WOMEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL
WASHINGTON – The George Washington women’s basketball team pulled within a possession of the lead three times in the final 35 seconds, but Morgan State held on to defeat the Colonials, 73-68, at Charles E. Smith Center on Wednesday evening.
Junior Brooke Wilson finished with a career-high 17 points, while senior Sara Mostafa (15 points) and junior Danni Jackson (11) each finished in double figures, but it was not enough to keep pace with Morgan State (1-1). The Lady Bears shot a blistering 52 percent (11-of-21) from beyond the arc and 46 percent from the field for the game to send GW to its first loss of the season.
Wilson finished 7-of-9 from the field, hit all three of her free throws and added seven rebounds to lead all scorers. It was her highest output since scoring 13 against American last season.
GW (1-1) got off to a slow start, falling behind by as many as 13 in the first half before using a late 10-0 run to pull within three points at 25-22. Morgan State proceeded to score six consecutive points to extend its lead to 31-22, but the Colonials responded to pull within three at 37-34 with 35 seconds left in the half.
Jamesia Smith hit a fade away three pointer at the buzzer to give the Lady Bears a 40-34 halftime advantage.
Morgan State maintained the cushion in the second half and extended its lead to 15 points at 64-49 with 7:45 left in the game.
The Colonials proceeded to mount a furious comeback, using a 13-3 run to pull within three points at 67-64 with 35 seconds remaining. After a pair of Morgan State free throws pushed the lead to five, junior Megan Nipe connected on a 15-foot jumper to pull the Colonials within three again.
Nipe finished with eight points, seven rebounds and two assists.
Two more Morgan State foul shots pushed the lead back to five but Mostafa dropped in a layup with eight seconds left to once again cut the deficit to three for the third time in the final 35 seconds.
Morgan State hit their final two free throws and GW was unable to score again, allowing the Lady Bears to escape Smith Center with a 73-68 victory.
GW held advantages in points in the paint (34-22), points off turnovers (25-13), fast-break points (9-4) and second-chance points (27-13) but it was not enough to stifle the sharpshooting Lady Bears.
Morgan State had four players finish in double figures led by Smith (16 points) and Dekeisha Mathis (14).
The Colonials return to action on Saturday when they host Virginia Tech at the Charles E. Smith Center at 2 p.m.
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