ATLANTA — Alex Montgomery can’t play much more than half a game yet as she works her way back from knee surgery.
Georgia Tech’s scoring leader from last season was effective enough in her 19 minutes, scoring 16 points to help No. 25 Georgia Tech beat Oregon 87-69 Wednesday night.
Deja Foster had 21 points and 11 rebounds for her second career double-double, and Brigitte Ardossi added 19 points, nine rebounds and five assists for the Yellow Jackets (7-2).
“At first, I wasn’t sure about my knee,” Montgomery said. “But I’m not worrying about it anymore.”
Micaela Cocks scored 19 points to lead Oregon (8-2), which made 6-of-27 three-point attempts and led only once in the game, at 18-17 near the middle of the first half.
Georgia Tech shot 51.2 percent while building a 47-39 halftime lead. Montgomery had 14 points for the Yellow Jackets, going 3-of-5 from behind the three-point arc.
“We definitely need her,” Foster said. “She can do so much and she’s a good three-point shooter.”
The Ducks came into the game with the nation’s No. 2-ranked offense at 89.6 points per game, and Georgia Tech was 11th in defense, allowing an average of 51.5.
“We were able to break their press and get a lot of easy baskets,” Georgia Tech coach MaChelle Joseph said.
The Yellow Jackets, Oregon’s first ranked opponent this season, dominated inside with a 53-34 rebounding advantage.
They also had 13 second-chance points and had a 44-32 scoring edge in the paint.
After trailing by as many as 15 points in the second half, the Ducks cut Georgia Tech’s lead to 76-69 on Jasmin Holliday’s three-pointer with 1:11 to play.
But the Yellow Jackets held on by hitting 11 of their 12 free throws in the final minute.
Cocks led Oregon in scoring for the second consecutive game, and Nicole Canepa came off the bench to add 14 points and two blocks.
Nia Jackson also had 11 points.
The Ducks shot just 40.0 percent for the game (26-of-65), including 22.2 percent from three-point range.
Taylor Lilley, the team’s second-leading scorer at 15.6 points per game, finished with seven points on 3-for-14 shooting, including 1-for-11 from three-point range.
Amanda Johnson, who came into the game with team-high averages of 16.6 points and 11.1 rebounds, finished with four points and eight rebounds.
Oregon trailed 12-4 before an 8-0 run and tied the score with 14:36 to go on one of Cocks’ two three-point plays.
After games at Wyoming on Sunday and Utah on Tuesday, the Ducks return to McArthur Court to open the Pac-10 Conference season against Washington on New Year’s Day.
Georgia Tech 87, Oregon 69
Key stat: The Yellow Jackets had a 20-8 edge in offensive rebounds.
Notes: The loss ended Oregon’s second four-game winning streak. ... It was the first time the Ducks have trailed at halftime in 10 games. ... Brigitte Ardossi was 9-for-9 from the field for Georgia Tech. ... The first of three three-pointers by Micaela Cocks extended her streak with at least one to 26 games. ... Cocks is the only Duck to score in double figures in all 10 games this season.
Next: Oregon continues its three-game road trip at Wyoming at 1 p.m. Sunday.
Boxscore: See Scoreboard, Page C4.