AMERICUS, Ga. – A hard-fought defensive struggle ended in a 54-52 overtime loss for the No. 15 University of North Georgia women's basketball team in their road Peach Belt Conference matchup versus No. 14 Georgia Southwestern. Both teams struggled shooting early, with neither side eclipsing the 25% mark from the field in the first half.
Niyah Lutz attempted to spark the UNG offense by scoring 14 points and adding 12 rebounds for her first double-double this season. Lutz,
Kayla Massop and
Caroline Martin spearheaded a three-way attack, each finishing with 14 points. Massop joined Lutz, recording a double-double by adding 11 rebounds to her 14 points, shooting 6-14 from the field.
Key Moments
- North Georgia (10-2, 2-1 PBC) scored the first six points of the game, taking a 6-0 lead with 5:55 remaining in the first quarter. The six-point lead would be their largest of the game.
- The Nighthawks led at 10-8 at the end of the first, shooting 23.5% from the field, while GSW shot 21.4% in the first.
- UNG was held to a season-low six points in the second quarter. The Hurricanes scored all 11 of their points in the quarter using an 11-0 run with 5:03 left in the second.
- GSW (11-1, 3-0 PBC) grabbed their largest lead of the game with 6:33 remaining in the third, leading 31-20.
- The Nighthawks battled back in the fourth quarter outscoring GSW 18-13.
- Josie Earnhardt hit a bank three in the final moments of regulation to tie the game at 48 and send the game to overtime.
Next Up
The Nighthawks will head to Lander (3-8, 0-2 PBC) for a 1:30 p.m. tip-off versus the Bearcats on Saturday (Jan. 7). North Georgia last faced LU in the Sweet Sixteen of the 2022 NCAA Tournament, defeating the Bearcats 59-57. UNG has won three straight over Lander and leads the all-time series with 22 wins and 15 losses.
