Spokane, WA – Jasmine Hassell scored a game-high 16 points as the Georgia Lady Bulldogs recorded a 70-50 win over the Montana Lady Grizzlies in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at the McCarthey Athletic Center.
Also scoring in double figures for the fourth-seeded Bulldogs (26-6) were Shacobia Barbee and Jasmine James with 13 and 11 points, respectively.
The 13th-seeded Grizzlies (24-8) were led by Torry Hill with 11 points, but she shot only 4-of-12 from the floor and turned the ball over six times.
Georgia scored the first points of the meeting and never looked back, establishing a 15-4 advantage early on before posting a 32-25 edge at the break. The Bulldogs held the seven-point lead despite shooting only 1-of-9 behind the 3-point line.
After shooting just 31.0 percent from the floor through the first 20 minutes of action, Montana then converted a mere 27.6 percent following intermission, en route to the 20-point setback.
The Grizzlies suffered a total of 20 turnovers, resulting in 22 points for Georgia.
The Bulldogs now head to the second round of the tourney where they will battle the Iowa State Cyclones who defeated Gonzaga earlier in the day on Saturday, 72-60.
Receive your weekly recap of all the happenings around the world of sports.