BIMINI, BAHAMAS – A game that was full of spurts and runs defined the opening contest of the Junkanoo Jam as the University of Pennsylvania (1-2) fell to Georgia Tech (5-0) 69-55 on Thanksgiving night in Bimini, Bahamas.
 
NOTES
*Tonight's contest marked just the third meeting all-time between Georgia Tech and Penn. The two sides last met in 1983 nearly 34 years ago on neutral court with the Yellow Jackets claiming each meeting.
 
*Two freshmen led the way for the Quakers, with Katie Kinum pacing Penn with 17 points. Eleah Parker and Michelle Nwokedi each provided 12 points each and combined for 12 boards.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Quakers used quick passing to catch the Yellow Jackets on their heels in the early goings, and freshman Eleah Parker led the way inside the paint. The freshman center notched 10 of Penn's 12 points on 5-for-5 shooting in the opening seven minutes en route to 53% shooting from the field for the stanza (9-of-17).
 
The tightly contested match continued into the second but the Quakers had to fight back from 2:22 scoring drought early in the frame. Freshman Katie Kinum lifted Penn out of the slump off a long-range trey, but Georgia Tech pulled ahead 31-25 after Penn hit just one of eight attempts from the field by the 4:54 mark. The Quakers wouldn't go away easily, however, and on the backs of a combined 25 points from Kinum and Parker went into the locker rooms trailing by just one, 36-35.
 
Georgia Tech came out firing following intermission, and a 10-0 run by the Yellow Jackets prompted a Penn to call two timeouts in quick succession to stop the bleeding at 46-35. Despite the downturn, Penn continued to fight and responded with their own run to make it a six-point game at 46-40 with 2:57 on the clock and got within four by the end of the frame, 50-46.
 
Another big run, this time a 9-0 advantage, early in the fourth gave Georgia Tech a 59-46 advantage and the Quakers couldn't climb out of the deficit as time wound down on a comeback bid. Georgia Tech claimed the 69-55 victory as Penn fell in their opening contest of the Junkanoo Jam.
 
UP NEXT
Penn will take on Missouri State tomorrow for the 3^rd/4^th place game of the Junkanoo Jam on Friday, Nov. 24. Game time is scheduled for 7:45 p.m. ET and will be broadcast on FloHoops.