Tigers fall to #1 Thomas More

#18 Georgetown faced its stiffest test of the early season on Saturday against #1 Thomas More. While the Tigers fought hard, the Saints used a 13-0 3rd quarter run to knock off Georgetown, 75-63.

The teams traded early buckets and the lead as Madison Darnell got off to a nice start, scoring the 1st 5 Tiger points of the game. She would finish with a team-high 15, in a game-high 38 minutes. A 3-pointer from Jordan Rogers gave Georgetown a 15-11 lead with 4 minutes left in the 1st quarter, showing the defending national champions that the Tigers came to play. The Saints defense responded as the Tigers scored just 1 point for the remainder of the quarter. In that stretch, Georgetown went 0-5 from the floor and 1-3 from the foul line. Thomas More took an 18-16 lead into the 2nd.

The shooting woes would continue early in the 2nd as Georgetown would not hit its first basket until 3 minutes into the period. Thomas More started the quarter on a 9-2 run to take a 27-18 lead, forcing the Tigers into a timeout. Erin Toller would hit her only 3 of the day out of the timeout, briefly bringing the Tigers within 6, but the Saints kept the pressure on as Georgetown continued to struggle making baskets. With 2:35 left in the quarter, a Saints basket made the score 33-22 and signaled danger time for Georgetown. The Tigers showed fight and battled back. A 7-2 GC run closed out the first half and brought the Tigers back within 6 at 35-29.

Georgetown felt the momentum swing in that stretch and looked to capitalize on it in the 3rd quarter. The Tigers scored 7 points in the first 51 seconds of the 3rd to grab a 36-35 lead over Thomas More, giving the Tigers an overall 14-2 run. That run and momentum would be short lived as Thomas More scored just 10 seconds after the last GC bucket to reassume the lead. It would ignite a 13-0 Saints run over the next 3:17, and give TMU a 48-36 lead with just under 6 minutes left in the 3rd. The run would prove to be the knockout blow for Georgetown. A 3-pointer from Lisa Suljemani brought the Tigers within 9 with 90 seconds left in the 3rd, but it would be the only time the remainder of the game the Tigers would get within single digits of Thomas More.

Shooting proved to be the Tigers downfall in the bid for the upset. Georgetown shot just 33.9% for the game and only 4-16 from 3-point range. While Thomas More was just 3-13 from beyond the arc, the Saints shot 56% from 2-point range, not allowing the Tigers to build a late charge. Other than the 15 points from Madison Darnell, Cassie Colon was the only Tiger to finish the game in double figures. The Pottstown, PA native finished with 11.

Georgetown is next in action on Tuesday against #24 Cumberlands with a scheduled tipoff of 5:30pm ET.