VILLANOVA, PA. -- In a women's basketball matinee at the Finneran Pavilion, the Villanova Wildcats tallied a thrilling 53-51 overtime win over the visiting Georgetown Hoyas. With the victory, the Wildcats improve to 10-5 overall and 3-1 in BIG EAST play, while the Hoyas fall to 12-4 on the year and 2-3 in conference action.
Cold shooting was the theme of the opening quarter as neither team was able to get going offensively. The Wildcats were just 2-of-17 from the field in the opening quarter, including a 0-for-12 effort from two-point range. Georgetown finished the opening frame connecting on 4-of-16 from the floor and 2-of-5 from long distance.
Following a made three by junior guard Zanai Jones with 6:08 remaining in the first quarter, Villanova failed to score for the rest of the period and Georgetown led 11-6 after the first stanza.
Georgetown took its biggest lead of the first half at 17-8 on a lay-up by Brianna Scott at the 8:05 mark of the second quarter. Villanova then responded with nine unanswered points to tie the game at 17-17. The nine points included two short jumpers by junior guard Lucy Olsen, a lay-up by junior center Christina Dalce and a three-ball by freshman Maddie Webber.
The Hoyas led 20-19 with 2:43 to play until halftime, before Villanova finished the quarter on an 8-3 run to lead 27-23 at intermission. Olsen and senior guard Bella Runyan led the way in the opening half, scoring 19 of the team's 27 points with Olsen tallying 12 points and Runyan seven.
Villanova controlled play throughout the third period and led 40-33 after three quarters of play.
After a lay-up by junior guard Kaitlyn Orihel gave Villanova a 44-38 lead with 7:55 to play, Villanova failed to score for the rest of regulation. The Wildcats were able to play strong defense and hold Georgetown to just six points over the final 7:33.
The Hoyas tied the game at 44-44 with 2:55 to go, when Graceann Bennett scored on an offensive rebound put back. Each team had chances to win the game in regulation, but Vilanova went 0-for-4 from the field and 0-for-2 from the foul line in the final 2:55, while Georgetown was 0-for-2 with two turnovers.
Villanova had a golden chance to win the game at the buzzer, but Runyan's driving lay-up rolled off the rim as time expired.
Trailing 47-46 with 2:38 on the clock in overtime, Olsen connected on a jump shot in the lane to give Villanova a 48-47 advantage. Following a scoreless stretch that lasted 2:09, the Hoyas regained the lead when Mya Bembry scored on a lay-up with 29 seconds remaining.
The Georgetown lead was short lived, as Olsen made a turnaround jumper in the paint and was fouled on the game's next possession. The conventional three-point play gave Villanova a 51-49 advantage with 19 seconds to play.
Georgetown answered right back and tied the game when Bembry scored on put back with 11.1 seconds to go. Bembry was also fouled on the play, but she missed the free throw and the Wildcats had the ball in a tie game.
With five seconds to go, Olsen was fouled cutting through the lane and given two free throws. Olsen made the first and missed the second and the Wildcats led 52-51. Georgetown then took a timeout and advanced the ball to the front court. Out of the Hoya timeout, Scott was called for traveling with 2.6 seconds remaining.
Orihel made one of two from the line and Georgetown missed a desperation half-court shot as time expired and Villanova escaped with the victory.
In the win, Olsen led the way with 28 points to go with nine rebounds, three steals and two assists. Runyan and Orihel finished with eight points each.
Georgetown was paced by Bennett and Scott who had 13 points each. Scott also pulled-down a game-high 13 rebounds.
For the game, Villanova was 20-of-64 from the field (31.3%), 6-of-19 from three-point range (31.6%) and 7-of-12 from the foul line (58.3%), while the Hoyas shot 32.8 percent from the floor (21-of-64), 30.8 percent from behind the arc (4-of-13) and 41.7 percent from the charity stripe (5-of-12). The Wildcats owned a 52-42 advantage on the backboards.
Villanova returns to action on Saturday, Jan. 13, with a road game at Butler. Game time is set for 7:30 p.m.
NOTES: The Wildcats have won eight in a row over Georgetown and have won 19 of the last 23 in the series…Villanova improves to 6-1 at home this season…The Wildcats have allowed 141 points in the last three games (47.0 ppg.)..Lucy Olsen now has 11, 20-point games this year and 16 for her career…Today was the team's first overtime game since Feb. 11, 2022 (74-63 win over Marquette).
