CARROLLTON, Ga. – An early deficit did not phase the West Georgia Wolves women's basketball team on Friday afternoon as the Wolves defeated Albany State 94-65 in the 2023-24 season opener.
West Georgia trailed by as much as 20 in the first quarter, only to turn it around and rattle off the largest margin of victory in the
Joanna Reitz era.
"I am very proud of the resiliency of our team," Reitz said postgame. "That was certainly not the start we were aiming for, too many turnovers, but we got going and settled in and focused on the next possession and I'm proud of the mental toughness."
The Wolves' 94 points is the highest single-game total since December 3, 2021 when they scored 99 against Carver Bible College.
By the time the dust settled on Friday, the Wolves had four double-digit scoring including 19 points from
Aliyah Washington and 19 from
K'Nari Holliday in her UWG debut. Reitz and the Wolves got another stellar debut from
Zuriyah Davis and
Jada Powell as well as Davis finished with 17 and Powell had a double-double with 14 points and 13 rebounds.
Holliday was extremely efficient, finishing the game on 8-of-11 from the field.
"K'nari is such a strong post player. She has great touch around the rim, and has great feet and knows how to use her body to get in position," Reitz said of the debut from the Apopka, Florida native. "We did a good job of getting the ball to her, and probably need to get it to her more, but when we couldn't get anything else going in the first half, we went to her, and she answered the call."
The first half featured high-powered offense on both sides as each team shot nearly 45 percent from the field. Early on, however, it was all Albany State as the Golden Rams jumped out to a 24-4 lead at the 3:37 mark of the first quarter.
Fueled by 10 first half points from Holliday, the Wolves clawed their way back into the contest, cutting it to a 41-37 halftime deficit on a
Zuriyah Davis three-pointer late in the half.
At the 7:59 mark of the third quarter, sophomore
Katelyn Dunning gave the Wolves their first lead of the game turning an ASU turnover and Washington steal into points.
West Georgia would never trail again as the Wolves outscored the Golden Rams 29-18 in the third quarter and 26-8 in the games final quarter, stretching the lead to as much as 32.
The Wolves' ball movement was on full display on Friday, something Reitz loves to see, as UWG had 30 assists as a team.
"Yeah, 30 assists on 36 makes is the type of basketball we want to play," said Reitz, "We talk about playing assist basketball, we talk about sharing it and passing up good shots to get great shots, and when you have those 30 assists on 36 makes is a fun brand of basketball to play."
Freshman Sydne Toldbert led the offense with seven assists while
Mykah Anderson added six and Powell had five.
West Georgia also had the advantage on the glass, pulling down 48 rebounds to 46 from Albany State. Powell led the way there, followed by eight from Washington and six from Holliday.
There's not a lot of time to celebrate the season-opening win as the Wolves turn around and take on Tuskegee tomorrow here in The Coliseum.
"Tuskegee is a tough opponent and they're at the top of the SIAC year in and year out, so it'll be a good measuring stick for where we are against a perennial power in that league," Reitz concluded.
Saturday's game against UWG and Tuskegee tips off at 2 p.m. at The Coliseum.
