Expectations For 2024-25?
With less than a week to the season opener, fans know relatively little about the 2024-25 Georgetown Hoyas, a team with eight freshmen and 12 newcomers overall. What are the expectations upon this program, if any, with one winning season in the last nine?Georgetown freelance reporter Patrick Stevens spoke about this to a Xavier podcast, the Musketeer Report."After the last three seasons in particular where I don't think anyone could draw any kind of sense of success from anything that they have done, I thing getting better, being better at the end of the season, and having a number of young guys get better as the year goes along, I think qualifies as success here," Stevens said. "Simply being competitive at home against good teams would be a good step forward for these guys...they lost three consecutive home games by a combined 84 points, that's just not competitive at all." "There are some risks to what this might look like this year, but I think that the key for them is simply have something of value to take into a following season to build on." "At this point, you just need hope, some hope to sell going forward," said podcast host Rick Broering. "If you have that, I think, it'll be a positive result this season." Sports Illustrated: Georgetown 92nd
In lieu of merely picking teams by conference, Sports Illustrated has ranked all Division I teams from 1 to 364. In it, Georgetown is 92nd."It's critical for Georgetown to show progress in Ed Cooley's second year," it writes. "This team will be young, especially up front, but portal adds like Malik Mack (Harvard) and Micah Peavy (TCU) should raise the floor significantly."Four Big East teams rank in the top 20 of this list and five in the top 25. Lehigh, Georgetown's season opener, enters the list at #292. A (Not-So) Secret Scrimmage
As one of just three Big East teams not to schedule a pre-season exhibition game for the public, Georgetown opted instead for a closed door scrimmage Saturday versus Virginia. A leaked box score score suggests it would have been a difficult one to watch.When originally created, the "secret scrimmage" was an attempt for Division I teams to gain pre-season experience against a comparable team, but without the critical eye of media or fans. Outcomes were less important than outputs, as coaches saw it as an opportunity to try different player combinations in ways an intrasquad practice session could not. Over the years, these games are becoming less and less secret, and perhaps, less effective.Various social media sites reported Georgetown defeated Virginia 66-55 in the scrimmage, but with some statistics that belong in a haunted house. A box score circulated online reported Georgetown as 0 for 11 from three point range in the first half, and Virginia was 0 for 13 in the second. Together, the two teams missed 44 of 48 attempts from three point range in the scrimmage. Nine Georgetown players saw action according to the report, with the Hoyas scoring the last eight points of the game. Following the scrimmage, players visited Cooper Field for the Georgetown-Bucknell football game.
Here's the Georgetown half of the box score:
MIN 2FG 3FG FT REB A PF PTS
Starters:
Mack 35 4-7 2-7 3-3 5 0 2 17
Epps 30 2-5 0-7 3-4 2 1 2 7
Peavy 32 7-12 0-2 8-12 6 2 2 22
Burks 30 3-3 0-1 2-2 11 0 5 8
Sorber 33 3-7 0-0 4-5 9 3 3 10
Reserves:
Ca. Williams 9 0-0 0-1 0-0 1 0 0 0
McKenna 4 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0
Cu. Williams 15 0-1 0-1 0-0 0 1 3 0
Fielder 10 1-1 0-2 0-1 6 0 4 2
Team Rebounds 2
DNP: Fort, Montgomery, Asadallah, Moses, Halaifonua,
Van Raaphorst, Diouf, Mulready
TOTALS 200 20-36 2-21 20-27 42 7 21 66
News & NotesCongratulations to Hoya Hoop Club president Mark Guerrera (C'91), a 2025 recipient of the William Gaston Award, per an e-mail from the Georgetown University Alumni Association.Founded in 1963, the Gaston Award recognizes outstanding service by undergraduate alumni who have exhibited leadership across activities such as alumni clubs and class programs.The awards will be presented at the Alumni Association's annual Service Recognition Awards Banquet on February 7, 2025. Big East Beers?
Getting a Georgetown University logo on any third party product requires a lengthy and time consuming legal process. Over at Marquette, it is introducing its own branded beer this season."Marquette University Athletics and Third Space Brewing are thrilled to announce the creation of Marquette Golden Ale, the first ever officially licensed and co-branded craft beer of the Golden Eagles," reads a university release. "Marquette Golden Ale will be available at all Marquette home games at Fiserv Forum, the Al McGuire Center and Valley Fields beginning Nov. 4.""This was a great opportunity for us to work closely with a great neighbor and partner to create a unique product for the Marquette community," stated athletic director Bill Scholl. "We are excited to see Marquette Golden Ale's release and to continue adding to the gameday experience for our Golden Eagle fans." Marquette Golden Ale is not alone, however. Creighton fans at Omaha's CHI Health Center can enjoy "Bluejay Berry Blast", while an IPA known as "Friartown" is available at Providence home games. A Georgetown-branded beer? It's unlikely. Clickbait Site Spreads False Georgetown Rumor
A Twitter feed known for false sports predictions made it to the 24 hour news cycle Wednesday, claiming coach Ed Cooley was about to leave Georgetown for the coaching position at the University of Virginia.A Twitter account from an individual as "Rob Reinhart" posted a Twitter message Tuesday afternoon which read: "#BREAKING: Georgetown's Ed Cooley is the frontrunner to replace Tony Bennett at Virginia, per source. I'm told the two parties are in advanced talks, with UVA's NIL valuation and brand prestige as major factors. Not a done deal yet, but very, very close."The message received little attention, although it apparently fooled Fox Sports announcer Tim Brando until veteran basketball reporter Jeff Goodman told Brando it was a "fake account". All that said, it was picked up again when an unsigned article at Fox Sports.com reported Wednesday that "Several media outlets reported that Cooley was the front-runner to replace Bennett and that the two parties were in advanced talks surrounding the role." The link to "several media sources" was a link to Reinhart's post, which may have been his intent all along. Asked at Media Day about the claim, Cooley said that there was "zero truth to that. When you have many people who hide behind all these social media platforms...I'm where I need to be. I'm where I want to be. I will tell you this: This will be the last college job I have. My goal is to make Georgetown basketball powerful again, inspire other people. That's all false news and it's unfortunate that people jeopardize livelihoods, jeopardize people. It's unfortunate." Reinhart wasn't backing down, posting later this afternoon that "I'm told the deal fell through last night after Cooley spoke with UVA top brass, stating that he did not believe right now was the right time." There is no corroboration any such call took place. As to the source, it's unclear. Some suggest it's one of the numerous fake Twitter accounts that emanate from disgruntled Providence fans, but there has been relatively little Georgetown coverage in this account's past messages. It's not certain there even is a Rob Reinhart--his Twitter photo is that of J.J. Redick, according to a Google image search. The writer says he works for the "New York Herald" which is not a daily newspaper but a blog of articles pulled from other media sources. Among Reinhart's recent scoops:
Big East Media Day CoverageHere's some press and video coverage from Big East media day:
Big East Media Day: Georgetown #9
Georgetown was picked ninth in the 2024-25 Big East pre-season poll announced Tuesday morning at Madison Square Garden.Big East Poll
2. Creighton 3. Xavier 4. Marquette 4. St. John's 6. Providence 7. Villanova 8. Butler 9. Georgetown 10. Seton Hall 11. DePaul Jayden Epps, a third team selection, was Georgetown's only selection on the pre-season all conference teams. Player Of The Year Ryan Kalkbrenner, Creighton, C, Sr., 7-1, 270, Florissant, MO Freshman of the Year Liam McNeeley, Connecticut, F, Fr., 6-7, 210, Richardson, TX First Team Kam Jones, Marquette, G, Sr., 6-5, 205, Memphis, TN Kadary Richmond, St. John's, G, Gr., 6-6, 205, Brooklyn, NY Bryce Hopkins, Providence, G-F, Sr., 6-7, 220, Oak Park, IL Alex Karaban, Connecticut, F, Redshirt Jr., 6-8, 225, Southborough, MA Eric Dixon, Villanova, F, Gr., 6-8, 265, Willow Grove, PA Second Team Dayvion McKnight, Xavier, G, Gr., 6-0, 190, Shelbyville, KY Deivon Smith, St. John's, G, Gr., 6-0, 175, Decatur, GA Pierre Brooks, Butler, F, Sr., 6-6, 240, Detroit, MI Jahmyl Telfort, Butler, F, Gr., 6-7, 225, Montreal, PQ Zach Freemantle, Xavier, C, Gr., 6-9, 227, Teaneck, NJ Third Team Aidan Mahaney, Connecticut, G, Jr., 6-3, 185, Lafayette, CA Steven Ashworth, Creighton, G, Sr., 6-0, 175, Alpine, UT Jayden Epps, Georgetown, G, Jr., 6-2, 190, Norfolk, VA Wooga Poplar, Villanova, G, Sr., 6-5, 197, Philadelphia, PA Ryan Conwell, Xavier, G, Jr., 6-4, 215, Indianapolis, IN
NBA: Last Hoya Standing
The 2024-25 NBA season opens this evening with just one former Georgetown player on an active roster: Jeff Green (C'12).Green, 38, played at Georgetown from 2004 through 2007 and is on the final year of a two year contract with the Houston Rockets. He averaged 6.5 points per game in six starts and 78 games overall.The only other Georgetown veteran from last season's NBA, Omer Yurtseven (C'20), was waived by the Utah Jazz in July, opting for a two year contract in Greece with Panathinaikos. Former player Mac McClung (2018-20) is inactive for the opener but signed a two way deal with the Orlando Magic, which allows the team to play him up to 50 games this season or send him to play at their minor league affiliate in Osceola, FL on the same contract. McClung was named the G League Most Valuable Player after averaging 25.7 points per game with Osceola last season. McClung played in four NBA games in the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons for three different teams. At least one former Georgetown player has played on an NBA roster since the 1980-81 season. Big East Media Day This Wednesday
With two weeks to the regular season, the Big East holds its annual Media Day Wednesday at Madison Square Garden.According to the conference, the men's coverage begins at 9:30 am, with the women's media day follows after 1 p.m. Coverage is available on the Peacock streaming network.
Updated Arena Plans Shared
Initial concepts for the $800 million renovation of Capital One Arena were released Monday.
ADDITIONAL DETAILS
The images shown by Monumental focus on areas outside the arena itself, as no significant plans to revise or reconfigure the seating area have been put forward."The new arena concepts reflect an attention to detail for a better fan experience across the interior of the arena, from the moment of arrival until departure," reads a release. "This includes an expanded main entrance at F Street to ease the flow for fans before and after events. Wider concourses and more elevators and escalators are designed so guests can move from space to space faster and more efficiently. And there are plans for approximately 65% more concession space, 30% more restrooms and an expansive new food and beverage experience appealing to the widest array of tastes and showcasing varied cuisines." As part of the agreement announced earlier this year, the District will buy the arena for $87.5 million and lease it to Monumental Sports over the next 25 years, with Monumental having an out-clause beginning in 2045. The renovations are expected to be complete by the 2027-28 season. The Filling Station
Amidst the various tributes following the death of Dikembe Mutombo, veteran USA Today columnist Stephen Borelli went to the source: a former Georgetown assistant that met Mutombo at Dulles Airport upon his arrival in the United States.
LINK
"We got the idea that people were just calling, trying to sell the kid, to get the kid to come to the United States," said Mike Riley (C'78). No one outside of then-Zaire had seen him play."As the stream of people deboarding dwindled to the crew, the coaches asked a flight attendant if anyone was left," said Borelli. "She said there were a couple of stragglers. 'Is there a tall guy?' they asked. "Oh God, he is really tall," she replied. When Mutombo finally appeared in the doorway, he had to bend his head down to walk through it. "Uh oh, we may have something here," Riley thought. "His teammates respected him an awful lot because they knew that if they weren't playing great defense, that he was going to be the emergency at the glass," he said. "They loved him, and they loved to talk about where he was from. They would tease him about being in America. And he would say, 'You Americans, [you've] got it too soft.' There was no animosity. He was just as happy about somebody else doing something as he would have been for himself. And he had that big, deep voice that just boomed out." "Dikembe is a refreshing person to work with," said John Thompson said in a 1990 interview. "He's like a filling station for a coach. I can go in and get new energy from him. I enjoy him. I think that's a part kids don't understand. They come to receive, but they don't realize that they also give. Dikembe is that way. You can get angry at him and he understands that you're not trying to personally attack him. He says a lot of things when I'm angry that will make me break into a smile. And at this age, you need that filling station." Recommended reading. Season Tickets Now On SaleSeason tickets are now on sale, per a social media note.Tickets for the package at Capital One Arena range from $900 to $2,500 per seat in the 100 level, and $200 to $900 in the 200 level. Tickets are not currently being offered in the 400 level.
Team Meet & GreetAlso on social media: a meet and greet with the team on Saturday, October 19.The event is being sponsored by Hoyas Rising.
Georgetown Holds Team Media Day
Head coach Ed Cooley held a media availability session Tuesday with members of the local media.While the event was not listed at GUHoyas.com, YouTube has a number of video clips from the interviews:Big East Seeks Additional Media Partners
Sports Business Journal is reporting that the Big East is searching for additional outlets to support its third tier media rights."After securing a six-year deal with Fox Sports, NBC Sports and TNT Sports for its main media rights package earlier this year, the conference is hunting a supplemental package, Commissioner Val Ackerman told SBJ."According to the article, the games would include 30 men's basketball games that SBJ refers to as "primarily early-season matchups", 75 additional women's basketball games and some non-basketball events not otherwise included in the primary package. With fewer times expected to be available on Fox Sports 1 and Fox Sports 2 next season due to contracts with the Big 10 and Big 12, this may be seen as a means of protecting early season cable carriage without moving lower rated games onto Peacock, a subscription streaming service. Interested parties may include CBS Sports Network, the CW Network, Warner Bros. Discovery, and USA Network. Big East Pre-Season
As October is well underway, the promotion of pre-season events across the Big East has one school absent.The basketball office has neither announced nor promoted any activities in advance of its Nov. 6 opener versus Lehigh. A year ago, head coach Ed Cooley was promoting "transformational change" among the fan base while an Associated Press story claimed "overall ticket revenue is projected to grow 67 [percent]" in 2033-24. (Average attendance for paid games increased from 5,337 to 6,612 per game, net of the free opener.)This season, the message at Georgetown is far more muted compared to activities elsewhere in the conference:
Could they afford to do more? Basketball's overall budget, though large, likely gives little thought to promotional activity, and outside sponsorship of Georgetown events remains low. Increasing Georgetown "spirit", no matter how it is defined, isn't selling tickets right now. There is no director of marketing or "sports promotions" anymore, and its only FTE in the "Marketing & Promotions" department manages visual media. As McDonough Gymnasium ages, its utility to host events dwindles, and the cost of renting Capital One Arena would be prohibitive with the likelihood of very small crowds for such an event. Finally, the Georgetown NIL footprint is far smaller than what some Fox announcers would have you believe, and absent a community platform its own events remain in stealth. All of these factors minimize the ability of the Hoyas to dig out of a decade or more of low expectations in the University and broader D.C communities. Winning would help, but even that is just a start. Otherwise, with eight freshmen and 13 newcomers overall, a first look at the 2024-25 Hoyas may not come until the season opener.
Sports Illustrated: Georgetown 10th
The pre-season articles continue, this time at Sports Illustrated, with Georgetown at 10th.SI Picks
2. Creighton 3. Xavier 4. Marquette 5. St. John's 6. Providence 7. Butler 8. Villanova 9. Seton Hall 10. Georgetown 11. DePaul "Incremental progress should be the expectation here: Jayden Epps is back as one of the Big East's top scorers, and he gets help in the backcourt in the form of dynamic Harvard transfer Malik Mack. TCU transfer Micah Peavy should give the Hoyas defense some teeth, but a lot rides on the center spot, where Cooley will rely heavily on a pair of unproven options in freshmen Thomas Sorber and Julius Halaifonua." Sweeney picked Georgetown 10th in last year's preview. CBS Sports.com: Georgetown 10th
With two weeks until Big East Media Day, CBS Sports.com posts its picks in this Big East preview, with Georgetown staying on the bottom third of the ledger.CBS' Picks
2. Marquette 3. Creighton 4. St. John's 5. Xavier 6. Providence 7. Villanova 8. Seton Hall 9. Butler 10. Georgetown 11. DePaul Across seven reporters and analysts, Georgetown was picked as follows: 8th: David Cobb 9th: Kyle Boone, Cameron Salerno 10th: Gary Parrish, Matt Norlander, Jerry Palm 11th: Isaac Trotter Ewing Joins Knicks Front Office
Eighteen months following his dismissal as head coach at Georgetown, Patrick Ewing (C'85) will rejoin the New York Knickerbockers in the newly created role of "basketball ambassador", per a team release.Ewing played with the Knicks from 1985-2000 before stops at Seattle (2001-02) and Orlando (2002-03)."The New York Knicks and Patrick Ewing are synonymous with one another, and we are humbled and excited to bring Patrick back home," said Knicks president Leon Rose in a team statement. "A monumental figure in New York basketball lore, Patrick brings a wealth of knowledge from his time both on and off the court that is unmatched." The role of the position was not clarified, only that it would assist basketball and business operations. The role does not affect Ewing's contractual buyout at Georgetown, as such agreements often contain conditions if the party accepts a college coaching deal, which Ewing has not been a candidate for. The 62 year old Ewing was 75-109 in six seasons at Georgetown, with a two year record of 13-50 from 2021-23 that the program has still not recovered from. He has not had any public contact with the program since. Networks Finalized For 2024-25 Schedule
An assortment of at least seven different linear and streaming networks will carry Georgetown basketball games in the upcoming season, according to releases from the Big East and the Georgetown basketball office.Highlights include the following:
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