Georgetown (Ky.) rallies late to defeat Wolf Pack

GEORGETOWN, Ky. — Loyola University New Orleans led after trailing by 16, but Georgetown (Ky.) outscored the Wolf Pack by 15 in the final 7:33 Saturday to earn an 81-72 victory in the second round of the 2026 NAIA Women's Basketball National Championship, presented by Ballogy.
 

The Tigers (24-8, No. 5 seed) advanced for the second straight year to the NAIA's final 16 at Sioux City, Iowa. Georgetown will play No. 1 seed Freed-Hardeman (29-3) at 1 p.m. Thursday.
 

The Wolf Pack (25-5, No. 4 seed, ranked 16th) led 66-60 after Caitlin Travis' basket with 7:57 remaining, but Georgetown closed with a 21-6 run that included Loyola's 2-of-17 from the floor, 1-of-9 on 3-pointers.
 

Laisha Lazu's layup with 3:11 remaining put Georgetown ahead to stay, 69-67. The Tigers clinched with 8-of-10 free throws in the final 38 seconds.
 

Loyola's Deniya Thornton produced 22 points and 12 rebounds — her third double-double this season and the ninth of her career — and had two assists and three steals. Caitlyn Travis scored 16 points for the Wolf Pack, Chandler Caver had 11 points, Alissa O'Dell had eight points and eight rebounds, and Tiarra McPipe had seven points and seven rebounds.
 

Gale had 24 points and 10 rebounds for Georgetown and reached 20 points for the 10th time in 11 games. Anna Long scored 16 points, Daysha Reid had 15, and Lazu and Kayra Freeman scored 12 apiece.
 

Georgetown made 5-of-6 3-pointers in the first eight minutes and led 30-18 through one quarter. Lazu's layup gave the Tigers a 45-29 lead at 3:30 of the second quarter, but Loyola closed the half with an 8-0 run that included McPipe's 3-point play and Caver's 3-pointer.
 

The Wolf Pack won the third quarter 21-15, and Travis' 3-pointer at 8:46 of the fourth gave Loyola its first lead, 63-60. 
 

Pack Facts

• During Loyola's rally from down 16 points to up six — that covered 15 minutes — the Wolf Pack outshot Georgetown 54.2 to 20 percent from the floor. 

• Deniya Thornton, a junior guard/forward, averaged 19 points and 10.5 rebounds in the two tournament games.

• Loyola, which entered 34th in the NAIA in scoring defense with 58.6 points per game, allowed 80 points for the first time since October.

• All three Loyola-Georgetown meetings occurred at NAIA nationals. The Wolf Pack won in 2024 and 2014.