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Georgetown Basketball: June 2008 News Archive

Season Ticket Prices To Increase 6/30/08

Over the past weekend, season ticket holders were informed that prices for 2008-09 will be rising. With a fair amount of discussion already taking place at the HoyaTalk boards, a few points to consider:

  • Georgetown tickets have been under-priced in the market for many years, owing to the longstanding supply of excess tickets available in past seasons. While ticket prices will increase across the board, they still remain competitive in the conference, where single game tickets can be as much as $55.00 a seat at St. John's, for example.
  • For the first time, a Hoya Hoop Club gift will be required for lower level (100-228) seating, from as little as $50 per seat in the corners to as much as $1,750 per seat for the first four rows, excluding a handful of courtside seats. Prices are still below other programs, however--as noted earlier, the Cincinnati Enquirer reported in April that minimum donation levels for the Bearcats will rise to $12,000 per seat in the first 14 rows of Fifth Third Arena. At Louisville, a mid-court seat at Freedom Hall requires, at a minimum, a $1,600 per seat plus a minimum athletics gift of $100,000, payable over 5 years. A Hoop Club membership, even at a nominal level, is absolutely the right thing to do if someone is buying lower level seats.
  • Season ticket income represents one of Georgetown basketball's most important sources of revenue. Unlike schools which own or control their arena, Georgetown gets no revenue from parking, concessions, or box seats at Verizon Center as other schools enjoy, and as GU is paying among the highest arena rental fees in the nation, it's even more important. And in contrast to schools where football money helps drives the bus, less than 5% of Georgetown athletic revenues come from football, making season ticket revenue even more vital to supporting a competitive program.

Season ticket holders are asked to return seat deposits by July 18, with the balance due this fall.

The Next Generation 6/30/08

A proud father got to see his son drafted by the NBA last week...and even gave him a few moments advance word, according to the Sacramento Bee.

"Patrick [Jr.] is nothing like me," the elder Ewing (C'85) told the paper. "He is very outgoing, very much his own person. Like every boy, he can be hard-headed sometimes. But I'm real proud of him. I think his mother, grandparents, myself, we all did an outstanding job raising him.

"I also think he's athletic enough to play in the league."

"My father has gotten more proactive in my basketball probably the last three years, when I got serious about it," said Patrick Jr. (C'08). "We talk every day. But he never pressured me. He just encourages me to do well."

Ewing, an assistant coach with the Orlando Magic, learned of the decision seconds before his son did. "Because of the [telecast] delay, I knew Patrick was going to Sacramento. I called and told him he got picked by the Kings. He thought I was pulling his leg...But I'd be proud of my son even if he didn't get drafted, or if he doesn't make it in the league. He graduated from college. He's a great kid, a wonderful person."

Ewing Jr. was watching the draft at coach John Thompson III's house. "The number next to your name? Great, you can talk about that and feel good about that, but starting tomorrow you have to go to work," Thompson told the Washington Post. "Starting tomorrow, you have to show up in a strange city with a new coach, with new teammates and be able to perform."

Hibbert, Ewing Selected In NBA Draft 6/27/08

Center Roy Hibbert (C'08) was selected 17th in the 2008 NBA draft by the Toronto Raptors, but is expected to be traded to the Indiana Pacers as part of a multi player deal to be finalized July 9.

A second team All-America selection, Hibbert averaged 13.4 points and 6.4 rebounds in 2008, and ended his career 15th in scoring (1,476), 18th in rebounds (660) 4th in blocks (259), and sixth in games played (136).

Hibbert is the 11th first round selection for Georgetown since 1980, and the first senior to be chosen in the first round since Jerome Williams in 1996.

In the second round, the Sacramento Kings selected Patrick Ewing, Jr. (C'08) with the 43rd pick.

Additional coverage follows below.

GU Drops In NACDA Standings 6/27/08

Georgetown University dropped to 77th in the Sports Directors Cup standings, a national measure of post-season competitiveness across NCAA intercollegiate sports.

Earning post-season bids in men's basketball, women's soccer, women's lacrosse, cross country, and track, Georgetown finished 19th among private schools, down from 18th in 2007. For the 14th consecutive year, Stanford won the all-sports title.

The Big East rundown is as follows. As in 2007, Seton Hall was the only school not to receive points for post-season competition this year.

2008 2007
Notre Dame 21 22
West Virginia 30 57
Louisville 32 28
Connecticut 49 82
Georgetown 77 76
Pittsburgh 85 71
Syracuse 87 110
South Florida 99 133
Villanova 112 132
St. John's 114 85
Rutgers 126 54
Providence 146 75
DePaul 151 158
Cincinnati 164 198
Marquette 197 127
 

Here's a recap of Georgetown's past finishes per the NACDA web site:

Year Finish Among Big
East Schools
1994 47th 3rd
1995 44th 3rd
1996 55th 2nd
1997 63rd 5th
1998 62nd 6th
1999 45th 3rd
2000 55th 4th
2001 42nd 3rd
2002 51st 3rd
2003 61st 5th
2004 53rd 3rd
2005 74th 6th
2006 68th 5th
2007 76th 7th
2008 77th 5th
 
NBA Draft 6/25/08 

Wednesday's NBA draft coverage sees news from each of the local dailies about Georgetown prospects. A feature on Patrick Ewing Jr. follows in the Washington Post, with an article on Roy Hibbert in the Washington Times.

Monroe: Ready For The Challenge 6/23/08 

Freshman center Greg Monroe won't arrive at Georgetown for another two weeks but is already working hard for the challenges that await, as noted in an article from the New Orleans Times-Picayune. Monroe has been working out daily to prepare himself for summer league and freshman year conditioning.

"I anticipate him being successful, but he has to be able to earn it," said Georgetown coach John Thompson III. "A lot of people as successful as Greg has been expect things to be given to them, but that's not the case. We are going to need him to do well for us."

"Greg seems ready for the challenge," said Monroe's high school coach, Tyrone Mouzon.

A Draft Bargain 6/23/08 

Considered a lottery pick had he left in 2007, the draft status of Roy Hibbert (C'08) appears to settling in the bottom third of the first round entering this week's NBA draft. Desmond Conner of the Hartford Courant discusses where Hibbert could be a real find for the right team.

Coach John Thompson III agrees. "It's really funny to see the different reactions to Roy right now," he said. "You see and hear some of the comments that are almost like coming back to school to get a degree was a bad thing for him. To me, that just goes against everything we're trying to teach young kids. Look, we know when a kid goes to college to play basketball, whether it's Georgetown, Connecticut, North Carolina, Duke or any other major Division I program, they have thoughts about playing in the NBA. We know that. So if that's what they want to do, then we, as their coaches, have a responsibility to try to help them get there.

"But we're also educators, and we have a responsibility to make sure that they understand the first reason they're here and what they should ultimately be trying to accomplish, which is getting your degree."

Duke, Memphis Games Finalized 6/19/08 

Columnist Jeff Goodman at FoxSports.com has listed the game dates for his top games of the year, including Georgetown's games with Memphis and Duke. Each has been updated to the left.

Crawford Seeks European Opportunity 6/15/08 

With three of his fellow graduates in discussions among various NBA rookie camps, Tyler Crawford (C'08) is seeking to continue his basketball career overseas, according to the Staunton News-Leader..

"I don't want to have that 'What if?' my whole life," said Crawford. "I'm going to make an attempt. I'm not afraid to take risks."

"Basically, I have to go and sell myself," Crawford continued. "It's just like the recruiting process all over again. My name's not known, so I use that as motivation."

Crawford is following in the footsteps of 2007 graduates Ken Izzo and Sead Dizdarevic, each of which pursued European opportunities. Izzo played in Ireland and Hungary before returning to the US last spring, while Dizdarevic played briefly in Europe and is now in the Washington DC area.

Thompson Discusses Hibbert, Draft 6/9/08 

With the NBA draft ahead, head coach John Thompson III talked about Roy Hibbert's draft position in this link to KZNS-1280 in Salt Lake City, where Hibbert is being actively considered with the first round pick of the Utah Jazz. The station's audio archive also includes an interview earlier last week with Hibbert discussing his look ahead at the draft.

Thompson Busy In Off-Season 6/9/08 

What does a head coach do in the off-season? In the case of John Thompson III, it's more work and more preparation, according to the Washington Times.

Thompson has continued working through recruiting this summer and will serve as an assistant to the USA Basketball under-18 team in July. And the memory of last season's second round loss continues to motivate the staff to work harder.

"Yeah, thinking about that game hurts, probably always will," he said. Time will tell, but that game probably will serve as a driving force for me."

Big East Commissioner To Retire 6/6/08 

In 1979, he was the Big East's first hire, a 34 year old sports information director from Providence who moved across town to help Dave Gavitt build seven college basketball independents into a new conference. After 30 years with the Big East, 18 as commissioner, Michael Tranghese has announced his retirement effective in June of next year.

"I just wanted to leave when I thought we'd be in good shape and in a position to succeed," Tranghese said. "I think our conference is better than we've ever been, so I thought now is the right time."

"He's been a true consensus-builder. That's evident by keeping 16 institutions moving in one direction in a united front," Georgetown athletic director bernard Muir told the Washington Post.

Tranghese was at the helm during the conference's most difficult moments in 2003, as the Atlantic Coast raided three schools and there were active discussions by five I-A football schools about scuttling the conference. Tranghese's work with the school presidents and interested parties at five Conference USA schools helped saved the Big East and recast it as a 16 team conference.

He's almost an irreplaceable guy,” said Syracuse's coach, Jim Boeheim. “He was instrumental with the founding with Dave [Gavitt], and when the league was in a very precarious position, he pulled it all together in a very short period of time. I don't think the league has ever been stronger."

Additional coverage follows below.

Sailing Wins ICSA National Title 6/5/08 

Congratulations to the Georgetown sailing team, which won the ICSA/Gill national title at Newport, RI.

Though sailing is not an NCAA recognized sport, over 200 colleges sponsor the sport. The races, one of three national titles awarded annually by the Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association of North America, was won by Georgetown for the first time after securing team titles in 2001 and 2006.

These three titles join championship honors in baseball (1922) and men's basketball (1984) as Georgetown teams which have reached the pinnacle of their respective sports.

Additional coverage follows below.

 

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