Box Score

GEORGETOWN, Ky. – No. 7 Georgetown used a 6-0 run in the final minutes of the game to help hold off a furious rally from the University of Pikeville women's basketball team in a 101-86 win on Thursday at Davis-Reid Alumni Gym.

Callisha Johnson finished with a game-high 26 points for the Bears, but it wasn't enough to counteract 16 UPIKE turnovers and Georgetown shooting 28-of-35 from the free-throw line. Kelah Eldridge added 16 points and Khalilah Quigley finished with 11 in her first action of the season after recently being made eligible.

All five Tiger starters reached double figures, led by Andrea Howard with 23 points and Lizza Jonas with 21. Jonas also grabbed a game-best 11 rebounds as Georgetown led the game on the backboards 42-33.

Georgetown finished shooting 52.4 percent from the field, 46.7 percent from three (7-of-15) and 80 percent from the stripe. The Bears were 42.6 percent from the field and just 67.9 percent (19-of-28) on free throws.

Howard hit back-to-back threes to give Georgetown a 10-0 lead with less than two minutes played. That prompted UPIKE coach Joanna McNamee to put in Quigley for her first action of the season.

Quigley quickly got herself to the line after a drive to the basket and hit both free throws to put the Bears on the board. Johnson followed up the freebies with a three and Quigley knocked down a baseline jumper to make it 12-7.

The Tigers answered with a 9-4 run to take a 10-point lead with 12 minutes left in the half as UPIKE's Johnson and Quigley tried anything possible to get to the rim for a layup or chance at the stripe.

It worked right at the first media timeout as Quigley went in for an uncontested shot at the gym and Johnson finished a shot on a foul to claw back within six at 21-15.

Georgetown kept responding, getting its lead back to double digits, forcing the Bears to switch things up with a full-court press. It forced a turnover the first trip and Johnson used it for two points on the other end.

The momentum finally swung in the Bears' direction as Quigley hit a shot after a defensive stop and Cheyenne Madden connected on a put back after an offensive rebound to get within three at 33-30 with just under six minutes on the clock.

UPIKE added a pair of free throws, got a nice pass from Quigley to Madden in the paint and Kandice Porter hit a jumper to make it a 36-33 lead for UPIKE after the quick 6-0 run. The 34-33 advantage after Madden's layup was the Bears' first lead of the game.

Jonas' put back with 30 seconds left in the half put the Tigers back in front by three, but Eldridge kept the good vibes for UPIKE going with a three to send the game into halftime tied 44-44.

There wasn't a quick double-digit run by Georgetown to open the second half, instead the teams played an even first five minutes with Tyra putting the Tigers up 55-53 with a pair of free throws.

The action remained back-and-forth as Eldridge and Howard traded threes before Johnson swiped a pass at half court and drove in for the uncontested layup to tie the game at 62 with under 12 minutes to go.

Trailing by two, UPIKE allowed Mykal Farris to go on a quick 4-0 run by herself as she drove for a layup, then stole the inbounds pass for two more quick points. The burst led to a Bear timeout with the biggest deficit of the half at 72-66.

Keeping up with the narrative of the game, the Bears found a way to get back in it with two timely threes from Eldridge and Patrice Tonge to tie it up, which were almost immediately followed up with a 6-0 run from the Tigers.

This time around Georgetown held on to its lead and ultimately increased it to 11 points on free throws from Jonas with four minutes on the clock. Using a press to perfection, UPIKE made one last push at the upset. In no time the deficit was cut to five as Johnson and Courtney Haney harassed the Georgetown backcourt.

Howard increased her team's lead to six with a free throw, then following a miss from the Bears, hit a dagger of a 3-pointer to build a nine-point lead with just over two minutes on the clock. Conley cut into the lead with a late three, but Georgetown was perfect from the line in the final minute and added a Howard three to preserve the win.

UPIKE is back in action at 2 p.m. ET on Saturday at No. 22 Cumberlands in Williamsburg, Ky., which will be its third straight conference game against a ranked opponent.