Georgetown connects on 13 3-pointers in win
The contrasting style of the fighters suited the budding rivalry perfectly.
At one end of the floor, Georgetown unleashed an endless barrage of knockout-seeking 3-pointers. But having been there before so many times, Maryland didn’t go down easily, fighting back with a succession of body blows in the paint.
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But there was no answer for the fifth-seeded Hoyas’ school record-tying 13 long-distance haymakers, including 10 in the first half, that earned them a 79-57 victory over the fourth-seeded Terrapins and their first trip to the Sweet 16 since 1993 and second overall.
“Absolutely we came out with an agenda,” said Georgetown senior guard Monica McNutt, who scored 14 points. “We thoroughly believe in ourselves. For some reason, we keep hearing people don’t believe in us and weren’t taking us seriously.”
Georgetown, playing in just its third NCAA tournament, will face No. 1 seed Connecticut in Philadelphia on Sunday.
The Hoyas already had topped the Terps 53-45 at home in November. But 15 miles away at Comcast Center, the result was far more lopsided thanks to Sugar Rodgers. She hit six of her career-high and NCAA regional record-tying seven 3-pointers in the first half on the way to a career-high 34 points.
“We said at halftime, either the percentages are going to even out, or we’re going to get beat pretty badly,” Terps coach Brenda Frese said.
Alyssa Thomas had 23 points and a career-high 14 rebounds and Lynetta Kizer had 11 points and 10 rebounds for Maryland, which despite its 19 NCAA appearances lost for just the third time in 15 tournament games played in College Park.
The Hoyas (24-10), who had lost to the Terps in the teams’ eight previous meetings before this season, wrestled control of the building like it was their own right away, with McNutt swiping the ball from Anjale Barrett immediately after the Terps (24-8) had claimed the opening tip. Rodgers completed the sequence with a calm pump fake and her first 3-pointer.
By the time she hit her second, the Hoyas owned an 11-0 lead while the Terps were on the way to missing their first 10 shots.
Maryland didn’t get on the scoreboard until Kizer hit the second of two free throws at the 14:42 mark, but after McNutt’s contested jumper, the Terps erupted for their own 13-1 run to tie the game at 14-14.
Little could they have foreseen what would happen next. Georgetown got its next six buckets from beyond the arc, including another trio of 3s from Rodgers, who then finished the half 6-for-8 from 3-point range after a one-handed heave off the glass.
Signs were ominous for Maryland when starting forward Diandra Tchatchouang crumpled to the ground after a hard collision with 16:57 left in the first half and was carried off with an injured left knee.
