Rachel Kent knocked down five three-pointers in Butler’s loss to Georgetown on Jan. 3. Photo courtesy of Butler Athletics. 

SAWYER GOLDWEIN | SPORTS REPORTER | sgoldwein@butler.edu 

After a nearly two-week hiatus the women’s basketball team got back in action on Jan. 3, losing to the Georgetown Hoyas 60-55 in their Big East home opener. 

The Dawgs finished out their non-conference schedule on Dec. 21 with a 69-49 win over the University of Ohio before losing their first conference game. 

Butler held the lead for most of the game, taking a nine point lead into halftime, but the Bulldogs could not hang on for all 40 minutes. They went into the fourth quarter with the score tied at 44 after a very flat third frame in which the Dawgs scored just seven points. 

Georgetown boasts a deep, physical roster that makes the Hoyas very difficult to close games against, and it was apparent against Butler. 

Shooters shoot

Butler is led by three fantastic three-point shooters: senior guard Caroline Strande, graduate wing Rachel Kent and sophomore guard Jordan Meulemans, who was shooting 49.3% from beyond the arc prior to the Bulldogs’ clash with Georgetown. 

Strande shot a solid one for two against the Hoyas, while Kent and Meulemans were on opposite ends of the spectrum. 

Kent was red-hot from deep, making five of her eight attempts, including a five-of-six first half. She shot 66.7% from the field on her way to a game-high 22 point performance. 

Unfortunately for the Dawgs, Meulemans did not quite have that kind of game. The sharpshooter sank just one of her nine attempts from long range, and finished one for 12 from the field. 

Of course, every shooter has their peaks and valleys, which Butler can certainly live with, especially when the valleys are so sparse. Meulemans’ off-game was just her second time this season shooting less than 33% from deep. 

Butler has enough talent that they should not be so reliant on one shooter to boost their offense so much. 

Two-woman show

Kent shot the lights out, and Strande was her usual self, consistently getting in the scoring column and crashing the glass, finishing with 15 points and nine rebounds. 

But what about everybody else? 

In short, they did not do enough. The other three starters — Meulemans, junior point guard Ari Wiggins and junior forward Sydney Jaynes — combined to score just 12 points and shot 21.7% on the night. 

Sure, Wiggins is much more of a floor general than a scorer, but even then her four turnovers to just one assist left a lot to be desired. 

Jaynes’ quiet night can be explained more by foul trouble than anything else. She was reasonably productive in her 18 minutes of play, but just could not stay on the floor, and eventually fouled out of the game down the stretch. 

The bench — which has often struggled to produce this season — was more of the same story. Against the Hoyas the only reserves who got significant minutes were the Bulldogs’ trio of first years.

Forward Cristen Carter was a bright spot, as she appeared to be well-equipped to handle the type of physical, Big East play style that Georgetown embodies. 

Guards Karsyn Norman and Riley Makalusky did not find the same success, though. Neither player registered a single point, assist, block or steal. Norman logged one rebound, and the pair each was responsible for one turnover. 

Butler’s depth clearly did not put forward their best performance, and that will need to change as the Bulldogs try to battle their way through the Big East. 

Up next

Butler will look to rebound on Jan. 6 when Seton Hall comes to town.