After two losses in its first two meetings with ranked opponents, No. 20 Georgetown (6-2) needed a statement win at last weekend’s Lady Rebel Roundup in Las Vegas, Nev., to prove that its fading top-25 status was not a mere remnant of preseason fanfare.

The Hoyas got that win on Saturday, toppling No. 10 Georgia (6-1), 64-56, thanks to a combination of lethal three-point shooting and suffocating defense in Sin City. The Blue and Gray then posted a comfortable 64-45 victory over host University of Nevada-Las Vegas (6-1) in the tournament’s championship game to take first-place hardware back to the Hilltop.

“Our defense was very good in both games,” Head Coach Terri Williams-Flournoy said. “Both Georgia and UNLV were averaging over 70 points a game, and we managed to hold both teams under their average, which was a key for us entering the games.”

With star junior guard Sugar Rodgers back after posting the first DNP of her career with an ankle injury last Monday, Georgetown battled back from an early seven-point deficit against the favored Georgia Bulldogs and entered the break with a 31-29 lead.

A 13-2 run shortly after halftime gave the Hoyas a 48-37 lead with 12:10 remaining, but their SEC foes worked their way back into the game, coming within three points of the Blue and Gray with under two minutes remaining. Senior point guard Rubylee Wright then converted a layup to give the Hoyas a 61-56 lead, and Georgetown’s swarming defense did the rest, holding Georgia scoreless the rest of the way.

Rodgers led the Hoyas with 23 points, while senior forward Tia Magee contributed 14 points and six rebounds to the effort. The Blue and Gray shot 47.1 percent from the field, including 50 percent from three-point range.

“I’m very proud of our young ladies. I thought everyone contributed to this victory,” Williams-Flournoy said in a press release. “I think [senior guard] Alexa Rocheheld it down for us in the first half, and we were very happy to see Sugar Rodgers wake up. Tia Magee had some big buckets down the stretch, Rubylee Wright did a great job running the point and our little freshman Taylor Brown hit some big threes.”

Facing undefeated UNLV in the weekend finale, the Hoyas took the lead for good with 12:53 remaining in the first half, capitalizing on second-chance points to build a 15-10 cushion. The Blue and Gray led 30-22 at the half and stretched the lead to as many as 19 points in the second half.

As against the Bulldogs, the Hoyas were more consistent from behind the arc than they were overall in the game. The Blue and Gray shot 37.9 percent from downtown and 35.4 percent from the field.

Rodgers and Magee again led Georgetown with 16 and 12 points, respectively, while Roche led the team with seven rebounds and added 10 points. However, success in the championship game reminded the veteran squad that it can rely on a number of sources for offensive and defensive contributions.

“Once again, this was a full-team effort, and we had everyone contributing to today’s win and the tournament championship,” Williams-Flournoy said.

As is so often the case for the Hoyas, a pressing defense and the ability to create takeaways were among the decisive factors in the contest.

“I thought we played very well defensively tonight,” Williams-Flournoy said. “We forced them into 25 turnovers and held them to 45 points. This is what we need to do defensively to win games.”

The Blue and Gray extended their unbeaten run to five with a 70-54 victory at Coppin State Wednesday night and will take on Rider this Sunday at McDonough Arena. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m.