ATHENS -- Freshman Jasmine Hassell came off the bench to score 10 of her career-high 14 points in the second half to lead No. 9 Georgia to an easy 66-42 win over Detroit Tuesday night.
With Angel Robinson in foul trouble as the second half began, Hassell was the main beneficiary, logging most of her 13 minutes after halftime.
She provided the spark to a Georgia offense that was slow to start and led just 29-25 at the intermission. Hassell scored six points during a 13-4 Lady Dog run that turned it into a 42-29 game by the 13:30 mark. Detroit (1-9) never again got closer than 10.
Hassell, who hadn't scored more than six points in any game this season, was one of only two Lady Dogs (11-0) to take multiple shots and convert more than 50 percent from the field. She did much of it with a turnaround jump shot from the post, which she said she has had to develop just to compete between games.
"I go against (6-foot-2) Porsha Phillips and (6-5) Angel Robinson in practice. That's a little challenge for you," said Hassell, a 6-2 forward. "They've all got long arms. Day in and day out, you come into practice and you have to play against those girls, I'm sure you're going to develop some kind of form."
While Hassell was busy giving the offense a lift, the Georgia defense was providing the offense plenty of opportunities.
The Bulldogs forced 25 turnovers leading to 19 points and, along with 24 offensive rebounds, a season-high 74 field-goal attempts. Georgia coach Andy Landers said he couldn't remember the last time his team missed 50 shots, but he wanted them to keep hoisting.
"I couldn't sense their frustration, for my own frustration. My frustration had my senses blocked," Landers said.
"What's great, in the first half, it's comical, really. We'd come down there. We'd work our offense. We'd get a great shot. We'd shoot it and miss it. Bam, we'd go in there and look like monsters on the board, then kick it back out. We're feeling good about it, work it around, get another shot and miss it."
Despite the shooting woes, the Lady Dogs had plenty of offense to take down a Titans team that upset Georgia in Detroit last season. The Titans even touted that win on the cover of their media guide with a picture of the scoreboard and the 70-66 final score.
Georgia point guard Ashley Houts, who finished with 12 points, remembers last year's loss well. And she said Landers made sure the team knew what can happen if they let their guard down.
"Coming in, they're a good team, but we kind of [lost] some of our pride last year," Houts said. "We were very much aware of the media guide cover."
Landers said they made the cover into a poster to make sure the players saw it.
"We used it as a teaching point more than a motivational point," Landers said. "It wasn't to make them mad at Detroit. It was to teach them that Georgia is a basketball program that's very, very national.
"For some teams, it's the biggest game their program has ever played."
About the Author
Keep Reading
The Latest
Featured