Orange Advances to BIG EAST Quarterfinals

HARTFORD, Conn. – Senior forward Chineze Nwagbo tallied 19 points and 13 rebounds as the 11th-seeded Orange defeated the sixth-seeded Georgetown Hoyas, 65-58, in the first round of the BIG EAST Women's Basketball Tournament at the Hartford Civic Center. Syracuse advances to play the third-seeded Connecticut Huskies on Sunday, March 6 at 8 p.m. The Orange improved to 13-15, the third most wins in 15 years for SU. Georgetown finished its season at 12-16.

The win is SU's first in the BIG EAST Tournament since the 2002 quarterfinals and is head coach Keith Cieplicki's first postseason victory at Syracuse. The Orange snapped a five-game overall losing streak to Georgetown and a three-game skid versus the Hoyas in postseason play.

Freshman Jessica Richter netted 13 points and grabbed six rebounds for the Orange. Sophomore Tracy Harbut added nine points and recorded a career-high 10 rebounds, while tallying two assists and two steals. Nwagbo was 6-for-10 from the field and 7-for-7 from the charity stripe. She has now made 23 consecutive foul shots.

Bethany LeSueur led the Hoyas with 16 points and pulled down seven rebounds. Varda Tamoulianis tallied 15 points. Kieraah Marlow, who tallied 33 points in the first two games versus SU, scored five points thanks to tough defense by Harbut.

Georgetown tallied the game's first bucket with 18:08 on the clock, but SU responded as freshman Mary Joe Riley drained a three-pointer on the ensuing possession. Unlike the first two matchups with the Hoyas, SU managed to stay close throughout the first half. The Orange led by as many as five in the opening stanza and didn't trail by more than six. In the first two games, Syracuse trailed by 28 and 18 at the break. At halftime on Saturday the Orange went to locker room down 34-31.

In the second frame, SU trailed 40-37 before Richter nailed a three-pointer to knot the score at 40-40 with 14:29 left on the clock. On the Hoyas' next possession, Richter tallied a steal and fed senior Rochelle Coleman for an easy two on the fastbreak. LeSueur tied the score at 49-49 with 7:54 left in the game. SU went on a decisive 10-1 run over the next 5:01 to take a 59-50 lead. Nwagbo tallied all 10 points for the Orange, including 6-for-6 from the free-throw line. Georgetown would not get closer than six points after that as the Orange hit 12 of its final 16 free-throws.

SU finished the game 18-for-24 from the free-throw line, while the Hoyas were 4-for-11. Syracuse committed 14 turnovers, but only three came in the final 20 minutes. The win knots the all-time series with the Hoyas at 22-22.

Syracuse University Athletics

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