With each team searching for their second conference win, the Georgetown University women’s basketball team traveled to Butler University for what was anticipated to be a low-scoring battle.
After slow starts by both sides, the Butler Bulldogs (12-7, 2-4 Big East) pulled away from the Hoyas (8-9, 1-5 Big East) in the fourth quarter to secure a 63-53 win, marking Georgetown’s fourth consecutive loss.
With junior guard and Georgetown’s leading 3-point shooter Victoria Rivera sidelined by an injury and graduate guard Kelsey Ransom coming off the bench for only the third game of her career and the first time this season, the Hoyas’ starting lineup trended younger and looked different. Junior guard Modesti McConnell replaced Ransom in the starting five.
Despite winning the tipoff, Georgetown struggled to generate offense with Ransom, the team’s captain and leader in points, assists and steals, off the floor. Butler took advantage of the offensive lapse, jumping out to a 4-0 lead in the quarter’s early stages.
After nearly four minutes, first-year guard Khadee Hession, fresh off a season-high 22-point performance against the sixth-ranked University of Connecticut, put the Hoyas on the board, knocking down a 3-pointer and a jumper to inch Georgetown ahead 5-4.
A Ransom jumper and an acrobatic layup by Hession gave the Hoyas an 11-7 advantage with 2:49 remaining in the quarter. The four-point lead would be the team’s largest of the game.
Butler guard Kilyn McGuff hit 3-pointers on back-to-back possessions as time dwindled, leveling the score at 13-13 after one quarter of play.
The Hoyas frequently switched their defensive sets in the quarter — from man to zone and back again — leaving the Bulldogs’ offense confused. Forcing constant disruption, Georgetown finished the game with 8 steals.
The teams traded baskets to begin the second quarter, as first-year guard Jaeda Wilson and Ransom combined for 8 points to give the Hoyas a 21-19 lead with 5:43 remaining in the half.
An 11-0 Butler run quickly followed, pushing the home team to a 30-21 advantage. The Georgetown offense stalled heavily during the stretch, as the team settled for poor 3-point attempts and had no answers for Butler forward Sydney Jaynes in the paint.
The Hoyas did not score again until there was 1:15 left in the half, when Hession made a free throw to end the drought and senior center Ariel Jenkins added a layup to cut the Bulldogs’ lead at the break to 30-24.
Both teams shot 45% from the field in the first half, but Butler’s dominance on the glass and their 12 first-half points off turnovers proved to be the difference. The Bulldogs ultimately outrebounded the Hoyas 35-20 for the game, including a 14-7 advantage on the offensive glass.
Georgetown kept it close for most of the third quarter, feeding off a steady flow of baskets by Ransom, Hession and Jenkins. The Hoyas cut into the Bulldogs’ lead, only down 35-31 with 7:35 remaining in the third quarter.
Three-pointers by guard Lily Zeinstra pushed the Butler lead back to 43-35 with 4:11 left in the quarter. However, Ransom hit a jumper and forced a steal in the backcourt that led to a 3-pointer by first-year guard Amanda Ajobiewe all within 22 seconds to pull Georgetown back within three points.
At the end of the third quarter, Butler led 48-42.
Immediately out of the gates in the final quarter, the Bulldogs embarked on a 7-0 run, holding the Hoyas scoreless for nearly four minutes.
Facing a 59-44 deficit with under five minutes remaining, Jenkins grabbed several offensive rebounds and turned them into layups, but the baskets proved too little too late, and Butler cruised in the fourth quarter to a 63-53 win.
Ransom led Georgetown off the bench with 16 points and 3 steals in the loss. Jenkins added 10 points and 9 rebounds, and Hession finished with 15 points and 3 steals.
The Hoyas will look to snap a four-game losing streak when they travel to face the Providence Friars (8-11, 1-5 Big East) and pick up their second conference win of the season Jan. 18 at 2 p.m.
