Stevenson, Toller combine for 40 in Bethel win

The long road trips to Tennessee are always a challenge for Georgetown basketball inside the Mid-South Conference. After a tough scoring night on Thursday at Freed-Hardeman, the Tigers took a step back in the right direction on Saturday as AJ Stevenson and Erin Toller combined for 40 points in a 67-56 win over Bethel to get back above .500 in the MSC.

Georgetown's defense set the tone early as Bethel shot just 4-15 in the 1st quarter and committed 7 turnovers. The Tigers' offense was slow to start but was aided by the turnovers and also 5 offensive rebounds. 6 Tigers scored in the quarter as GC led 16-8 after 1.

After a quick Bethel bucket to start the 2nd, AJ Stevenson knocked the first of 2 threes to push the lead out to 9. A bomb from Erin Toller at the 7:05 mark gave Georgetown its largest lead at that point at 24-14. Bethel clawed back to get within 28-23 with just over a minute left until Stevenson's 2nd 3 and a steal/lay-up from Teionni McDaniel sent the Georgetown advantage right back to 10 at 33-23.

Stevenson started the 3rd quarter with another 3 just 14 seconds in to give GC a 36-24 lead. Bethel scored with 8:24 to go, making it a 36-28 Tiger lead. It would be the last Wildcat points for nearly 3 minutes as Georgetown countered with 9 straight, capped off by another McDaniel steal and lay-up, giving the Tigers a 45-28 lead midway through the 3rd. Georgetown took a 55-42 lead to the 4th after Stevenson scored 11 of her team-high 21 in the 3rd.

Georgetown started the 4th scoreless for the 1st 3:12 but Bethel only mustered 4 points in that stretch. Ellie Wilkerson finally got GC on the board with a 3 to push the lead back to 12 at 58-46. The final dagger came with 2:32 to go as Erin Toller knocked down a clutch 3 to give Georgetown a 67-53 lead and end Bethel's hopes for a rally.

AJ Stevenson finished with 21 points on 7-17 shooting and grabbed 7 rebounds. Erin Toller scored 19 along with 2 steals. Teionni McDaniel had a strong 2-way performance with 8 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals.

McDaniel's efforts spearheaded a strong team defensive day. Bethel shot just 38% from the field and committed 17 turnovers, which led to 21 Georgetown points.

Georgetown now returns to Davis-Reid Alumni Gym on Thursday for a massive showdown against Campbellsville. Tip time is set for 5:30pm.