The Georgetown women’s basketball team look to continue their run in the WNIT against Harvard in Cambridge, MA on Sunday. The Hoyas dispatched Sacred Heart (19-13, 14-4 NEC) 90-59 Friday night at McDonough Arena, while Harvard defeated Drexel (24-9, 14-4 CAA) 69-56 in a home tilt.
The Hoyas (17-15, 9-9 Big East), who were coming off a Big East Tournament loss to No. 18 Marquette (27-7, 15-3 Big East), were sharp from the opening tip in their performance against the Pioneers. Georgetown started the game on an 11-2 run, and led 21-15 after the first quarter. Senior guard Dionna White, who led the team with 21 points and seven assists, contributed 10 points, four rebounds, and three assists in the opening period. White also became just the second player in program history to eclipse 2,000 career points, now trailing only Sugar Rodgers.
“It felt great. It is a great accomplishment and is always exciting to have teammates cheering for me,” White said.
The Hoyas would take a 33-25 lead into the halftime break, as the Pioneers managed to stay within shouting distance thanks to a last-second three after a Georgetown miss. In the second half, Georgetown pulled away early on, starting with a 13-4 run led by freshman guard Nikola Kovacikova, who drilled a pair of 3-pointers and dished out three assists. The Hoyas outscored the Pioneers 26-10 in the third, and then added to the final margin of victory with a 31-24 edge in the fourth quarter.
Harvard (17-12, 9-5 Ivy League) poses a challenge to the Hoyas via their balanced scoring attack, as the Crimson feature four players who average over 10 points per game. The Crimson also hang around the 3-point arc, shooting nearly 30 threes per game and hitting nine per contest. Junior guard Katie Benzan leads Harvard in scoring with 14.3 points per game, and hits 3.4 3-pointers per contest.
The Hoyas, who rely on their defensive pressure to cause turnovers and havoc, may pressure the Crimson early on. Harvard averages over 15 turnovers per contest while the Hoyas typically own the turnover margin, in addition to scoring more points off of turnovers than their opposition.
Tip-off is set for 3:00 p.m., and the game will be streamed on ESPN+. You can also follow live stats and a webcast on guhoyas.com. Follow @GUVoiceSports on Twitter for live updates of the matchup.
