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GW versus Northwestern Game
GW takes on the Northwestern Wildcats at Smith Center on Sunday. Former GW Head Coach Joe McKeown is making his final rounds after an illustrious coaching career at GW and Northwestern. The Wildcats, picked to finish near the bottom of the 18-team Big Ten, comes to DC with a 6-5 record. After winning six games against non-P4 programs, Northwestern has suffered 5 consecutive losses against Missouri, Kansas, Ohio State, Utah, and Chicago Loyola. The Wildcats’ offense features the Big Ten’s 2nd leading scorer in 6’4” Forward Grace Sullivan (22.4 ppg and 7.8 rpg) and playmaker Caroline Lau (6.9 ppg), who leads the nation in assists at 9.5 apg. Two other starters-- Casey Harter (9.7 ppg) and Tayla Thomas (10.9 ppg, 9.6 rpg) are capable of big games, as is Xamiya Walton (7.7 ppg), who comes off the bench to provide the Wildcats’ with their biggest outside threat (35% from beyond the arc on 46 attempts).
The Revs’ defense will have their hands full, especially if Sullivan, who was injured early the Loyola game, and Harter, who did not suit up for the game, are available to play. Although not outside threats, Sullivan and Thomas (at 6’3”) will use their length to shoot over the smaller GW defenders, so the GW front court, especially Lewis, Sims. and Theodorsson have to stay out of foul trouble. The Revs backcourt will also have to limit Lau from finding her teammates for easy scores. In the Loyola vs Northwestern contest, Thomas and Lau led a late comeback (Thomas finished with 30 points and Lau dished out 9 assists), that fell short in the last minute of play. Offensively, GW will be challenged by the the tall Wildcat front line, but must continue to go inside when initiating the offense. Reynolds and Lewis have been successful penetrating and scoring inside the paint, while Sims has consistently found open perimeter shooters from the high post. Not knowing who will play for Northwestern makes preparation more difficult, so better to stick with what has been working.
Beating a power conference opponent would check off another milestone on Coach G’s GW resume. Interestingly, the last time GW beat a P4 team was in the 2017-18 season, when another former GW Head Coach (Tsipis) brought his Big Ten squad (Wisconsin) to the Smith Center. In that game, GW prevailed 61-46.
- xAC
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Re: GW versus Northwestern Game
GW leverages defense on way to 75-62 victory over Northwestern.
In a game that started out as a defensive battle, GW was able to build an early lead that they never relinquished as the game wore on. The Wildcats tried to go inside early and often to Thomas, but the Revs were able to hold her to just 4-12 from the field in the 1st half, and stymied the playmaking of Lau as well, who could muster just 1 assist before the break. Lewis sat out most of the 1st half in foul trouble, and despite getting only a total of 2 points from their top two scorers (Lewis and Reynolds), GW was able to take a 32-24 halftime lead on the strength of GW’s bench play. In the 2nd half, Thomas and Lau came alive for NU, but Thomas’ 17 points and Lau’s 17 points and 6 assists were not enough to overcome Reynolds’ big scoring half (she finished with 21 poiints for the game) and clutch contributions from Theodorsson, Phiri and the rest of the bench. The Revs matched the Wildcat’s physicality, and through persistent attacks inside that featured a number of great interior passes, was able to counter NU’s size advantage to claim a 30-28 points-in-the-paint tally, and outrebound their opponents by a 43-33 margin.
Northwestern was missing their top two scorers in Sullivan and Harter, but this was a big win for GW nonetheless. In securing their sixth straight win and first P4 victory in 8 years, the Revs assured a winning OOC record going into conference play. The Revs continue to improve as a group. Reynolds has become a consistent scorer, and different players have stepped up to provide significant support during the current win streak. Becker continues to make intangible contributions, especially on the defensive side. With Theodorsson, Phiri, James, and Loving playing well, Coach G has not been hesitant to use and trust her bench under all game situations. Except for a few moments early in the 2nd quarter, when several unforced GW turnovers gave NU a glint of hope, the Revs took care of business to preserve the win. Now the team can really enjoy the holidays.
After a week off, GW will try to extend their winning streak to 7 games with a home contest against Coppin State next Sunday.
Last edited by xAC (12/21/2025 6:53 pm)
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Thread Starter- dmvpiranha
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Re: GW versus Northwestern Game
Great to see Joe back at the Smith Center. The game probably would have been a lot more competitive had Sullivan played, so that was unfortunate for Northwestern. If GW didn't turn the ball over so much in the first half, NW may not have even put up 10 in the first half. They got a bit hot late which probably made the score closer than it would have been.
Reynolds continues to impress. Just a wide array of moves that most players just cannot replicate. Hope we can find the NIL to keep her beyond this year. Phiri with some very nice minutes, and Theodorsson is really good with the shot selection. The subbing in of Loving when the Wildcats were starting to find some success inside felt smart as well. Becker's ability to rebound and create additional opportunities is very underrated.
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Re: GW versus Northwestern Game
So far, I like the grit and work ethic of this team. Kudos to coach G.