Plagued by shooting woes, Georgetown’s women’s basketball team (12-12, 5-10 BIG EAST) fell to No. 15 Villanova (21-4, 12-2 BIG EAST) 82-53 on Wednesday night. The Hoyas were led by graduate guard Kristina Moore with 12 points, while Villanova’s star senior forward and 2022 Big East Player of the Year Maddy Siegrist led the Wildcats with 27 points.
The Hoyas held on for most of the first quarter, until senior guard Brooke Mullin spurred a 19-0 Wildcats run to finish the period up 24-7. Georgetown scored just seven points during the first, shooting a dismal 16.67 percent from the field. The Hoyas’ only bright spot was freshman guard Kennedy Fauntleroy, who scored Georgetown’s only three-pointer of the half.
Georgetown fell even further behind during the second, scoring a total of nine points over the quarter. Siegrist and sophomore guard Kaitlyn Orihel dominated Villanova’s play, with eight points and seven points, respectively. Villanova stayed hot from three, with Siegrist and Orihel scoring the quarter’s only two triples by either side. Georgetown’s shooting average improved only slightly this quarter, up to 23.53 percent. Defensively, Georgetown failed to slow Villanova’s momentum. The Wildcats ended the half on a 16-3 run to go up a dominant 43-16.
The Hoyas turned things around drastically in the second half, making half of their shots from the field. Junior guard Kelsey Ransom played the entire third quarter, despite hitting the court hard after a missed shot. Moore scored two three-pointers for Georgetown. A failed attempt by Siegrist to score during the final few seconds resulted in a travel on Villanova. Georgetown won the third quarter, scoring 21 points to Villanova’s 20, and reducing the Wildcat lead ever so slightly to 63-37.
Georgetown maintained their offensive pressure throughout the final quarter, only scoring three fewer points than Villanova. Fauntleroy and Moore led Georgetown’s offense with four points each. Once again, however, ‘Nova was the only team that scored from deep, this time through junior guard Bella Runyan. Wildcat sophomore guard Zanai Jones scored the last shot of the game, bringing the final score to 82-53 Villanova.
Throughout the game, Villanova repeatedly used quick overhead passes—often to Siegrist in the post—to capitalize on their height advantage and stay ahead of the Georgetown defense.
Head Coach James Howard made frequent subs during the game, with all players getting at least two minutes, but the constantly changing rotation had little direct impact on the score. This was exemplified in bench points, where Villanova’s reserves scored 31 points, compared to a measly eight by Georgetown.
Georgetown only scored two fewer points than Villanova in the second half, in comparison to 24 fewer in the first. As a result, Coach Howard sees little to learn from the wasted first half of the game. “The second half is who we are,” he said. “But you gotta start the game, you gotta play well right off the gate.”
Unfortunately, the dramatic turnaround could not save this game for the Hoyas.
Georgetown looks to avoid a three-game losing streak this Saturday, but faces a tough battle with the No. 4 UConn Huskies (21-4, 13-1 BIG EAST). Tip-off is scheduled for 5 p.m., and the game will take place at the Entertainment and Sports Arena. Follow @GUVoiceSports on Twitter for more updates and coverage of all Georgetown sports.
