In the opening round of the 2022 Women’s Big East Tournament, Georgetown (10-18, 4-15) beat Providence (11-19, 6-14) 68-55, securing their spot in the quarterfinals against top-seeded UConn (22-5, 16-1) tomorrow.
Georgetown secured the opening tip but they didn’t score until over two minutes had passed, when graduate guard Milan Bolden-Morris scored the first bucket of the game for either team. Providence responded with full-court pressure, resulting in a back-and-forth first quarter in which the Hoyas missed quite a few shots, shooting only 25 percent from the floor. At the end of the first quarter, Providence made a jumper just before the buzzer sounded to end it with a 13-9 lead for the Friars.
The Hoyas started off the second quarter with a two-point floater from senior Shanniah Wright, but were mostly stifled by Providence’s pesky defense, which prevented Georgetown from taking many uncontested shots. Though Georgetown did a good job on the offensive glass, they were mostly unable to convert off of those second and third chances. Meanwhile, Providence continued to make shots with freshman standout Kylee Sheppard putting up her first basket of the game during the second quarter.
The Hoyas then started to turn things around, largely due to the outstanding performance of sophomore Kelsey Ransom, who has averaged double figures in scoring this season. Despite missing her first five shots, Ransom began to heat up toward the end of the second quarter, with three straight baskets. With Ransom leading the charge, the Hoyas went on an 11-2 run to end the half and took a one-point lead over the Friars heading into the locker room.
Georgetown picked up right where they left off in the second half, going on an impressive 19-0 run that began with freshman forward Brianna Scott’s three-point shot. The Hoyas’ defense was also solid and prevented Providence from scoring until there were only four minutes left in the third. At that point, though, the Friars went on a run of their own. They cut Georgetown’s lead to single digits during the fourth quarter, but Scott made a crucial layup with five minutes left in the game to stretch the lead by up to eleven. Providence hit a couple more shots in the game, but the Hoyas continued to make their shots and managed to come away with a 13-point victory.
Heading into tomorrow’s matchup against the UConn Huskies, Georgetown is on a three-game winning streak. However, Geno Auriemma’s team is ranked No. 7 in the country right now, and Georgetown dropped both regular-season games. Trying to upset the Huskies will be an incredibly tough task.
In his postgame interview, though, Georgetown Head Coach James Howard did not mention tomorrow’s quarterfinal game. He instead focused on his team’s performance today, talking about how proud he was of his players’ fight. “No matter what, those kids come out every night and give us their best,” Howard said.
If the Hoyas want to upset UCONN and make it to the semifinals, they will need to bring their very best — and then some. For continued coverage of the women’s basketball team and all Georgetown sports, follow @GUVoiceSports on Twitter.
