Dec. 1, 2009
Box Score
PHILADELPHIA - The Georgetown University women's basketball squad overcame a slow first half to get the 71-40 victory over the LaSalle University Explorers (1-6) Tuesday evening at Tom Gola Arena. The Hoyas outscored the Explorers 42-21 in the second half as GU cruised to its fifth-straight win of the season. The Blue & Gray is now 6-2 on the year.
"Tonight showed that we still have plenty to work out to get to where we need to be, but I was happy with our defensive effort and felt we played better in the second half," said Head Coach Terri Williams-Flournoy.
Georgetown started slow offensively but forced a slew of turnovers to stay on top including two-consecutive shot clock violations. GU kept plugging away and went up by as much as 13, but free throws allowed the Explorers back in the game. At the 5:03 mark LaSalle hit its final field goal of the half and the Hoyas scored seven more points. However, six made free throws made the score 29-19 at the break.
Defense was the key for the Hoyas who forced 19 Explorer turnovers in the first on eight steals. GU also allowed just 35.7 percent shooting from the field and hit 44.8 percent of shots going 13-of-29. The Blue & Gray struggled on the boards being outrebounded 17-7in the first.
Tia Magee (Tulsa, Okla./Jenks) led all scorers with 10 points in the half, while Ta'Shauna "Sugar" Rodgers (Suffolk, Va./King's Fork) tallied six. Magee also had two rebounds, two assists and as many steals at the break.
The second half seemed to be a game of individual runs as the defense turned into offense for Georgetown. Monica McNutt (Suitland, Md./Academy of the Holy Cross) scored the first five points for the Hoyas. Unfortunately, Antonia Gale answered for LaSalle scoring the first 14 points with no other Explorer notching a point until the five-minute mark.
Rodgers then stepped in with an 8-0 run of her own to put the Blue & Gray ahead by 18. From that point on, the Explorers could do nothing to thwart the defensive pressure as the GU lead continued to grow. At the final buzzer, the score was 71-40 as Georgetown cruised to its fifth-straight win.
Rodgers led the Hoyas with 17 points and was the second-leading rebounder with five boards to her credit. Rubylee Wright (Latta, S.C./Latta) added 15 points and Magee notched 13 points along with a team-best seven rebounds and six assists. Georgetown held a slight rebounding margin, 32-31, and forced 36 Explorer turnovers while committing a season-low 12. GU shot 39.4 percent from the field in the game.
The Hoyas will host Wake Forest on Saturday at 1 p.m. at McDonough Arena. Last year, GU knocked the Demon Deacons out of the WNIT second round with a 72-61 victory in Winston-Salem, N.C. Live stats and an audio broadcast featuring Drew Wiseman will be available at www.GUHoyas.com.
