WGTC Wins Conference-Opener Over GA Northwestern, 95-52

After a grueling pre-conference schedule against mostly NJCAA Division 1 teams, the West Georgia Tech men’s basketball team played its conference-opener Friday night and won easily over the Georgia Northwestern Bobcats, 95-52.

WGTC, the two-time defending GCAA/Region 17 champs, improved to 3-10 overall and 1-0 in conference play with the win, while Georgia Northwestern dropped to 3-6, 0-1.

“We've been talking about this game for the last couple of weeks with the guys, letting them know everything we're doing is gearing up for the conference schedule and they really came through,” said WGTC head coach Niki Okolovitch. “Our overall effort and execution was great, but Georgia Northwestern just missed a lot of shots that they would normally hit, so we need to be aware of that and tighten up a little bit more defensively. 

"Offensively we came out very impatient and forced too many early three-pointers. We settled down halfway through the first half, and I was really excited to see the unselfishness we showed the rest of the game. I've told the guys over and over that we need to start understanding what a true team first approach means, and once all twelve guys completely buy into that concept we're going to be a very tough team to beat. Tonight we took another big step in that direction.”

West Georgia Tech closed the first half with a 28-10 run to lead at the break 43-22.

Orlandis Hill came off the bench to lead four double-figure scorers for the Golden Knights, with 17 points. Hill connected on 6-of-12 shots from the field and was 4-of-8 from three-point range.

Jalen Bracey added 13 points on 6-of-8 shooting.

Martez Winston had 12 points and Jon Perry scored 11 to round out the double-figure scoring.

Tavish Reynolds led the Bobcats with 11 points.

The Golden Knights had a good night offensively, shooting 53.9 percent from the field while turning the ball over just eight times.

West Georgia Tech was back in action on Saturday against Faith Baptist Prep to close out the pre-Christmas schedule.

WGTC’s next game following the break is on January 10 when the Golden Knights host Snead State at 7:30 p.m.

Visit www.WGTCAthletics.com for more information on Golden Knights athletics.