George Washington University Athletics
George Washington University
(3-3)
Wisconsin
(2-3)
GW Women's Basketball Throttles Wisconsin, 61-46
11/24/2017 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
WASHINGTON - A highly anticipated match-up with Wisconsin in the second game of the Paradise Jam went according to script for the Colonials and provided the perfect post-Thanksgiving elixir. After a first quarter that saw GW seize a one-point lead after 10 minutes at 14-13, the home team put the screws to the Badgers' offense in the second and totally flummoxed the Wisconsin game plan. The Colonials would go on to cruise to a 61-46 win to even their season record at 3-3.
"We were a lot more locked in from the beginning," said head coach Jennifer Rizzotti. "It was a quick turnaround but our guys did a good job of locking in on the scout this morning. I thought we defended really well and that is how we need to be successful. We didn't shoot the ball well but we limited our turnovers and defended well. It allowed us to create the space that we didn't have yesterday."
GW allowed just one bucket to Wisconsin in the second frame and surged to a 15-3 edge in the quarter, on the strength of a first-half defense that forced 11 Badger miscues and turned those errors into 11 points on the other end. The Colonials enjoyed a 29-16 advantage at the intermission, paced by freshman Neila Luma's eight points and five boards before the break.
Despite having the opportunity to scout GW closer than ever yesterday afternoon after Wisconsin dropped its first game of the Jam to Syracuse, the guests were able to diagram very little on the offensive end. GW's defense bit the Badgers hard and allowed just 12 made field goals, five fewer than the number of Wisconsin turnovers. Only four of the Big Ten teams' buckets came assisted, as the visitors registered a paltry 4-to-17 assist to turnover ratio and connected on just 12-of-45 field goals (.267), including another quarter like the second in which they connected just a single time from the field, as it happened once again in the fourth.
For GW, it didn't take much in the way of offense to cruise to the win, but Luma and Kelli Prange provided it. Luma finished with a career-high 16 points in 25 minutes of action, while Prange dropped in 18 in her 20 minutes. The pair combined to shoot 11-of-21 from the floor and a perfect 10-of-10 at the free throw line.
Mei-Lyn Bautista's steady hand at the point accounted for as many assists as Wisconsin had as a team as she continued to put on what has been a clinic in ball-handling and control all season with another near flawless outing directing the offense. After registering a 4-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio on Friday, the junior from Queens now has amassed 31 assists on the season against just five turnovers all year.
GW led by as many as 19 midway through the final period before coasting to the easy win. In a game that saw the Colonials bury 80 percent of their free throw tries (20-of-25), they were extra efficient in the fourth at the line (9-of-11) to not give the Badgers even a chance to crawl back into contention.
The Colonials outrebounded the opposition for the first time this season by holding a 37-33 edge on the glass while GW's 10 turnovers was the lowest amount in a game this season.
GW will now try its hand against Syracuse tomorrow afternoon at 3:30 pm in the final contest of the 2017 Paradise Jam. Wisconsin will look for its first win of the experience at 1pm vs. Vanderbilt.
