Tigers survive scare, advance to MSC Semis

After a torrid start to Saturday's MSC Quarterfinal, Georgetown had to hang on in the 2nd half and withstand a furious Bethel rally for an 80-70 win to advance to Sunday's tournament semifinals.

Cam Brooks-Harris knocked down an opening 3 to set the Tigers off to a hot start. Back-to-back buckets from Jabrion Spikes and a Tommy Thomas slam gave GC an early 9-2 lead. Spikes came up with a block on the next Bethel possession and scored to follow, making it an 11-2 advantage and forcing a Bethel timeout just 2:56 into the game.

The timeout did little to stop the Georgetown momentum. The Tigers kept adding to the lead and with 10:47 to go, Isaiah Mason scored inside to give Georgetown its largest lead at 28-11 after a torrid 12-16 shooting start. Bethel fought back with a 16-7 run to cut the margin to 35-27 with 2 minutes to go. Georgetown countered with threes from Tae Dozier and Tommy Thomas, along with a layup from Spikes to end the half on an 8-0 run and lead 43-27 at the break.

The extended break seemingly flipped a switch for Bethel as the Wildcats came out roaring in the 2nd half. After a Kyran Jones free throw, Bethel went on a 16-4 run to cut the Georgetown lead to 48-43 with 13:27 to go. An Isaiah Mason tip-in momentarily stopped the run, but Bethel kept coming. The Wildcats got as close as 2 twice. The last time came at the 8:23 mark after a Querrion Gadson jump shot. Isaiah Mason stepped up once more and hit a jumper of his own. After 2 Bethel misses, Georgetown got free throws from Jabrion Spikes and a tip from Kyran Jones and the lead went to 62-54 and Bethel called for time with 6:46 to go. The run reached 11 straight and a 67-54 lead before Bethel hit its first 3 of the game with 5:01 on the clock. Bethel got no closer than 8 points the rest of the way. Georgetown was able to keep the Wildcats at bay by hitting 9 of 10 free throws over the final 4:30 to hang on and advance.

Jabrion Spikes led the Tigers with 23 points on an efficient 9-12 shooting night and was named the player of the game for his efforts. Tae Dozier was the only other Tiger to cross double figures, finishing with 13.

Georgetown now gets set for a rubber match against Cumberlands in a semifinal on Sunday. Cumberlands won the first meeting in Williamsburg, 94-86. Georgetown won the 2nd matchup in Davis-Reid Alumni Gym, 90-58. Game 3 will tip off at 8:30pm ET from Studle Financial Arena in Bowling Green.