Georgetown Basketball: June 2002 News Archive

• Recruiting Notes
  
• MCI Naming Rights In Danger?
  
• NBA: Braswell Not Drafted
  
• Second Verbal For 2004?
  
• Big East Crossover Opponents Announced
  
• 7-2 Center Commits For 2004
  
• ESPN.com: Thomas To Transfer
  
• West Virginia To Increase Budgets
  
• Gaughan Wins Truck Race
  
• Exempted Tournaments Await Ruling
  

Recruiting Notes

6/30/02

Georgetown recruit Matt Causey was recently featured in NBADraft.net with a review of summer league action for his team, the Georgia Stars.

"His range and quick jumper is reminiscent of soon to be drafted Dan Dickau. He is full speed all the time nor is he afraid of anyone. Causey was a fun player to watch," wrote authors Justin and Kevin Young.

Causey's AAU teammate, Patrick Ewing, Jr., will be moving from Georgia to suburban Maryland this fall, according to the Washington Post.

Ewing has enrolled at National Christian Academy for summer school and is expected to play for NCA his his senior year, according to the Post.

"Playing at National Christian will get me ready to play in college because we'll play the best teams in the country," said the 6-8 Ewing. "I think it's going to be a good fit for me. It's been good so far."

Here is an unofficial list of recruits heading into the next three years. Note that various Internet reports have indicated that junior Robert McKiver could go elsewhere, and that Harvey Thomas could return for the 2003-04 season. For this chart, we've taken McKiver off for now. Georgetown is still listed with a number of top high school seniors.

 

MCI Naming Rights In Danger?

6/28/02

The stock collapse of WorldCom may signal a change in the name of Washington's MCI Center, according to an article in the Washington Post.

The Post reports that naming rights fees are paid by MCI, a subsidiary of WorldCom, in annual installments. Should WorldCom file for bankruptcy, the fees could be subject to default.

NBA: Braswell Not Drafted

6/28/02

Jun. 28--Kevin Braswell was not selected in the two round NBA Draft Wednesday and will attempt to sign a free agent contract.

Three Big East players were selected in the first round: UConn's Caron Butler (to Miami), Notre Dame's Ryan Humphrey (to Orlando via Utah), and Miami's John Salmons (to Philadelphia via San Antonio). No Big East players were selected in the second round.

The complete list of draft selections can be found at NBA.com.

Second Verbal For 2004?

6/25/02

Less than a week after sophomore center Roy Hibbert verbally committed to Georgetown's Class of 2008, a second local player has made a similar commitment, according to the recruiting publication Hoop Scoop.

Hoop Scoop is reporting that Cheyenne Moore, a 6-5 guard who will be a high school junior next year, has made a verbal commitment to Georgetown. Moore played two years at Montrose Christian Academy, where he was a freshman during the senior years of current Hoyas Tony Bethel and Drew Hall. After two years at Montrose, Moore is now listed as attending West Nottingham Prep in Colora, MD.

A follow-up article has also appeared at DCHoops.com.

Georgetown cannot comment on any recruits until they sign a national letter of intent. For Moore, that would not come until November, 2003.

Big East Crossover Opponents Announced

6/19/02

Jun. 18--The divisional crossover games for 2002-03 were announced by the Big East Conference.

Georgetown's 2002-03 divisional rotation follows the same basic alignment from 2000-01, rotating from home to away and vice versa (i.e, Georgetown played Virginia Tech two years ago at home, so this year it will play at Tech.) Miami replaces Villanova as the fourth rotating team.

Also absent from the Hoyas' schedule is Boston College and Connecticut. As such, Georgetown will not play a single Big East road game in New England.

Here are the games discussed in the press to date. New to the list is James Madison, as per a story in the Harrisonburg News Record (the story was not archived on its site).

 

7-2 Center Commits For 2004

6/18/02

A report in the "Daily Roots" section at Basketball America says that Roy Hibbert, a 7-2 center from Georgetown Prep, has made a verbal commitment to Georgetown for the freshman class of 2004-05, or the college class of 2008.

Confirmation followed in the Washington Times and Washington Post.

Hibbert averaged nine points and eight rebounds as a sophomore for the Little Hoyas, though limited by a foot injury. The Prep web site minces no words in describing Hibbert's potential: "He is ranked as the number one center in the nation and the number four-ranked player in the nation in the class of 2004. Roy is a very gifted player who can do a lot of things on the basketball court. He has great footwork for a kid his size and age. He also has soft hands and a soft touch from the perimeter."

Hibbert is coached by Dwayne Bryant, who played for the Hoyas from 1986-1990.

Georgetown cannot comment on any recruits until they sign a national letter of intent. For Hibbert, that would not come until November, 2003.

ESPN.com: Thomas To Transfer

6/12/02

ESPN.com has reported that freshman forward Harvey Thomas will transfer to Daytona Beach CC for the 2002-03 season.

The story, seen in Andy Katz's "Daily Word" column, does not quote anyone at Georgetown. Instead, Katz's story cites Anthony Thomas, Harvey's brother, as saying that Thomas had differences with Coach Esherick but was given an "open-door policy" to return following a year at Daytona Beach, the same school which Lee Scruggs attended prior to arriving at Georgetown. Thomas could also be recruited by other schools.

Thomas averaged 5.2 points and 2.8 rebounds last season after being ineligible for much of the fall semester. According to the story, the transfer is not due to academics.

The transfer was confirmed by Daytona Beach's athletic director to the Washington Post. There has been no official comment from Georgetown.

West Virginia To Increase Budgets

6/8/02

West Virginia has announced a plan to increase athletic spending to become more competitive in the Big East, according to the Charleston Gazette. According to the paper, WVU hopes to raise an additional $1.5 million from the Mountaineer Athletic Club within the next few years.

And the Morgantown Dominion Post had a confusing article ranking West Virginia's budget against that of other Big East schools, but they didn't list any of the schools by name, even though much of this information is public.

Gaughan Wins Truck Race

6/8/02

Still quiet on the Hoya Basketball front, but former walk-on Brendan Gaughan (Business '97) continues to make some noise in his new sport--auto racing.

Gaughan became the first rookie this season to win in the NASCAR Craftsman series, with a win in the O'Reilly 400 at Texas Motor Speedway. It's the first win for Gaughan this season, who is ranked 9th in the Craftsman standings after seven races.

"A lot of people doubted the move to bring us up to this series," Gaughan said, where he formerly competed in the regional Winston West series before the NASCAR level. "But we knew we could contend. This is the first win, but we plan on getting many more."

Links to the race report:

• NASCAR.com (with photo)
• Dallas Morning News
• Ft. Worth Star Telegram
• Las Vegas Review Journal

Exempted Tournaments Await Ruling

6/2/02

A number of teams are awaiting a judge's ruling on exempted tournaments before finalizing schedules. This also affects the John Thompson Classic, which will be held in Albuquerque if the exempted games are upheld, according to the Albuquerque Tribune.

Teams for the event have not been determined pending the ruling, according to the article.

 

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