Lady Dogs beat Rutgers

By Jeff Haws

For the AJC

ATHENS -- It was the capper on a furious comeback, and it came off the hands of a freshman.

Anne Marie Armstrong's 3-pointer with 2:03 left completed a charge from down 12 with 7:15 left to give Georgia a lead it would never relinquish in a 49-48 victory over Rutgers on Sunday.

Armstrong's three was the biggest shot in a 17-2 Bulldog run that matched the same run for the Scarlet Knights (2-2), who built their double-digit lead as Georgia shots continued to clank off the rim.

The 6-foot-3 freshman had missed her two previous 3-point attempts, but she knew the big front line for Rutgers -- featuring three players 6-foot-2 or taller -- meant the Bulldogs (3-0) would need to hit jumpers to win the game, with her team down 46-44 as she lined up the shot.

"Coach [Andy Landers] just said, our posts couldn't get that many shots because of their defense and their blocking," said Armstrong, who hadn't hit a 3-pointer in a Georgia uniform prior to that make. "I was hoping it was going in; I was open, and coach always says, ‘When you're open, shoot it.'"

They did that, firing up 19 threes and making six, with half of those made threes coming in the final seven minutes.

It turned out, they needed every one of them, as Rutgers had one last shot to tie the game on its final possession.

Following two Ashley Houts free throws that made it 49-46 with 8.9 seconds left, the Knights took the ball downcourt and got into the corner to Myia McCurdy, who hit a jumper with her feet barely inside the 3-point stripe with three seconds left.

Rutgers' April Sykes stole the ensuing inbounds pass and fired a long shot from nearly midcourt that clanged off the back of the rim as the buzzer sounded.

That ended a game in which the Bulldogs were outrebounded 45-31, committed 17 turnovers to only 14 made baskets and shot just 26 percent from the field but still stayed undefeated.

To do that, they had to force 29 Rutgers turnovers and force the Knights into shooting just 3-of-16 on threes.

They also got a game-high 17 points from point guard Houts, who sparked the winning run with five straight points that finally seemed to awake the offense from its nine-minute slumber.

"That was big -- two back-to-back baskets; threes always seem to jack you up a little bit higher," Landers said. "I guess it's easier for them to play defense after a made basket."

Angel Robinson fell hard to the floor and hit her head with 9:02 left in the game. She was carted off the court on a board as a precautionary measure after she complained of neck pain. She was taken to St. Mary's Hospital. Immediate word on her condition was not available.

Sophomore Meredith Mitchell had a career-high 11 points for the Bulldogs, including two first-half 3-pointers. Rashidat Junaid had a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds, along with five blocks for Rutgers.