Kentucky women's basketball was defeated by a final score of 80-79 in overtime against Kansas State in the NCAA Tournament on Sunday. It was a heartbreaking defeat that saw Georgia Amoore narrowly miss a potential game-winning shot. After the game, Amoore commented on the missed shot.
"I'm not gonna let one shot affect five years," Amoore said, via Phoenix Stevens of KSR and On3.
With 3.2 seconds remaining in the game and trailing by one point, Kentucky ran a play for Amoore to have an open look at the basket. Starting from the sideline, Amoore was the inbounder on the play and passed the ball to Clara Strack. Amoore then immediately sprinted toward the basket and received the ball back from Strack. Although she was met with some defensive pressure, Amoore had a good look and utilized a floater as her momentum carried her toward the basket.
It felt like an eternity passed as the ball slowly floated toward the basket. Would it find the bottom of the net?
It first connected with the front of the rim. The ball then bounced over the opening of the hoop and clanked off the back of the rim.
The shot ultimately missed and Kentucky women's basketball suffered a heartbreaking defeat. Amoore, though, is trying to maintain a positive mindset based on her comments. She enjoyed a terrific college basketball career -- a career she hopes won't be defined by one shot.
Georgia Amoore's college basketball career
Amoore had a tremendous career at the college basketball level. She spent the first four seasons with Virginia Tech before landing with Kentucky for her final campaign.
Amoore led Virginia Tech to the program's first ACC title and Final Four appearance. She earned a first-team ALL-SEC honor once and was selected to the first-team All-ACC twice. She ended up recording career averages of 15.7 points, 5.5 assists and 2.5 rebounds per game. Amoore also shot 40.4 percent from the field and 35.6 percent from beyond the arc.
Although she won't win an NCAA Tournament, she will be remembered as one of the better Virginia Tech women's basketball players ever. Additionally, Kentucky will miss the guard even though she only spent one season with the Wildcats.
Amoore's focus will now shift toward preparing for the WNBA Draft. It will be interesting to see which team ends up selecting her in the draft. Georgia Amoore is an intriguing guard with a bright basketball future.