GEORGE TOWN, Cayman Islands (AP) — Georgia Amoore scored 24 points, Elizabeth Kitley had 18 and No. 9 Virginia Tech topped Tulane 76-70 on Saturday at the Cayman Islands Classic.
Olivia Summiel had 16 points and eight rebounds for the Hokies (5-1). Cayla King made three 3-pointers and finished with 11 points.
Amoore was 9 for 16 from the field. She also had seven assists and five rebounds.
“She remembered that she was Georgia Amoore,” Virginia Tech coach Kenny Brooks said. “She’s been trying to facilitate for so many people and therefore she kind of loses herself. She knew we needed her in the second half and she stepped up and she was unbelievable.”
For the second straight day, Virginia Tech struggled to pull away from an unranked opponent. Amoore made a 15-footer to give the Hokies a 65-63 lead with 5:55 left. Summiel had a big 3-pointer with 1:34 remaining, lifting Virginia Tech to a 72-68 advantage.
“Another close one but all of this is going to bode well for us in the end,” Brooks said. “I’m very proud of our kids, too, because it was a very quick turnaround. I think we had 15 hours between games from the end to start. I’ve never been associated with that kind of situation but our kids, they showed their resolve. … They went out and they were a little bit tired but I thought they fought through fatigue and were able to make plays down the stretch.”
Tulane’s Kyren Whittington led all scorers with 26 points on 9-for-13 shooting. Hannah Pratt had 16 points for the Green Wave (3-3), and Marta Galic finished with 12.
Tulane shot 41.4% (24 for 58) from the field, compared to 47.5% (29 for 61) for Virginia Tech. Tulane also was outrebounded by six.
BIG PICTURE
Tulane: The Green Wave will look to rebound after dropping both of their tournament games in the Classic by a combined 28 points.
Virginia Tech: After Friday’s close win over Kansas, coach Kenny Brooks stressed the need for the Hokies to find scoring options outside of All-American center Kitley. He got his wish on Saturday with four players scoring in double digits.
UP NEXT
Tulane visits Missouri State on Friday.
Virginia Tech visits No. 7 LSU on Thursday.
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