Varney shines, Defense dominates Union

With just 7 players available on Friday night, Georgetown got off to a slow start against Union Commonwealth, but the Tigers dominated from the start of the 2nd quarter to the end in a 94-51 rout to improve to 6-1 on the season.

Georgetown's offense struggled in the 1st quarter against the Bulldogs. The Tigers shot just 4-16, including 1-6 from 3-point range. The Tigers stayed close with Union thanks to 8 forced turnovers in the quarter, but the Bulldogs took a 15-14 lead to the 2nd.

The 2nd quarter proved nothing short of destruction by the Tigers. Carrying over from the 1st quarter, Georgetown found a groove offensively, hitting 53% from the field. Abby Varney (9), AJ Stevenson (8) and Teionni McDaniel (7) combined for 23 of Georgetown's 28 points in the quarter. The bigger story was the utter dominance on the defensive end. Union Commonwealth took 17 shots in the quarter and missed all of them, including 8 tries from beyond the arc. The Bulldogs mustered 3 free throws for their only points as Georgetown exploded out to a 42-18 lead at the halftime break.

In the 3rd, the Bulldogs found a better rhythm on offense but had no answers on defense to slow down the Tigers. All 7 Tigers scored in the quarter. Sophie Smith led all-around with 5 points, 3 assists and 3 steals as the lead grew to 67-37 going to the 4th. The Tigers weren't finished though as the offense went up another notch in the 4th. Georgetown shot 71% in the quarter, led by Anna Long's 7 points. The defense forced another 7 turnovers to keep the Bulldogs well away from a threat to close out the night.

Union Commonwealth shot just 31% on the night and committed 28 turnovers. Georgetown turned those into 42 points, a +36 margin in points off turnovers on the night. Abby Varney scored 20 in her first collegiate start, her 2nd straight 20-point game. Anna Long finished with 17 points, 7 rebounds. AJ Stevenson tallied 15 points off the bench. Jordan Rogers also came off the bench with 14 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists and 5 steals. Sophie Smith finished with 12 points, 5 assists and 5 steals. Teionni McDaniel ended with 10. Callie Jackson finished with 6 points.

Georgetown plays Saturday night in The Show against Reinhardt with a scheduled tip time of 7:45pm.