Jones, Dominant Defense power Tigers into NAIA Quarterfinals
Playing in Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City always proves a tough test for offenses. Both Georgetown and Langston bore the brunt of that early in their Round of 16 matchup. Georgetown was able to dig out of it, thanks to a 20-0 run late in the 1st half that spilled into the 2nd half. The Tigers blew the game open, knocking off Langston, 74-60, to get back to the Quarterfinals for the 20th time in program history.
The Tigers held Langston without a field goal for the 1st 5:15 of the afternoon, setting the tone for the day. Georgetown could not build a lead as Langston showed its defensive muscle. By the time the Lions got that 1st basket, Georgetown's lead was just 5-4. Moments later, Jake Ohmer nailed a 3 to put GC up 8-6. With 8:31 to go in the 1st half, a Tommy Thomas jumper tied the affair at 12. Georgetown would go scoreless over the next 3:20. In that time, Langston went on a 10-0 run to take a 22-12 lead with 5:23 to go in the half. It would prove to be the final points of the half for the Lions. For the remainder of the half, Langston went 0-9 from the floor and 0-2 at the foul line. Georgetown took advantage and got contributions from everyone on the floor. A jumper from Cam Brooks-Harris started the run. After Drew LaMont hit a free throw from a Langston flagrant foul, the Tigers played scramble ball on a missed shot, eventually finding Tae Dozier for a slam, bringing GC within 22-17. Following a block from LaMont, Ohmer found room inside with a score and GC was within 3 with 3:59 to go. The score would remain for another 2-plus minutes. Off a missed jumper from Ohmer, the Tigers got a sweet tip-in from Dozier to cut the deficit to 1. Less than 30 seconds later, Tommy Thomas scored to give GC a 23-22 lead, pushing the run to 11 straight. 2 more Tiger buckets gave the orange & black a 27-22 halftime lead. In the 1st half, Georgetown held Langston to just 8-28 shooting and 1-11 from 3. The Lions came in averaging 82.2 PPG while shooting 49% from the floor and 38% from 3.
The expected response from Langston in the 2nd half never fully materialized. Georgetown scored the 1st 5 points of the 2nd half to make the overall run 20-0, and take the Tigers from 10 down to 10 up at 32-22. Free throws would draw Langston back within range until they hit their 1st shot wiht 16:45 left, cutting the Tigers lead to 39-30. It was in this early time that Kyran Jones began taking over everything. After sitting the final 11 minutes of the 1st half with foul trouble, Jones scored 6 points in a 3-minute stretch to keep the Tigers lead at 9 with 14:30 to go. With 13:28 to go, Rashad Bishop hit a free throw to put Georgetown up 46-34. Langston would not get within single digits again. Kyran Jones continued to dominate both ends of the floor as the 2nd half went along, limiting anything Langston tried to do in the paint, while also keeping the Lions off the offensive glass. Langston was outscored 22-10 on 2nd chance points. Jones played a major factor on both sides of those numbers, as he pulled down 8 offensive and 7 defensive boards on the day.
The Tiger lead would twice reach 18 in the 2nd half as the defense continued shut down the Lions normally high-powered offense. Georgetown was never challenged over the final 13 minutes en route to the 74-60 win. Kyran Jones led the way with 21 points and 15 rebounds in just 27 minutes. Jake Ohmer ended with 17 points. Tommy Thomas added a huge 10 points and stellar defense off the bench. Cam Brooks-Harris ended with 10 points and 6 rebounds. Drew LaMont was a big factor on both ends, finishing with 7 points and 3 blocks. In his return, Tae Dozier played 22 minutes and finished with 6 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists.
Overall, the story was the Tigers defense. Georgetown held Langston 22 points below its season average in scoring, and limited the Lions to just 32.7% shooting in this game, including a 2-18 start from 3.
Georgetown is into the quarterfinals on Wednesday where they take on Duer Quadrant top-seed Grace College. Tipoff is set for 6:00pm ET at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City.
