No. 17 Georgetown (22-10, 9-7 Big East) fell to No. 1 Connecticut (30-1, 16-0 Big East), 59-43, in the quarterfinals of the Big East tournament Sunday in Hartford, Conn.

The loss was the Hoyas’ second in eight days to the Huskies, who beat the Blue and Gray, 52-42, at McDonough Arena on Feb. 26. As in the previous meeting between the two teams, Georgetown played strong defense but could not score baskets at the other end.

After trading buckets for the first several minutes, Connecticut jumped out to a 24-12 lead after a 17-5 run with 7:23 remaining in the first half. The Huskies ended the half with a 37-17 advantage.

Poor shooting and rebounding by Georgetown allowed Connecticut to take control of the contest in the first stanza. The Hoyas were only able to shoot 25 percent from the field with 12 rebounds compared to 50 percent shooting and 26 boards for the Huskies.

The second half started better for the Blue and Gray, who closed the gap to 11 after a 13-4 run in the half’s first four and a half minutes. Sophomore guard Sugar Rodgers scored eight of those 13 points, including two makes from beyond the arc.

Georgetown was unable to maintain its momentum, however, as it failed to bring the contest to within single digits. The Huskies’ lead grew to as many as 18 at one point.

The Blue and Gray shot a lowly 21.4 percent from the field in the second half (22.9 percent for the game), including just 3-of-18 from three-point range, but outrebounded the Huskies, 25-23, with 15 offensive boards.

The Hoyas forced 21 turnovers in the game and held star senior forward Maya Moore to just six points after Moore scored a game-high 20 in the teams’ previous meeting. Freshman center Stefanie Dolson, who was held to just four points in the first game, picked up the slack for the Huskies with 24 points on 8-of-12 shooting with eight rebounds. As a team, Connecticut shot 43.5 percent from the field.

Rodgers led the Blue and Gray with 17 points on 7-of-20 shooting, including all three of the Hoyas’ long-range makes on seven attempts. Senior guard Monica McNutt, junior guard Rubylee Wright and junior forward Tia Magee combined to shoot just 5-of-37, including 2-of-18 for three.

Despite failing to secure an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament, the Hoyas still have the opportunity to be selected as an at-large team. Georgetown’s fate will be revealed next Monday at 7 p.m. on ESPN with the unveiling of the NCAA tournament field.