- Georgetown 92, Florida International 57
- 50 Years Ago: Georgetown Upsets #1 Loyola-Chicago
- Top Stories Of 2013
- Mid-Season Statistical Review
- Big East Attendance
- Josh Smith's Effectiveness Questioned
- Rant Sports: Georgetown Will Struggle To Make NCAA's
- Kansas 86, Georgetown 64
- Georgetown 85, Elon 76
- The Full Ride
- Whittington Transfers To Rutgers
- Whittington Plans To Transfer
- Georgetown 61, Colgate 55
- Georgetown 80, High Point 45
- 1963-64 Team To Be Honored Saturday
- Battle 4 Atlantis
- Knight Foundation Introduces Database
- Big East: A New Identity
| Georgetown 61, DePaul 54 | 12/31/13 7:25 pm EST |
If Georgetown had been scheduled with any other team in this the new Big East (or the old Big East, for that matter), the Hoyas' poor play would have saddled the team with an opening round loss to enter 2014. Instead, the league offices returned the favor by scheduling the only team capable of a poorer effort than the Hoyas.
In a game marred by 25 first half turnovers, a variety of free throw miscues, and no particular momentum, Georgetown steered past a weary DePaul squad, 61-54, before 7,823 at Verizon Center. The game may have been defined, if not saved, by an alert play by Aaron Bowen at halftime that kept the Hoyas ahead to stay after intermission.
The game, the third of Fox Sports 1's five game Big East opener, opened as many recent games have, with Josh Smith scoring four of the first six points. It also continued as many recent games have, with Smith disappearing from the stat sheet and turnovers stalling any chance for Georgetown to maintain an early lead. Leading 8-4 at the 16 minute time out, the Hoyas proceeded to turn the ball over five times in a three minute period, while guard Markel Starks and D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera combined to shoot 1 for 7. For their part, the Blue Demons had shot just 1 for 12 to open the game, but were staying close at the free throw line as Georgetown held a 13-8 lead midway through the first half.
|
Following a Markel Starks jumper at the 9:26 mark, Georgetown did not score for over six minutes. The Blue Demons turned up the intensity, driving inside and exploiting weaknesses in the middle with Smith, no more in evidence when a DePaul inbound play was bounced off Smith's back for an easy layup to take the lead, 14-13. The Demons went on a 15-2 run that stunned the homestanding crowd, especially when given the mix of missed layups, turnovers, and lost possessions afforded by Georgetown. At the 3:22 mark of the first half, the Hoyas had combined for four field goals and 11 turnovers over the prior 13 minutes of the half, and found themselves down by eight, 23-15. Starks, the senior captain, stepped up to lead the Hoyas out of the darkness. Starks scored six of Georgetown's next eight points as the Hoyas went on a 14-2 run to end the half, keyed by a better defensive effort and the bench play of twos seniors, Moses Ayegba and Aaron Bowen. Ayegba solidified the middle and provided a pair of key blocks down the stretch, while Bowen, filling in for a struggling Smith-Rivera, scored the last five points of the half. Bowen may have saved his best for the end of the half. With DePaul getting on the board to close to 26-25, Bowen retrieved a loose ball near the three point line and launched a trailing three at the buzzer to carry a four point lead into half, 29-25. Seeing how fragile the Hoyas would perform, that cushion may have been vital to the Hoyas' eventual success. "We started off in [the 1-2-2] and it wasn't effective, and we came back to it and it got our juices flowing a little bit. It was key, we went from down eight or nine until Aaron Bowen hit that shot at the buzzer and we went up four and our press had a lot to do with that," said John Thompson III in post-game remarks. |
1 Rebound, Josh Smith 3 Offensive rebounds, Georgetown 12 Offensive rebounds, DePaul 4-12 DePaul FT shooting, last 8 mins. of 2nd half 8-16 Georgetown FT shooting, last 8 mins. of 2nd half 1 GU 3-pointer, second half 5-48 DePaul road record, Big East play since 2007-08 |
Another good early start after halftime was tempered by fouls and miscues thereafter. Georgetown built a nine point lead four minutes into the second half, 40-31, when DePaul missed a dunk and Smith-Rivera drove the court for a basket at the 15:31 mark. The Hoyas had not committed a turnover after the break but the mistakes returned and so did the Blue Demons. A pair of turnovers by Georgetown propelled the Blue Demons on an 7-0 run to close to 40-38.
The next four minutes saw the two teams combined for two baskets and a run of missed free throws, as DePaul squandered any number of opportunities by its second half free throw shooting.
Markel Starks continued to take the leadership role as the Hoyas were hanging on. He publicly berated Mikael Hopkins following a missed layup at the 8:00 mark, but led a 9-0 run with two baskets and cheered on Hopkins following Hopkins' basket to push the lead to 12, 54-42 at the 5:01 mark. The basket would be Georgetown's last field goal of the game, as both teams fought down the stretch at the line with mixed results. DePaul closed to as few as six with 2:18 to play, but committed two late turnovers while its leading scorer, Cleveland Melvin, struggled through a career low effort missing two late free throws. Melvin, averaging 16.1 ppg, finished 2-13 from the field and 1-6 from the line. Anything close to an average game for Melvin might have been enough to win this game, but without him, the Blue Demons could never close the gap.
Following the game, Thompson as complimentary of both Ayegba and Bowen.
"Looking at the stat sheet I thought Moses had more than three blocks, maybe he didn't, but I felt like he had more than three blocks," said Thompson. "He was a presence, he gave us energy, not just the blocks, but the rebounds. There was a key stretch when we were making that run in the first half where he made a hell of a defensive play...but I thought Moses was very, very good and AB also. We need those guys to come in with an infusion of smart energy...Today, I think both of them accomplished something with their effort.
Less effusive was Thompson's remarks on Josh Smith, who sat much of the second half: "If he's not productive, we have other guys."
"We needed to win," said Starks, who led all scorers with 21 points. "We went through a couple lapses, and we just can't have that. I try to do both: motivate my teammates as well as perform on the court."
Key to the win: controlling turnovers. From 13 at halftime, the Hoyas only gave up the ball three times in the second half. Less encouraging: offensive rebounding and free throws, where Georgetown missed 11 of 22 second half attempts. A return of either for Georgetown's upcoming Big East games are sure to put the Hoyas in much more danger that that faced by a DePaul team with a fitful road record in recent years.
The Georgetown half of the box score follows below.
MIN 2FG 3FG FT REB A PF PTS
Starters:
Starks 40 5-8 1-4 8-8 0 2 2 21
Smith-Rivera 33 2-7 2-6 2-4 8 1 2 12
Trawick 26 3-4 0-0 2-4 4 2 4 8
Lubick 35 1-3 0-0 1-3 7 3 2 3
Smith 14 2-3 0-0 1-3 1 1 2 5
Reserves:
Cameron 6 0-2 0-1 0-0 2 0 0 0
Hopkins 12 1-2 0-0 0-0 3 0 3 2
Bowen 17 2-3 1-1 1-2 6 0 1 8
Ayegba 17 1-1 0-0 0-3 1 0 5 2
Injured: Adams
Did Not Play: Allen, Caprio, Domingo, Hayes
Team Rebounds 1
TOTALS 200 17-22 4-12 15-27 33 9 21 61
| Georgetown 92, Florida International 57 | 12/28/13 |
A 24-0 first half run paced Georgetown to its largest victory to date of the 2013-14 season, powering past Florida International 92-57 at Verizon Center Saturday.
Both teams saw some new faces in the starting lineups. Three FIU starters were held out of the lineup for what coach Anthony Evans noted was a coach's decision, while D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera saw the opening tip from the Georgetown bench for a late arrival to practice following the Christmas break. As such, Aaron Bowen saw his first career start as Georgetown went up early, 6-1.
Following a basket and foul to close to 6-4, the Hoyas went to work. Georgetown forced four FIU turnovers in the first three minutes, and its shooting was not seriously challenged by the depleted Panthers. Two baskets by Jabril Trawick and a layup from Josh Smith pushed the lad to 14-4, a Starks three and a Starks drive inside to 19-4. Moses Ayegba entered the game for a follow-up basket, 21-4, after which the Hoyas connected on a three from Smith-Rivera and consecutive threes from Reggie Cameron to push the lead to 30-4 at the 8:38 mark of the first half. Though these would be the last threes for the Hoyas until the final minute of the game, the damage was done. Georgetown opened the game shooting 12-16, FIU 1-13. The Hoyas continued the defensive pressure going into the half, forcing 13 turnovers and converting on its last three possessions of the half to carry a 50-14 lead into the break.
FIU was able to pick up its game in the second half. Following a pair of baskets by Nate Lubick and one from D'Vauntes Smith Rivera, a Markel Starks free throw extended the georgetown lead to 39 at 62-23 before FIU cut into the gap with its own 11-0 run. Josh Smith ended the run with an easy dunk inside, and the Hoyas returned the lead above 30 soon thereafter. For the half, FIU shot 55.6 percent, but it would not be enough as Georgetown remained unchallenged from inside.
A key to Georgetown's effort was defensive intensity. "We wanted to pressure them - and I don't just mean full court in the half court - we wanted to pressure them, and I think for the most part tonight it was successful," said head coach John Thompson III.
"When they came out in the 1-2-2, we tried to handle it and didn't handle it well," said FIU coach Anthony Evans. "We turned the ball over and that just fueled them. Normally they play a 2-2-1, but we knew that they were going to throw some sort of pressure on us because we turned the ball over 65 times in the past three games before this one."
"We defended today, right from the get go," said senior Nate Lubick, with a career high 15 points. "We were able to create a lot of offense from our defense that allowed us to get out to a big lead in the first half."
Georgetown's reserves did not see extended time in the game, even with the hefty lead. Thompson did not empty the bench until the final four minutes of the game, perhaps to maintain the intensity heading into the big East opener Tuesday versus DePaul.
When asked at the post-game press conference why he kept the starters in the game, Thompson responded, "It just felt right."
The Hoyas ended its non-conference home slate winning all six games. Georgetown has not lost to a non-conference opponent at Verizon Center since a 57-50 loss to Oregon on Nov. 29, 2006.
The Georgetown half of the box score follows below.
MIN 2FG 3FG FT REB A PF PTS
Starters:
Starks 33 4-4 1-4 4-6 3 4 1 15
Trawick 21 4-4 0-1 0-0 2 0 4 8
Bowen 17 2-3 0-0 1-3 1 1 2 5
Lubick 27 7-9 0-0 1-1 6 1 2 15
Smith 17 4-6 0-0 0-0 2 0 3 8
Reserves:
Cameron 13 1-3 2-2 0-0 2 0 1 8
Hopkins 18 3-6 0-1 1-1 6 2 3 7
Smith-Rivera 25 2-4 1-3 8-9 3 6 1 15
Allen 2 0-0 1-2 0-0 0 0 1 3
Caprio 4 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 1 0
Domingo 10 0-0 0-1 2-2 0 1 0 2
Ayegba 10 2-2 0-0 0-0 4 1 1 4
Hayes 3 0-1 0-0 2-2 1 0 0 2
Injured: Adams
Team Rebounds 3
TOTALS 200 29-42 5-14 19-24 33 16 20 92
| 50 Years Ago: Georgetown Upsets #1 Loyola-Chicago | 12/27/13 |
Friday marked the 50th anniversary of one of the great moments in Georgetown sports history, as the Hoyas upset #1-ranked and defending national champion Loyola-Chicago, 69-58, in the first round of the Quaker City Classic at the Palestra in Philadelphia.
The game marked the first time Georgetown had ever defeated a #1-ranked team, and a feat accomplished only twice since: in 1985 versus St. John's and in 2006 versus Duke.
Members of that team were honored in a ceremony earlier this month at Verizon Center, but for a first hand account of that game, check this 2007 excerpt from Georgetown's 100th anniversary of basketball video presentation, featuring Dick Williams (C'65), Jim Brown (C'66), former coach Tom O'Keefe (C'50), and former assistant coach Tom Coleman (C'61):
Memories From The Palestra, 1963
| Top Stories Of 2013 | 12/26/13 |
From the past 12 months, a look back at the ten top stories of the year in Georgetown Athletics, compiled through the site archives:
Buying Back The Birthright: (March 1): Led by Georgetown University president Jack DeGioia (C'79, G'95), seven schools which had announced their intention to leave the Big East successfully bought back its key assets from what became known as the American Athletic Conference (AAC), including the name, records, history, and most important, the right to the Big East Tournament at Madison Square Garden through 2026. "In exchange for leaving two years earlier than the scheduled departure date of July 2015, the [seven]...would agree to take considerably less money from a reserve pool of conference money earned by the Big East from exit fees and NCAA basketball tournament shares which is reported to be in excess of 60 million dollars," wrote reporter Mark Blaudschun. In its first year, the AAC is already an afterthought, while the Big East name lives on.
The Game Changer (March 11): The Georgetown-led group bought back most of the Big East's assets, but performed a master stroke on one of its pending liabilities. By forming a new business entity, it escaped the right of first refusal ESPN was preparing to make on TV rights with the former conference, allowing the new Big East to sign a mammoth $500 million, 12 year rights deal with Fox Sports 1. The deal not only provided the conference financial footing and strong national distribution, but increased rights fees from approx. $1.8 million per school to over $4.2 million. After a bid from NBC Sports, ESPN exercised its rights on the AAC, paying that conference just $20 million a year, or about $1.6 million from school. The amount is one-tenth of what ESPN and other media will provide to the former Big East schools that left for the Atlantic Coast Conference.
So Long, Syracuse (Feb. 23): The buzz around the final Georgetown appearance in the Carrier Dome was silenced by a career high effort by Otto Porter in the Hoyas' 57-46 win over #8 Syracuse. The Orangemen, playing before its largest crowd ever, had won 38 straight home games before this one, held to the fewest points ever in the Carrier Dome and the fewest in a game versus Georgetown since the 1942-43 season. Porter finished with 33 points, 8 rebounds, 5 steals, 2 assists, and just one turnover. The Hoyas followed suit with a big win in the season finale at Verizon Center, but the loss at the Dome continues to sting for a Syracuse fan base readjusting to rivals in the ACC. There may be bigger crowds someday, but it won't be the same.
"A Near Annual Tradition" (March 17): For the fifth straight trip to the NCAA, Georgetown lost to a double-digit seed in the first weekend of play, this time a bitter 78-68 loss to 15th seeded Florida Gulf Coast University, a team (much less, a school) all but unheard of before the start of the tournament. The #2-seeded Hoyas were dominated throughout in the game, leading one columnist to remark that "Thompson is the coach of the Georgetown Hoyas. At least until the NCAA tournament, when his team suddenly turns into the Washington Generals." The game proved lucrative for Florida Gulf Coast and its coach Andy Enfield, who soon left the school for the head coaching position at the University of Southern California.
The Fall of Greg Whittington (Jan. 16, June 19, Nov. 30). At the start of 2013, forward Greg Whittington was one of the rising stars of the Hoyas and the nation, with a 12.3 points per game average in his sophomore season. In January, Whittington was declared academically ineligible for the spring semester. In June, an ACL injury was expected to keep him out for the entire 2013-14 season. "Greg will return when he is 100 percent healthy," coach John Thompson III said in an official release. "I'm confident this is just another setback that in the end will make him even stronger. At this point, there is no specific timetable for his return." In late November, however, Thompson dismissed him from the team without further comment. Whittington has since transferred to Rutgers.
Trouble In Women's Basketball (Oct. 11, Nov. 19): The last three months have been proven difficult for the Georgetown women's basketball program. In October, first year coach Keith Brown was forced to resign following public allegations of unprofessional behavior toward players and the loss of at least two players to transfer as a result of his behavior. Interim coach Jim Lewis then lost the team's top recruit and leading scorer, Shayla Cooper, who quit the team two games into the 2013-14 season and has since transferred to Ohio State. Cooper received her share of unwelcome nationally publicity days earlier, as she was seen throwing a shoe at a Richmond player attempting a three point shot. Cooper was suspended after the second game of the season versus North Dakota State for what the Associated Press reported as "detrimental conduct in violation of team rules" but University then refuted the suspension claim, saying that the press advisory was "incorrectly communicated." Cooper announced her departure soon thereafter.
Remembering Bill Shapland (Apr. 26): The Georgetown family lost one of its own upon the death of Bill Shapland (C'77), who died at the age of 57. As Georgetown's sports information director for basketball from 1984 through 2013, Shapland was a part of 945 intercollegiate games for the Hoyas, helping to organize Georgetown's media participation in 29 Big East tournaments, 20 NCAA tournaments, and overseas trips to Israel in 1993 and China in 2011. He was best known as the public face of the program to the media during the John Thompson years. "Based on how our program was, it was not an easy job that he had,” Thompson said. “I wasn’t the most social person in the world to work with, and he had to deal with that."
Who Let The Dog Out? (Aug. 1) An awkward month of public relations for the University followed in August, when it announced that its seventh bulldog mascot, J.J. was being relieved of duties. Georgetown gave little outward explanation as to why J.J. was being dismissed, but The HOYA then reported that the bulldog pup allegedly bit a child last fall. "While [students’] perspectives were of course important as well, I think the responsible thing was for us to be consulting people who could tell us unbiased and non-emotionally connected what would be best for J.J.”," said spokesperson Stacy Kerr. A replacement dog, to be housed off-campus, will appear at games in 2014 but with little fanfare compared to his popular predecessor.
An Early Arrival (Oct. 24). The mid-year transfer of center Josh Smith remained an open question throughout much of 2013, with questions raised whether the 6-10 center from UCLA would have as little as one or two semesters eligibility beginning in 2014. In October, the NCAA granted Smith two full years of eligibility effective immediately. "We are excited that the NCAA has approved the waiver for Joshua,” head coach John Thompson III said in a statement. “Now he has to maintain a high level of commitment on and off the court. He will provide a significant low-post presence for this team." The ruling was an expansive interpretation of the NCAA's general rule on attendance, which specifies that a student-athlete must complete athletic competition within five years from when he first enrolled at a NCAA institution. Smith had transferred in the fall of his junior year (five semesters) and completed two semesters at Georgetown this fall.
Moving Forward (Feb. 20): The Intercollegiate Athletics Center project received University in February to complete design documents, another step in the long-delayed effort to bring a practice facility to the men's and women's programs. In a statement, athletic director Lee Reed reiterated that the projects has not met the $60 million total but that "costs associated with obtaining the construction documents were built into the IAC's fundraising plan; the university has met the fundraising goals required to begin the construction documentation phase and implement the facility's design. The full design work will cost $5 million and take approximately 9 months to complete." A launch date for the project has still not been announced.
| Mid-Season Statistical Review | 12/26/13 |
Here are the current player totals for minutes, points, rebounds, and assists per game (leaders by category in gold)
| Player | Mins | Points | Reb. | Assists |
| Starters: | ||||
| Smith-Rivera | 33.6 | 16.4 | 4.5 | 3.1 |
| Starks | 35.4 | 16.0 | 1.9 | 4.5 |
| Smith | 20.5 | 13.2 | 3.5 | 0.8 |
| Trawick | 23.7 | 6.9 | 2.5 | 1.5 |
| Lubick | 25.9 | 5.2 | 6.2 | 1.9 |
| Reserves: | ||||
| Hopkins | 18.4 | 7.2 | 5.8 | 1.1 |
| Bowen | 15.7 | 4.6 | 3.3 | 1.3 |
| Cameron | 9.7 | 2.9 | 1.3 | 0.3 |
| Ayegba | 9.1 | 1.2 | 2.1 | 0.6 |
| Caprio | 3.3 | 1.1 | 0.9 | 0.3 |
| Hayes | 1.8 | 0.8 | 1.2 | 0.0 |
| Domingo | 6.6 | 0.7 | 0.7 | 0.0 |
| Allen | 2.0 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 0.1 |
| Total | 75.3 | 33.8 | 15.5 |
How have individual players fared this season? One efficiency measurement is points per field goal attempt:
| Player | 2013-14 | 2012-13 | 2011-12 |
| Starters: | |||
| Smith | 1.91 | NA | NA |
| Trawick | 1.60 | 1.37 | 1.48 |
| Smith-Rivera | 1.53 | 1.39 | NA |
| Starks | 1.27 | 1.21 | 1.24 |
| Lubick | 1.24 | 1.58 | 1.31 |
| Reserves: | |||
| Hayes | 2.00 | 0.00 | NA |
| Ayegba | 1.57 | 1.13 | NA |
| Hopkins | 1.31 | 1.26 | 1.38 |
| Caprio | 1.29 | 1.33 | 0.29 |
| Bowen | 1.15 | 0.78 | 0.90 |
| Cameron | 1.07 | NA | NA |
| Domingo | 0.50 | 0.83 | NA |
| Allen | 0.00 | 0.00 | NA |
A more detailed statistic is points per possession (PPP), where total possessions are defined as the sum of total shots - offensive rebounds + possessions that end in a turnover. The ratings follow below:
| Player | 2013-14 | 2012-13 | 2011-12 |
| Starters: | |||
| Smith | 2.00 | NA | NA |
| Smith-Rivera | 1.44 | 1.26 | NA |
| Trawick | 1.44 | 1.21 | 1.35 |
| Lubick | 1.13 | 1.37 | 1.53 |
| Starks | 1.11 | 1.07 | 1.05 |
| Reserves: | |||
| Hopkins | 1.41 | 1.06 | 1.47 |
| Ayegba | 1.22 | 1.13 | NA |
| Caprio | 1.13 | 1.33 | 0.20 |
| Bowen | 1.12 | 0.70 | 0.86 |
| Cameron | 1.00 | NA | NA |
| Domingo | 0.56 | 0.77 | NA |
| Hayes | 0.00 | 0.00 | NA |
| Allen | 0.00 | 0.00 | NA |
Player by player, Georgetown's starting five plus Mikael Hopkins and Aaron Bowen account for 92% of the points and 85% of the rebounds to date this season. As Big East play heats up, it may be difficult for many of the other reserves to see time:
The Starting Five:
- D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera: The scoring leader for the team, has excelled in all facets of the game but can be a streaky shooter. Will be counted upon to carry this team down the stretch.
- Markel Starks: Has struggled early in games but usually steps up after halftime. Shooting has been poor at times, primarily from outside (31.5%), down from 41.7% as a junior. Georgetown needs 40 minutes from Starks to be a contender.
- Josh Smith: The paradox: all but unstoppable in the low post, Smith is fifth on the team in rebounds and a meager seventh in defensive rebounds (1.5 per game). Tends to get his points early as foul trouble renders him ineffective. Has not been able to lead the offense in the pivot as Hibbert, Monroe, and Sims did before him.
- Jabril Trawick: A defensive presence that doesn't get enough scoring opportunities (4.3 FGA/game). Three point shooting has been horrible (2-11) and free throw shooting spotty (61.8%)
- Nate Lubick: A step back for Lubick in almost all phases of the game since his junior year. Visibly tentative on offense after the first six minutes of games, seems to have lost any outside shot. Leads the team in rebounds but his foul shooting (4-10) lacks confidence. .
First Two In:
- Mikael Hopkins: Has made the transition from the bench well but can be inconsistent. Interior shooting remains mixed (45.5%) and needs to work on free throws (55.6%).
- Aaron Bowen: In close range, the athletic Bowen is a sure thing from two (64.2%) but a liability from three (2-15, 13.3%). Remains a question mark on defense.
Will See Some Time:
- Moses Ayegba: At this point in his career, this may be all Georgetown can expect from Ayegba: some spot time for Smith, a rebound or two, and a few fouls. Injuries have held back a promising career but Ayegba remains upbeat and focusing on what matters.
- Reggie Cameron: Has struggled in the transition to the college game: no inside game (1-6) and a streaky outside shot. Probably needs more game time but this may prove difficult in 2013-14.
Along The Bench:
- John Caprio: Works best against smaller opponents and in short intervals. May see time against a DePaul or Seton Hall, but other teams pose a problem because of his height and lack of offense.
- Stephen Domingo: A major letdown. Shooting just 2-10 in seven games, 1-8 from three point range.
- Bradley Hayes: Georgetown needs another big man in the rotation this year as Smith sees frequent foul trouble, but Hayes has not stepped forward. Mobility continues to be an issue, may be among least mobile big men at GU (Josh Smith excepted) since Mike Frazier (1977-81).
- David Allen: A couple of minutes here and there. May get an opportunity to step up as a junior as John Caprio did.
| Big East Attendance | 12/26/13 |
Georgetown enters Saturday's final non-conference home game with Florida International with its smallest home attendance average to date in eight seasons:
| Georgetown Home Attendance Averages Through Christmas* | ||
| 2004-05 | 7,459 | (Year/year) |
| 2005-06 | 6,306 | -15.4% |
| 2006-07 | 7,451 | +18.1% |
| 2007-08 | 8,199 | +10.0% |
| 2008-09 | 10,634 | +29.7% |
| 2009-10 | 8,913 | -16.1% |
| 2010-11 | 10,600 | 18.9% |
| 2012-12 | 8,952 | -15.5% |
| 2012-13 | 8,361 | -6.5% |
| 2013-14 | 7,149 | -14.5% |
| Verizon Center games only | ||
The lack of marketable non-conference opponents has seen average attendance to date this season decline 14.5% from 2012-13, with fewer season ticket packages sold and the lack of an big name opponent in December contributing to the decline. Following Saturday's game, Georgetown will have nine remaining home games within the Big East, but without the traditional drawing power of teams such as Syracuse, Pittsburgh, or Notre Dame.
Here's a look at Big East attendance to date this season (numbers in parentheses refer to home games played to date through Christmas):
| 2013-14 | 2012-13 | Diff. | |
| 1. Creighton (9-2) | 17,340 (6) | 16,335 (8) | +6.1% |
| 2. Marquette (7-5) | 14,593 (6) | 14,149 (6) | +3.1% |
| 3. Xavier (9-3) | 9,542 (7) | 9,707 (6) | -1.7% |
| 4. Butler (9-2) | 7,198 (5) | 6,972 (5) | +3.2% |
| 5. Georgetown (7-3) | 7,149 (5) | 8,361 (8) | -14.5% |
| 6. Providence (10-2) | 6,599 (7) | 6,147 (7) | 7.3% |
| 7. Villanova (11-0) | 6,500 (7) | 6,500 (6) | 0.0% |
| 8. St. John's (8-3) | 6,463 (8) | 6,586 (8) | -1.7% |
| 9. Seton Hall (8-4) | 6,195 (8) | 5,134 (7) | +20.6% |
| 10. DePaul (7-5) | 5,775 (8) | 6,602 (7) | -12.6% |
| Josh Smith's Effectiveness Questioned | 12/22/13 |
From Saturday's Sporting News, this question: while Kansas center Joel Embiid appears to have significant upside, is this the best Georgetown can expect from junior Josh Smith?
"Aside from a technical foul for elbowing Kansas forward Tarik Black, Smith did little of consequence for the remainder of the game," writes TSN's Brian Goodman. "Kansas adjusted in the first half, guarding Smith closer and daring Georgetown’s limited defense to make the stops needed to topple the Jayhawks on their home court. Smith fouled out in 19 minutes of action after scoring just five points and failing to corral a single rebound or block a shot. When asked whether Smith’s struggles stemmed from a lack of activity, failing to make the secondary adjustment after Kansas’ athletic front line paid closer attention, or simply being in the wrong places at the wrong times, Georgetown head coach John Thompson III was short but direct: “All of the above.”
"Embiid still isn’t a finished product, but his performance on Saturday demonstrated the difference between his accelerating development and Smith’s stunted growth," Goodman concluded.
| Rant Sports: Georgetown Will Struggle To Make NCAA's | 12/22/13 |
Expect to see a few more comments like this one following Georgetown's nationally-televised loss to Kansas.
From columnist Paul Kilgas:
"The Hoyas didn’t just break today in their 86-64 loss to Kansas. They were blown into smithereens, and now I wonder if this team has the fortitude to come back and win enough games to make its seventh NCAA Tournament appearance in eight years. The reformed Big East Conference doesn’t have anywhere near the star power of the old conference, so the Hoyas may not earn enough marquee wins to earn an invite to the Big Dance this season."
| Kansas 86, Georgetown 64 | Updated 12/21/13 10:15 pm EST |
A cold wind blew into Allen Fieldhouse Saturday, as a 10 minute first half shooting drought derailed Georgetown's chances of an upset of #18 Kansas, falling to the Jayhawks 86-64 at Lawrence, KS in one of the Hoyas' worst offensive performances in the John Thompson III era.
Georgetown needed a strong start on the road and got it, scoring on four of its first five shots and 10 of its first 12. A pair of baskets inside by Josh Smith and threes from Markel Stars and D'Vauntes Smith Rivera provided early highlights, but Kansas was up to the task, shooting 67 percent on their side of the ledger through the first eight minutes of the first half. The lead traded hands regularly, with the Hoyas as leading by as many as six, 23-17, with 11:24 to play.
The hot shooting noticeably cooled, as Georgetown went into the deep freeze from the field. Kansas fought back on the line until its inside-outside game began to heat up. A Markel Starks jumper gave Georgetown a 23-17 lead at the 11:24 mark, and it did not get another one for nearly 10 minutes, with Kansas runs of 12-2 and 12-5 to streak to a 41-30 lead with under 2:00 to halftime. A Smith-Rivera drive with 49 seconds remaining ended an 0 for 13 run across 10 minutes and 35 seconds without a field goal.
|
Georgetown's last lead was 24-23 at the eight minute mark of the first half, where a foul on Kansas' Tarik Black earned Josh Smith a flagrant foul for an elbow while reaching for the ball. Black's two free throws gave Kansas the lead, 25-24, and Georgetown's poor shooting continued unabated for the next seven minutes. Kansas took a 10 point lead to the locker room, 44-34, shooting 61 percent for the half, and got a big effort off the bench from Tarik Black, with 10 points and four rebounds. From its opening 10 for 12 effort, Georgetown ended the first half shooting 2 for 15. A window of opportunity opened in the second half, but Georgetown could not take advantage. Kansas missed its first five shots of the half, but Georgetown could do no better than to cut two points off the lead, picking up a fourth foul on Moses Ayegba a third on Josh Smith, and a fourth on Nate Lubick, the latter of which sent Kansas' Perry Ellis to the locker room after a severe miss on the first of two free throws following a pinched nerve at his neck from the collision. With little response offensively, Georgetown kept the door open, and a three pointer from KU's Andrew Wiggins pushed the lead back to double figures at the 15:30 mark, 49-38, part of a 10-0 run that put KU up 15, 56-41 with 12:57 to play. A three pointer by Jabril Trawick with 12:41 to play was his second of the half, and Trawick's four points accounted for the only baskets GU had scored to this point in the entire second half. With the Kansas defense in full force, Georgetown had now shot just 20 percent (5-24) since its lead midway in the first. Still down 12 with 10:12 to play, Georgetown had no answered offensively and, outside the play of Aaron Bowen, no meaningful scoring contribution from the bench. As fouls sent Ayegba and Smith to the bench, Kansas raised the intensity and Georgetown looked lost. A Joel Embiid dunk and a Tarik Black tip-in extended the lead to 24 at the 4:22 mark, 75-52, with just one Georgetown basket since Trawick's jumper at the 10:12 mark and having missed its last eight.
|
0 Rebounds, GU's Josh Smith 10-12 GU shooting, first 10 mins. of 1st half 2-15 GU field goals, next 10 mins. of half +18 KU advantage, points from bench 11-24 FG shooting, starting GU guards 11-30 FG shooting, rest of team 1 GU 3-pointer, second half 165-8 KU record vs. non-conf. opponents, at home, Bill Self era |
With no particular leadership on the court, Georgetown saw the KU lead grow to 29, 85-57, before the benches emptied. With a number of baskets at the end, Georgetown shot 37 percent for the half, 1-6 from three point range
Tarik Black had not scored more than eight points in a Kansas uniform until Saturday's game, scoring 17 points on 5-5 shooting and 6 rebounds. Freshman Joel Embiid did one better, not only scoring 17 points and 8 rebounds, but dominating Georgetown's Josh Smith in the middle. Smith scored two baskets in the first three minutes of the first half and none thereafter, and finished with zero rebounds in 19 minutes.
Poor performance on the court was not restricted to Smith. Nate Lubick had no baskets after the 18:40 mark of the first half, ended the game with no assists, and five fouls. Mikael Hopkins was 0-7 from the field, while Moses Ayegba had five fouls in 10 minutes of play, and no points. Small forwards Stephen Domingo and Reggie Cameron, who have each dropped further down the depth charts this season than most had anticipated, were a combined 0-3 from the field in just nine minutes of play between them. The only sign of life from the Georgetown bench was senior Aaron Bowen, with nine points and three rebounds in a career high 21 minutes of action.
Georgetown continues to show the signs of a poorly coached team at the free throw line, shooting just 53 percent in the first half and 57 percent for the game, while , it proffered Kansas 21 free throw attempts in the first half and 46 overall, with 31 converted. The Jayhawks ended the game with just three more field goals than the Hoyas, but 15 more points at the line.
Kansas will make a lot of teams look bad this season, and appears to have recruited the kind of depth that Georgetown is wholly lacking this season. This season may come down to how much Starks and Smith-Rivera can carry this team, and a front line that is ineffective and foul-prone.
"Perhaps therein lies the problem with this Georgetown team: Every advantage this team has is wiped away by its flaws," wrote The HOYA. "When the guards are assertive, Trawick and Bowen play smart and the big men take advantage of their size, this team is tough to beat. But good coaching — a trait aptly attributed to Bill Self of Kansas — can force Lubick and Smith out of position to get them in foul trouble and can back off less dangerous shooters like Hopkins and Bowen to clog the lane, making it difficult for the Hoyas’ very skilled backcourt to score."
The quartet of Smith, Lubick, Ayegba, and Hopkins combined for 19 fouls and three field goals. Such is not the formula for a trip to the NCAA tournament.
The Georgetown half of the box score follows below.
MIN 2FG 3FG FT REB A PF PTS
Starters:
Starks 39 5-10 2-5 3-4 0 2 1 19
Smith-Rivera 39 3-5 1-4 3-4 3 5 3 12
Trawick 21 2-3 1-1 2-5 1 2 4 9
Lubick 16 1-3 0-0 2-2 3 0 5 4
Smith 19 2-4 0-0 1-2 0 1 5 5
Reserves:
Cameron 4 0-0 0-2 1-2 0 0 0 1
Hopkins 22 0-6 0-1 3-6 6 0 4 3
Allen 1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0
Bowen 21 4-7 0-1 1-3 3 2 3 9
Caprio 1 0-0 0-0 0-0 1 0 0 0
Domingo 5 0-0 0-1 0-0 1 0 1 0
Ayegba 10 0-0 0-0 0-0 1 1 5 0
Hayes 2 1-1 0-0 0-0 2 0 1 2
Injured: Adams
Team Rebounds 4
TOTALS 200 18-39 4-15 16-28 29 13 32 64
- GUHoyas.com
- KUAthletics.com
- Associated Press
- The HOYA
- Kansas City Star
- KUSports.com
- Lawrence Journal-World
- Washington Post
Saturday's loss was the worst road loss by margin in the John Thompson III era, and the largest margin of defeat on the road to a team not ranked #1 in the Big East era (1979-present):
| 3/23/1996 | -24 | 86-62 | vs | #1 UMass (NCAA) | Georgia Dome |
| 1/14/2004 | -24 | 94-70 | at | #1 Connecticut | Gampel Pavilion |
| 1/2/1999 | -23 | 87-64 | at | #1 Connecticut | Gampel Pavilion |
| 12/21/2013 | -22 | 86-64 | at | #18 Kansas | Allen Fieldhouse |
| 12/29/1982 | -21 | 94-73 | vs | #6 Alabama | LA Sports Arena |
| 3/21/1988 | -21 | 74-53 | vs | #1 Temple (NCAA) | Hartford Civic Ctr. |
| 2/10/1996 | -21 | 85-64 | at | #18 Syracuse | Carrier Dome |
| 1/16/1995 | -20 | 93-73 | at | #2 Connecticut | Hartford Civic Ctr. |
| 3/2/2005 | -19 | 83-64 | at | #15 Connecticut | Gampel Pavilion |
| 11/27/1994 | -18 | 97-79 | vs | #1 Arkansas | The Pyramid |
| Georgetown 85, Elon 76 | 12/17/13 10:00 pm EST |
Despite surrendering a record 13 threes to the Elon Phoenix, a 65 percent shooting effort in the second half landed the Georgetown Hoyas a 85-76 win Tuesday night before 7,586 at Verizon Center. Exam-week rust and an aggressive Elon offense figured to be a tricky test for the Hoyas in the week leading up to its game at Kansas, and it met expectations.
After holding the Phoenix scoreless over the first three minutes of the game, Georgetown's defense was soon exposed by a run of shooting befitting one of the nation's top three point shooting teams. Elon hit threes on four of its next five possessions, erasing an early five point deficit to take a 13-10 lead, giving CBS College Sports announcer Dave Ryan the opportunity of what may have been a dozen references this evening that Elon was on the verge of an upset.
Georgetown's guards were ineffective from the outset, shooting just 1-10 at the break, so it relied up front to stay close. Mikael Hopkins scored on consecutive possessions to give Georgetown an 18-16 lead, but Elon drove inside on consecutive possessions to regain the lad. A three from Aaron Bowen, only his second such strike of the season, regained the lead with 7:50 to play, but the Phoenix held the Hoyas scoreless over the next four minutes to lead 31-27 at the 3:50 mark. A pair of baskets by Josh Smith, virtually unstoppable when he got the ball, helped the Hoyas stay afloat, and a driving basket and foul shot by D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera closed the margin to one at the break, 40-39.
The numbers were not good for the Hoyas. It had allowed Elon to shoot 58% from the field, including 7-9 from two point range and 8-17 from three. About the only place the Phoenix weren't on the mark was the foul line, going 2-8. The Hoyas shot passably from the field (42%) and logged a 10 for 11 effort at the line, but gave up a net of -15 in points from beyond the three point line. For a Georgetown team which was just 33-63 (.343) in the John Thompson III era when trailing at the break, there was work ahead.
Georgetown opened the second half with a much better effort, scoring the first six points of the half and holding Elon to 1-6 shooting, part of a 14-3 run which gave the Hoyas some breathing room at the 14:21 mark, when Markel Starks hit back to back threes to put Georgetown up eight, 53-45. While it was a lead Georgetown never relinquished thereafter, Georgetown could not build upon the lead, however, as the threes were part of a two minute run where each team matched a three with one of its own (either from the floor or with a basket and a foul) over the next two minutes. Three more long range baskets by Elon eventually closed the margin to 59-54 at the 12:10 mark, and CBS' Ryan was back to his calls for a monumental upset at hand.
Nonetheless, Elon had no answer for center Josh Smith, and Georgetown was back inside. Smith scored on consecutive possessions, followed by baskets by Smith-Rivera and Starks to push the lead to nine, 65-56, midway through the second half. The Hoyas' zone defense closed out the Elon artillery for much of the next five minutes, and the GU lead momentarily dropped to five at the 5:00 mark before Smith-Rivera, Starks and Smith each scored to put the Hoyas up 10 with 3:23 remaining, 74-64.
With 1:47 to play, still up nine, Starks exhorted the somewhat quiet crowd to make some noise, whereupon Elon missed both free throws. The Hoyas ought to have closed this out, but some poor decisions kept Elon hanging around. On its next series, a basket by Nate Lubick was welcomed with trash talk by Josh Smith and a technical foul. The Phoenix picked up two at the line and followed it up with a driving basket, 78-71. On the ensuing play, Jabril Trawick hand-checked his opponent and turned the ball over, then fouled an Elon guard going to the basket. The nine point lead was now down to four, 78-74. Georgetown answered with putting the game away at the line, as Starks and DSR went 6 for 6 while Nate Lubick and Mikael Hopkins bottled up the Phoenix inside and Elon settled for just one basket thereafter.
From a difficult start to the game where he was held scoreless the first 16 minutes of the game, Markel Starks had 16 points in the second half and 21 points to lead all scorers. Three other Hoyas scored in double figures, with Smith-Rivera (19), Smith (18), and Lubick (10 points, 6 rebounds) all stepping up at key points of the game.
In post-game comments, coach John Thompson III put it all back in perspective.
"We have seven guys with 9 a.m. exams tomorrow,” Thompson said. “We’ve got to go.”
The Georgetown half of the box score follows below.
MIN 2FG 3FG FT REB A PF PTS
Starters:
Starks 38 1-8 4-5 7-8 2 4 2 21
Smith-Rivera 37 4-7 1-4 8-9 7 4 4 19
Trawick 26 2-4 0-0 1-4 2 4 3 5
Lubick 30 5-7 0-0 0-1 6 4 1 10
Smith 30 7-9 0-0 4-5 2 2 4 18
Reserves:
Cameron 4 0-0 0-0 0-0 1 0 1 0
Hopkins 19 1-4 0-0 3-4 3 1 2 5
Bowen 15 2-2 1-2 0-0 2 1 1 7
Ayegba 1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 1 0
Injured: Adams
DNP: Allen, Caprio, Domingo, Hayes
Team Rebounds 5
TOTALS 200 22-41 6-11 23-31 30 16 19 85
- GUHoyas.com
- Elon Phoenix.com
- Associated Press
- Burlington Times News
- Comcast SportsNet
- Elon Pendulum
- The HOYA
- Washington Post
| The Full Ride | 12/17/13 |
From the Washington City Paper, a feature on senior John Caprio, who became the first walk-on since Jonathan Wallace (C'08) to earn a scholarship for the basketball team.
"He’s someone that quite honestly, because he’s a senior, has a good feel for what he’s doing,” said coach John Thompson III. “When I put him in the game this year, everyone who’s watching the game doesn’t look at him and go, ‘Oh, there’s that walk-on.’ He’s someone that’s earned the scholarship and earned the minutes that he’s going to get this year.”
Caprio's parents may be most pleased of all--they have three kids in college right now and a scholarship of any kind means a lot.
| Whittington Transfers To Rutgers | 12/16/13 |
On his first visit since announcing his transfer from Georgetown, forward Greg Whittington committed to Rutgers over the weekend, according to the MyCentralJersey.com and multiple media sources.
Whittington arrives at a program that remains a long-term rebuilding effort. Former NBA coach Eddie Jordan is the school's fourth coach since 2002, the latest in a line of coaches that have attempted to raise up the Scarlet Knights, who have not reached the NCAA tournament since 1991 and faces a steep uphill climb when it joins the Big Ten next season. This year's team is 5-7, despite hosting 10 games to date at home. Two home games drew fewer than 500 fans each.
As a transfer, Whittington may have as many as two years eligibility, depending on NCAA review.
| Whittington Plans To Transfer | 12/13/13 |
Two weeks after being dismissed from the basketball team for unspecified reasons, junior Greg Whittington announced his interest to transfer to ESPN.com.
"I'd like to thank Georgetown. I really appreciate everything they did for me, both the coaching staff and the players," Whittington said, "but now it's time for me to move to another stage in my life."
Three of the four schools showing interest have Georgetown ties, with former Georgetown assistants on its staffs: Rutgers (David Cox), Memphis (Robert Kirby), and Nebraska (Kenya Hunter).
Under the five year NCAA competition rule, Whittington would have three semesters of eligibility remaining in the spring of 2015 once he competes a one year transfer residency requirement. However, as the Josh Smith case highlighted, the NCAA has been less stringent on enforcing transfer rules in recent years.
Whittington's departure is the 13th transfer in the ten years under head coach John Thompson III. Here is a look at the transfers by coach since the 1960-61 season (early entries to the NBA or other departures not included):
| Coach | Transfers |
| Tom O'Keefe (1960-66) | 2 |
| Jack Magee (1966-72) | 2 |
| John Thompson (1970's) | 3 |
| John Thompson (1980's) | 11 |
| John Thompson (1990's) | 15 |
| Craig Esherick (1999-04) | 7 |
| John Thompson III (2004-present) | 13 |
Previous transfers since 2004:
- Jerrelle Benimon (2009-11, transferred to Towson)
- Brandon Bolden (2012-13, transferred to Kansas St.)
- Marc Egerson (2005-07, transferred to Delaware)
- Cornelio Guibunda (2004-05, transferred to American)
- Vernon Macklin (2006-08, transferred to Florida)
- Nikita Mescheriakov (2007-10, transferred to Wake Forest)
- Ray Reed (2003-05, transferred to Cal State-Fullerton)
- Jeremiah Rivers (2006-08, transferred to Indiana)
- Vincent (Vee) Sanford, (2009-11, transferred to Dayton)
- Octavious (Tay) Spann (2005-07, transferred to Marshall)
- Josh Thornton (2005-06, transferred to Towson)
- Omar Wattad (2007-09, transferred to Tennessee-Chattanooga)
| Georgetown 61, Colgate 55 | Updated 12/8/13 |
"If that's the 8th place team in the Patriot League, the Patriot League is a damn good league this year - I'll tell you that."--John Thompson III
Forty minutes of mostly poor shooting made Saturday's 61-55 win over Colgate much closer than it should have been. Forty minutes of better defense prevented a bitter loss that might have been.
|
Colgate, which leads the nation in three point shooting with 51 percent accuracy, opened the game missing its first eight attempts from outside and its first 11 overall, but Georgetown led by only seven when Colgate's Austin Tillotson for the Red Raiders on the board with 10:59 in the half, 10-3. Tillotson accounted for all but four of Colgate's points at halftime, as the Red Raiders shot just 19 percent from the field and 3-14 from three point range. Georgetown fared little better, shooting just 29 percent at the break and 0-9 from three point range. The Hoyas scored only only three field goals the final 10:31 of the first half, and took a wobbly 21-15 lead into the break. As has been the case in recent games, the Hoyas opened the second half in much better form, going on a 13-4 run to extend the margin to 34-21 three minutes into the second half. The Hoyas led by as many as 14 before Tillotson rallied the Red Raiders, closing to five, 43-38 midway in the half. A pair of baskets by Nate Lubick took the lead back to nine but with Georgetown's outside shooting woes, the lead slipped to five at the 5:19 mark. Markel Starks, struggling through a 2-8 effort from the field, lead back to nine, but Colgate battled back to 55-50 with 2:32 to play. On Georgetown's next series, Starks missed on a three point attempt, but Colgate returned the favor with a miss from three in a critical series in the game. On Georgetown's next possession, Starks was blocked under the basket and Colgate missed again from outside, failing to drive inside and pick up foul shot opportunities, where Colgate had made nine straight. A late basket by Colgate closed to four, 59-55, but Georgetown made five of its final six free throws for the win. Josh Smith (14), Mikael Starks, and Nate Lubick (10) each scored in double figures for Georgetown but poor shooting was the story of the game. Colgate shot a season low 5-24 (20 percent) from three point range, Georgetown 1-15, or 6 percent. |
5-7 FG shooting, Colgate's Austin Tillotson 9-43 FG shooting, rest of team +18 GU advantage, points in paint 4-21 FG shooting, starting GU guards 5 GU bench pts, second half 1 GU pts off turnover, second half 12-0 GU record vs. Patriot League, JT III era |
"We obviously got off to a cold shooting start," said Colgate coach Matt Langel. "We don't have the luxury of being able to pound the ball inside and pound the glass, and I credit Georgetown for doing that in the second half."
"You know they have a terrific coach, and it's hard for a Princeton guy to say that about a Penn guy, but Matt does a good job with them," said Georgetown coach John Thompson III. " Obviously they are coming into the game the best three-point shooting team in the country - literally - in terms of the percentage that they make and the amount that they make, and so they put a lot of pressure on you just because you have to guard the three point line, you have to try to make the put it down but then once they go to put it down you have to guard them...but they do a good job, they have good offensive players and they're a confident group."
"At the end of the day hopefully a lot of these games will prepare us for the NCAA tournament. I said at the beginning of the year that this is the toughest schedule that we've put together since I've been a coach here, and I say that not thinking about the quote-on-quote "big" more key games that the casual fan looks at, it's because of a lot of these other games that are against very good teams, that are against experienced teams, that are against well-coached teams, teams that are going to be in the tournament or have a pretty good chance of being in the tournament, so our schedule is full of those teams so it's easy to pick up the schedule and look and start talking about the Oregon and everyone that was in Puerto Rico, VCU, Michigan who we could possibly play, down the road we have Michigan State and Kansas - it's easy to look at those games, but it's all these other games that are all against very good teams, and hopefully that will get us ready for the tournament."
The Georgetown half of the box score follows below.
MIN 2FG 3FG FT REB A PF PTS
Starters:
Starks 37 3-8 0-5 6-7 5 5 4 12
Smith-Rivera 30 0-4 1-4 1-2 7 3 1 4
Trawick 33 2-4 0-2 1-1 3 1 3 5
Lubick 26 5-8 0-0 0-1 7 0 0 10
Smith 20 4-6 0-0 6-7 5 0 3 14
Reserves:
Cameron 5 0-1 0-2 0-0 0 0 0 0
Hopkins 24 3-6 0-1 3-5 8 1 1 9
Bowen 16 1-1 0-1 1-2 3 0 1 3
Caprio 1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0
Ayegba 9 2-3 0-0 0-0 3 0 3 4
Injured: Adams
DNP: Allen, Domingo, Hayes
Team Rebounds 1
TOTALS 200 20-41 1-15 18-25 42 10 11 61
| Georgetown 80, High Point 45 | Updated 12/6/13 |
A poor start to open the first and second halves proved fatal to the upset hopes of High Point University, as the Georgetown Hoyas ran past the visiting Panthers 80-45 before 4,676 at Verizon Center Thursday.
Georgetown opened the game hitting its first five shots and forcing six turnovers in High Point's first 12 possessions, as the Hoyas were up early, 13-4, four minutes into the game. Georgetown led by as many as 11, 20-9 midway in the first half, but both teams endured a ragged finish to intermission. For the final 10 minutes of the half, each team made three baskets each, as High Point finished the half down 12, 28-16, on 5-27 (19%) first half shooting.
The Hoyas opened the second half on a run and never looked back. Led by guards Markel Starks and D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera, Georgetown opened the second half on a 10-0 run, followed by a 15-2 run to put the game out of reach, 55-25, with 10:55 to play. The Panthers managed just four field goals over the first 9:54 of the half, giving the Hoyas ample opportunity to pull away. A pair of baskets from Josh Smith put the Hoyas up 31, 60-29, while Mikael Hopkins followed up with seven points in a 10-3 run to go up 70-32 with 7:25 to play. Georgetown was not as intensive down the stretch, with just four baskets thereafter, but the game was then well out of reach.
Starks (18), Smith-Rivera (17), and Smith (11) all scored in double figures for the Hoyas.
Here's the Georgetown half of the box score:
MIN 2FG 3FG FT REB A PF PTS
Starters:
Starks 28 6-7 2-4 0-0 1 5 3 18
Smith-Rivera 27 3-5 3-7 2-3 5 4 2 17
Trawick 24 1-2 1-2 1-3 1 4 3 6
Lubick 22 1-1 0-0 0-0 6 5 1 2
Smith 18 5-7 0-0 1-1 3 1 4 11
Reserves:
Cameron 16 0-1 3-6 0-0 1 1 1 9
Hopkins 17 4-5 0-0 1-1 6 2 1 9
Allen 4 0-0 0-2 0-0 1 1 1 0
Bowen 10 0-2 1-2 0-0 2 0 1 3
Caprio 7 2-2 0-0 0-1 0 0 0 4
Domingo 7 0-1 0-1 0-0 0 0 0 0
Ayegba 18 0-1 0-3 0-0 8 0 1 0
Hayes 2 0-0 0-0 1-2 2 0 0 1
Injured: Adams
Team Rebounds 4
TOTALS 200 22-34 10-24 6-11 40 23 18 80
| 1963-64 Team To Be Honored Saturday | 12/5/13 |
From the Hoya Hoop Club weekly e-newsletter:
"I am delighted to let Hoya fans know that at halftime of our game against Colgate this Saturday, December 7, 2013, Georgetown will celebrate and honor the 50th anniversary of one of the greatest wins in the history of Georgetown Basketball -- a 69-58 victory over the #1 ranked and defending NCAA National Champion Loyola (Illinois) in the Quaker City Tournament held at the the Palestra in Philadelphia.
This was Georgetown’s first win over a top-ranked opponent and many of the former players and coaches will be in town to celebrate. Please stay in your seats at halftime to join in this special occasion. "
(Above: the game received a full page of coverage in the Jan. 18, 1964 Sporting News.)
| Battle 4 Atlantis | 12/4/13 |
Following its tournament in Puerto Rico, Georgetown will make another plane trip for an early season tournament in 2014-15, reports the Washington Post.
Georgetown will participate in the Battle 4 Atlantis, an ESPN-sponsored tournament in the Bahamas during the weekend of Nov. 26-28, 2014. Other participating schools include Alabama-Birmingham, Butler, Florida, Oklahoma, North Carolina, UCLA and Wisconsin.
| Knight Foundation Introduces Database | 12/4/13 |
The Knight Commission has introduced a database integrating academic and athletic spending across many (but not all) Division I schools, reports Inside Higher Ed.com.
The database is an attempt to combine various publicly available funding databases, including one created by USA Today, to give a clearer view of what colleges and universities spend on academic and athletic services. However, a number of private universities, including Georgetown, are not participating in the disclosure.
| Big East: A New Identity | 12/3/13 |
From Fox Sports.com, an interview with former USA Basketball executive Tom Jernstedt, now a member of the team rebuilding the Big East conference.
"It does have the benefit of being the Big East," Jernstedt said in the Q&A style interview. "I don't think they're starting from scratch. They're drawing on tradition. It's a new alignment, but the majority of the institutions are from the original Big East."
"[Maintaining the Big East name] was a great stroke, very exciting and beneficial. It's a brand that's very meaningful in basketball. Everyone knows the Big East."
HoyaSaxa.com:
The One-Stop Web Site For Hoya Basketball™
An independent web site not affiliated with Georgetown University. All rights reserved.