CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. -- The Boston College womens basketball team extended its winning streak to three games with its 85-80 win over Georgetown, avenging a road loss earlier this season. Freshman Janelle McManus scored a career-high 24 points and junior Becky Gottstein netted 23 and grabbed 14 rebounds on her way to her eighth double-double of the season.
BC opened up a six-point lead, 8-2, with 3:15 gone in the first, but Georgetown rallied to tie the game just a minute and a half later spurred by two Lesley Walker (Silver Spring, Md.) baskets. The Hoyas took their first lead of the game, 11-10, and then went ahead by three, before Nicole Conway tied the game with a three-pointer. From that point, BC went on a 35-19 run that gave the team a 48-32 lead with 1:45 left in the first. McManus scored 12 of her points during the spurt, including two three pointers. At the half, the Eagles held a 14-point lead, 51-37.
Georgetown reversed the roles to start the second and mounted a 19-4 comeback and regained the advantage, 56-55, on a Katie Smrcka-Duffy (Sterling, Va.) three-pointer with 12:56 to play. The Hoyas opened up a five-point advantage as Nathalie Bourdereau (River Ridge, La.) scored back-to-back lay-ups. After the two teams traded baskets, the Eagles ripped off eight-straight points to regain control and then McManus nailed a three-pointer as the shot clock expired to hand BC a 73-69 lead with 3:38 left.
The Eagles made one more basket after that, but took seven trips to the foul line, converting on eight-of-12 shots. The Hoyas Rebekkah Brunson (Oxon Hill, Md.) added six points down the stretch and Smrcka-Duffy hit a clutch three-pointer, but the Eagles prevailed by the five-point margin.
Gottstein led all rebounders with 14 as BC out-rebounded Georgetown 41-31.
Four Hoyas scored in double figures, led by Brunson's and Zsuzsanna Horvath's (Budapest, Hungary) career-high 19 points each apieace. Walker added 15, while Smrcka-Duffy put up 10. Brunson grabbed eight rebounds in the loss.
With the win, BC improved to 11-14 overall and 5-9 in BIG EAST play. Georgetown moved to 15-11 overall in 6-8 in league games.
