Some big losses for the Yellow Jackets
Georgia Tech’s women’s basketball team had a stellar first season under head coach Nell Fortner, going 20-11 and advancing to the quarterfinals of the ACC tournament.
But a pair of sophomores won’t be returning for next season.
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Daijah Jefferson and Jasmine Carson have both entered the transfer portal, multiple sources close to the matter told High Post Hoops late Wednesday night.
Jefferson, a redshirt sophomore, will be classified as a graduate transfer and can play immediately for her new team. Carson will likely have to sit out a season, barring a waiver.
The loss of Carson is the more significant one as she was the Yellow Jackets’ fourth leading scorer this season — averaging 9.7 points per-game — and their top three-point shooter, making 33.8 percent of her attempts from behind the arc.
Carson didn’t play much as a freshman under former head coach MaChelle Joseph, but had a breakout season of sorts this past year with Fortner at the helm. She scored 15 points or more in a single game nine times and had five games where she knocked down at least four three-pointers.
Toward the end of the season though, Carson’s playing time began to dwindle. She played 17 minutes or less in each of the Yellow Jackets’ final seven games, including their ACC tournament loss to N.C. State, where she was on the court for just five minutes.
The 5’10 Carson is a native of Memphis, Tennessee, but concluded her high school playing career at McEachern in Powder Springs, Georgia, which is just outside of Atlanta.
Jefferson never quite caught on at Georgia Tech and has only played sparingly in her career there. She redshirted as a freshman in 2017-18 and then played less than 200 minutes the next season. This past year, she only saw 137 minutes of action in 21 games. She has shown the ability to be productive in spurts though, like on Jan. 19, when she tallied seven points, four rebounds and a steal in 19 minutes of action vs. Boston College.
A 6’2 forward from Hopewell, Virginia, Jefferson could be a solid veteran depth piece for any squad. Carson, meanwhile, could be a valuable shooter for a team with aspirations of contending.
Jefferson and Carson are the latest ACC players to enter the transfer portal. They follow Virginia Tech’s Dara Mabrey and Duke’s Kyra Lambert.
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