Anderson, S.C.----The 20th-ranked University of North Georgia Nighthawks had three players score 16 or more points to lift them to a 76-53 victory over Wingate University at the Abney Athletic Center in NCAA Southeast Regional Semifinals Saturday evening. North Georgia improve to 29-4 overall and advances to the regional title game, while the Bulldogs finish the season 23-9 overall.

THOUGHTS FROM COACH HANCOCK
 
"Obviously it's not the way we wanted it to end up, but North Georgia is an incredibly talented team and we knew that going in. They created some match-up problems for us. They are a lot bigger across the board than we are and they have several different weapons that can score the ball. We got off to a bit of a slow start, but I was proud that they fought back. I was pleased with the effort and sad that the seniors had to go out in a game like that. In the bigger picture of everything, I'm really just glad for the four years we had with them because it was a pretty special group."
 
KEY STATS

- North Georgia shot 49 percent from the field, connecting on eight-of-17 from beyond the arc (47 percent)
- Wingate shot 33 percent from the field, going four-for-14 from three-point range (29 percent)
- The Nighthawks held a 41-29 rebounding advantage and a 13-6 edge in second-chance points
- NG went 24-for-33 at the free throw line; WU was 11-for-22
- North Georgia had 13 assists on the evening, while the 'Dogs had six
- WU turned 17 NG turnovers into 12 points

KEY BULLDOGS

- Jordan Quick had a team-high 14 points, adding three rebounds and three steals
- Jo Snow added eight points, four boards and two assists
- Caroline Averette registered seven points, five rebounds and two assists
- Jasmine Stephen had seven points grabbing four boards and adding a block
- Teliyah Jeter, Elana Ingram, and Courtney Robinson each added five points
 
KEY NIGHTHAWKS
 
- Julianne Sutton had 23 points, 10 rebounds and five blocks
- Abbie Franklin contributed 17 points, eight boards and four assists
- Tamera Thorpe notched 16 points, two boards, three assists and two steals
- Vanessa Agrusa added nine points and eight rebounds
- Amber Franklin had nine points and six boards

NOTES

- Wingate was making its SAC-best 18th NCAA Tournament appearance
- The Bulldogs are now 20-18 in NCAA Tournament games
- North Georgia ends Wingate's season for the second straight year
- The Bulldogs have lost in the regional semifinals each of the last three seasons  
- The 'Dogs were making their sixth straight NCAA Tournament appearance
- North Georgia has now won 15 straight games
- Only the third time this season Wingate has been outrebounded (0-3 in those games)
- WU had three seniors end their careers with over 1,000 points (Danasia Witherspoon, Averette, Robinson)

FIRST QUARTER

- NG started the game on a 15-2 run
- Snow got the single buck for the Bulldogs during the flurry
- Robinson and Snow made back-to-back threes to get Wingate back within seven
- A layup from Quick made it 21-13 with 1:06 remaining
- Ingram made a bucket in the paint to finish the frame, with WU trailing 26-16

SECOND QUARTER

- Sutton's triple gave the Nighthawks a 13-point lead three minutes into the frame
- Wingate got four points from Jeter to cut the lead to 10 midway through the quarter
- A three from Amber Skidgel gave North Georgia a 17-point advantage
- Buckets from Quick and Elana Ingram in the final minute cut the halftime deficit to 13
 
THIRD QUARTER

- Wingate started the second half on a 9-2 run to cut the lead to six
- Robinson and Quick scored in the flurry, while a Snow triple capped it at the 5:33 mark
- North Georgia answered with an 11-0 run, taking a 56-39 lead on Sutton's layup with 37 seconds left
- WU went over five minutes without a point until Averette ended the frame with two free throws

FOURTH QUARTER

- NG outscored WU 20-12 in the final frame
- A Quick layup cut the lead to 13 in the opening minute, but Wingate would get no closer
- Two Franklin free throws at the 7:21 mark pushed the lead to 20

UP NEXT

- North Georgia advances to the region title game Monday night at 7 p.m.
- The Nighthawks will face Lander, who knocked off top-seeded Anderson in the other semifinal
- Monday's winner advances to the NCAA Elite Eight in Columbus, Ohio