Charles Nailen/The Hoya Junior guard Bethany LeSueur posts up for a shot. She scored 14 points in the Hoyas’ 72-61 win over Pittsburgh on Saturday.

Coming off a string of three losses, the Georgetown women’s basketball team reversed the trend against one of the Big East’s worst programs, downing a struggling Pittsburgh 72-61 last Saturday.

Shooting 55.6 percent for the night, the Hoyas put forth one of their strongest efforts this season, dominating the Panthers for most of the game. Despite a few lapses during which Pittsburgh threatened to tie the score, Georgetown had little trouble gliding to a victory in which, unlike previous efforts, the shots seemed to fall in the basket with frequency.

The Hoyas started out well with an eight-point run. Junior guard ary Lisicky nailed two three-pointers, one of which was her 200th, making her the first Georgetown female player to reach that mark. Georgetown kept up the pace, leading 18-6 midway through the first half.

As has often happened this season, the Hoyas let down their guard after a quick start, nearly jeopardizing their lead. First the Panthers brought the game to within five, 20-15, but the Hoyas successfully repelled the attack. Pittsburgh was not finished, however, and freshman guard Brooke Hughes and sophomore guard Katie Histed both sank three-pointers to chip away at Georgetown’s lead.

In an overall mediocre game, both Hughes and Histed boosted the Panthers play, combining for six of the team’s eight three-pointers.

The Hoyas batted away the challengers again, going from a four-point lead at 27-23 to an 11-point lead, 34-23 in less than two minutes. The home team finished the half down by nine, 34-25.

The first half saw Georgetown shooting 15-of-26 for a 57.7 shooting percentage. Junior guards Bethany LeSueur and Lisicky led the team in scoring with a combined 19 points. Lisicky went 3-for-5 from three-point territory and dished out five assists. Pittsburgh was happy to shoot the ball – taking 33 shots from the floor – and more prone to miss, only connecting on nine for a 27.9 shooting percentage.

The Panthers bid for the lead early in the second half, pulling to within four points again, 38-34, with 16:47 left on the clock. Georgetown took its time, however, making the most of its possessions and forcing the ball inside. After only three minutes, the Hoyas were up by 14 points, 50-36, and the Panthers ceased to pose a serious challenge for their opponents.

At 3:30 Georgetown had the game sealed with a 17-point lead, 68-51, and the team backed off their foes somewhat. Senior forward Rebekkah Brunson fouled out with 1:45 left, leaving the team without its best post player while the Panthers went on a mini-run. In those final minutes, Pittsburgh outscored its guests 10-3, but the distance was too far to play catch up and Pittsburgh had to settle for yet another conference loss.

Pittsburgh (6-17, 2-11 Big East) has now lost nine consecutive games and only winless Providence lies beneath them in the conference. Georgetown (11-12, 5-7 Big East) stands in 10th place, but only two wins away from seventh place Rutgers.

Despite ending up with another game in the loss column, Pittsburgh ratcheted up its play in the second half. It made 13 field goals for a respectable 41.9 percent shooting average and saw four players reach double-digits in scoring, led by Histed with 13 points. While the game eventually turned one-sided, the Panthers had multiple opportunities to grab the lead at the end of the first and the beginning of the second half.

In the end, however, the Hoyas showed more composure and had more luck around the basket. The team continued its hot streak, hitting 15 of 28 field goal attempts. Lisicky led scoring with a game-high 16 points while LeSueur and Brunson tied for second with 14 points. The team also received 14 points from off the bench, a better-than-usual showing for a team that has been hampered by a lack of depth. While the Hoyas were outrebounded 39-34, they also took 10 fewer shots and had 10 fewer offensive boards.

With a rematch against Rutgers looming on Saturday afternoon, Georgetown needed the victory and a week off to restore battered confidence and any fatigue. Well rested and no longer on a losing streak, the team should be ready to face down the Scarlet Knights, who edged them 67-64 last month in a fiercely played showdown in New Jersey.

Tip-off is at 3 p.m. in McDonough Gymnasium.