Hurricanes Face Georgia Tech Sunday on Senior Day

Hurricanes Face Georgia Tech Sunday on Senior Day

Feb. 24, 2006

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Miami (15-11, 5-8 ACC) vs Georgia Tech (13-13, 2-11 ACC)
February 26, 2006 / 1:00 p.m.
BankUnited Center / Coral Gables, Fla.
Game Notes

Game Notes in PDF Format
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The Game

In what will mark the final home game for UM seniors Katie Hayek, Tamara James, Melissa Knight and Tatjana Marincic, Miami closes out the regular season Sunday at the BankUnited Center, playing host to Georgia Tech in a 1 p.m. televised match-up on the ACC’s Regional Sports Networks.<?xml:namespace prefix=”o” ns=”urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office”?>

 

First-year head coach Katie Meier and the Hurricanes are 6-8 in ACC play with an overall mark of 15-11 this season. <?xml:namespace prefix=”st1″ ns=”urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags”?>Miami ranks fourth in the conference in offensive production, averaging 75.2 points per game, which marks fifth highest scoring average in UM history.

 

Coming off a 32-point outing against Duke last Sunday, National Player of the Year candidate Tamara James leads the ACC in scoring (20.3 ppg) and steals (2.96 spg) and tops the UM roster in rebounding (7.7 rpg).

 

All-ACC candidate Renee Taylor is second on the team and sixth in the league in scoring (15.3 ppg) and leads the Hurricanes with 3.4 assists per game.

 

Senior guard Melissa Knight has been hot of late, hitting 58.3 percent from beyond the arc of the last three games.

Television, Radio and Internet Broadcast

Sunday’s game will be televised live on Fox Sports Florida, Fox Sports South and Comcast Sports Net. The game will also be broadcast on WVUM (90.5 FM) and can also be heard on the web at www.hurricanesports.com which will also feature live scoring and stats.

 

A Quick Look at Georgia Tech

Head coach MaChelle Joseph and the Yellow Jackets hold a 2-11 record in league play and a 13-13 overall record following a 57-51 loss at Virginia Thursday. Georgia Tech is allowing just 58.6 points per game while limiting opponents to just 36.4 percent shooting from the field.

 

The Yellow Jackets lineup features three players averaging double-digit scoring led by sophomore guard Chioma Nnamaka’s 12.7 points per game. Junior guard Stephaine Higgs (11.3 ppg) is second in scoring followed by sophomore forward Janie Mitchell (10.0 ppg).

 The Series

Sunday’s game will mark second meeting this season and the seventh meeting overall between the Hurricanes and Yellow Jackets. After downing Tech earlier this season 75-63 Jan. 5 in Atlanta, Miami holds a 5-1 advantage in the all-time series.

 

In the last meeting, Tamara James and Renee Taylor each scored 18 points as Miami downed Georgia Tech 75-63 in UM’s ACC opener at Alexander Memorial Coliseum.

 

The Hurricanes shot 46.3 percent from the floor led by freshman center Brittany Denson, who hit 6-of-10 shots en route to a career-best 16-point outing.

 

2005-06 Hurricane Seniors

Sunday’s game will mark the final home game for four University of Miami seniors including Katie Hayek, Tamara James, Melissa Knight and Tatjana Marincic, who will each be honored in a ceremony at mid-court prior to tip-off.

 

A native of Lancaster, Pa., Hayek will make her 84th appearance in a Hurricane uniform Sunday. During her four-year career, she established herself as one of the most prolific outside shooters in UM history and currently ranks among UM’s all-time leaders in three-pointers made, attempted and three-point percentage. This season, she has set career bests in nearly every category and is one of only three players on the UM roster to start all 26 games.

 

James will end her UM career as one of the best players to ever wear the orange and green. With 2,288 career points, she sits at second place among UM’s all-time leading scorers and holds the school’s third-highest career scoring average. The only player in UM history to be listed among the school’s career leaders in 17 different categories, she is also listed 15 different times among UM’s single-season record holders and 15 different times in UM’s single game records. A native of Dania, Fla. she is a three-time all-conference selection, five-time all-America honorable mention selection, two-time national player of the year candidate and a former freshman all-America selection.

 

Knight has led the Hurricanes to two NCAA Tournament and one WNIT berths since joining the UM family in 2001. One of the best clutch shooters the University of Miami has ever seen, she ranks fifth all-time at UM in career three pointers made and attempted. She is also listed among UM’s all-time leaders in career three-point percentage and free throw percentage. Having already earned a degree in business in May of 2005, she returned this season for a fifth and final year and currently ranks third on the team in scoring.

 

Marincic has embodied both the mind and spirit of the University of Miami women’s basketball program, serving as an example to teammates and others both on and off the court. A 2005 Academic All-ACC selection and two-time BIG EAST Academic All-Star, she has proven to be one of the most consistent players to wear the Hurricane uniform over the past four seasons.

Promotions

Miami Hurricane women’s basketball fans will have the opportunity to collect player trading cards during all home games. The first 200 fans in attendance at each game will receive the cards, which will feature a different player each game during the 2005-06 including Sunday with senior forward Tamara James.

Tickets

Tickets are just $5 dollars for adults and $3 dollars for children and senior citizens. To purchase tickets or for more information please call the Hurricane Ticket Office at 1-800-GO-CANES or purchase online at hurricanesports.com.