is what we need from our big girl,” Frese said. “This kind of energy.”
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