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Georgetown Basketball: Bottom 10 Games Of Craig Esherick's Tenure
(From HoyaSaxa.com game reports)

Note: not all web links may be active. Also, see the Top 10 Games Of Craig Esherick's Tenure

10. February 10, 2001: Providence 103, Georgetown 79

Scoring on their first five shots, 9 of its first 12, and 14 of 19 from three, Providence College stunned Georgetown 103-79 Saturday night.

The Friars (17-6) opened the game 12-4 and thanks to a historic 74% from three point range were never threatened. Junior guard John Linehan scored 11 first half points, seven assists, four steals and only one turnover in the first twenty minutes. PC shot 64% in the half and was 9-12 from three...this from a team averaging 8-22 from three for a game. The Hoyas shot an admirable 48 percent from the field in the half but gave up a season high 19 turnovers and trailed by 26 at the half, 61-35. The 61 points were the most points scored in the first half of any Big East game.

The two teams played even in the second half, punctuated only by a basket with 3:03 to play that allowed Providence to top the century mark, the first Big East opponent to do so against Georgetown and the first 100+ game in ther regular season since Seton Hall did it in a pre-Big east game in 1976. Much was made in the national press that the 24 point margin of defeat was the worst ever for the Hoyas; however, losses to Notre Dame in 2000 (77-54) and Providence in 1992 (86-63) were each by 23 points and were no less painful. But maybe this was more unexpected, and thus more puzzling.

The final was the sixth loss for the Hoyas in the last eight at the Providence Civic Center.

Some post-game links follow below:

9. January 5, 2002: Rutgers 89, Georgetown 87 (2OT)
This one almost defies description.

Shooting 49% from the field, 77% from the line, and 55% from three point range, the Georgetown Hoyas self destructed three times in a two hour period to lose in overtime to Rutgers, 89-87.

Key moments of the game were the following:

After building an 18 point lead midway in the first half, Georgetown scores two baskets in the final four minutes of the half, as Rutgers cut the lead to eight at the half with a full court press that GU could not navigate most of the game.
With 5:30 to play, RU's leading scorer Rashod Kent fouls out with Georgetown up 76-67. Georgetown proceeds to make no baskets, add four free throws, and commit multiple turnovers down the stretch, as Rutgers tied the game and sent it into overtime. Had it not been for some abysmal free throw shooting by RU during the game, it would have never made it into the extra period.
Georgetown roars out of the OT period and leads 85-80 in the first 1:10 of OT, then proceeds to allow Rutgers back in and take the lead late. The game effectively ends where Victor Samnick fails to see Mike Sweetney under the basket and launches his own errant shot.

Post game recaps:

8. January 20, 2001: Pittsburgh 70, Georgetown 66
An inspired Pittsburgh squad took advantage of a lackluster Georgetown defense and ten three pointers to upset the #9 Hoyas 70-66 at MCI Center on Inauguration Night before a smaller than anticipated crowd of 12,109. The Panthers controlled the tempo of the game, shot 52 percent, and never let the Hoyas build a lead. Down the stretch, Georgetown failed on five consecutive possessions and scored two points in the final 4:51.

The Hoyas led by an uneasy 35-33 at half, battling back from an early six point deficit. Twice the Hoyas made runs to take a one point lead, in both cases those runs were halted by time outs and Pitt (11-6, 3-3 Big East) answered the call thereafter. Following back to back three pointers by Gerald Riley, Georgetown led 64-63, but seemed unprepared for the rest of the game. Pitt took advantage of defensive lapses to post many easy scores, including a layup in the final minute that sealed the deal.

The Panthers' secret weapon was from three. Shooting 33 percent for the season, the Panthers shot 10 for 23 from long range, 50 percent (4 for 8) in the second half. Georgetown's three point shooting (8 for 28) was haphazard at best.

The question entering the game was which Panther team would show up--the team that beat Seton Hall by 12, or the team that was routed by Notre Dame. Now we know, but the next question is which Georgetown team returns Thursday versus UNLV.

Some links to post-game media:

7. January 30, 1999: Villanova 93, Georgetown 90 (2OT)
A comeback that should have ranked among the finest in Georgetown basketball history is otherwise lost among the most disarming losses of the decade.

Missing its first 10 shots of the game and trailing 13-0 to start the game, the Hoyas look ill-prepared to match the Wildcats at the outset. A series of small runs narrowed the count to 39-30 at the half, but with 13:55 to play, the Hoyas were down 55-38. From then, the Hoyas engineered a remarkable 19-0 run to take the lead, led by 11 of Nat Burton's game-high 21 points. Eleven ties and 14 lead changes followed, even as the Hoyas lost three big men to foul trouble.By game's end, the tallest player on the court was 6-7 Rhese Gibson.

In the second OT, Georgetown leads 90-87 with 14 seconds to play. Anthony Perry misses a free throw, and Villanova has one chance--a three pointer. To everyone's dismay, Nova's Howard Brown gets away from Rhese Gibson in the zone and hits a 22 footer with 2.6 seconds remaining. With Nat Burton calling a timeout (unseen by officials), Daymond Jackson lobs the ball in the direction of Anthony Perry, which is promptly stolen by Brooks Sales, flipped to Jermaine Medley, who launches a 28 footer at the buzzer.

6. February 28, 2004: Seton Hall 75, Georgetown 48
"I don't know what it is, but it's not there. We just don't have it."
-Gerald Riley in the Washington Times

"It was just another day at the office."
--Marcus Toney-El, in the Newark Star Ledger

With a run of first half offensive futility unmatched in the Big East era, and a second half of defense little better, Georgetown dropped its sixth straight game Saturday with little resistance, 75-48. A starting five which has increasingly been knocked to the floor late in close games was down for the count early and never got up.

Neither team scored for the first 2:51 of the game, but that was as close as the Hoyas would be all evening. The Pirates held the Hoyas scoreless for over 12 minutes in the half, as the Pirates took an 18-5 lead and added 11 of the next 15, 29-9. Georgetown missed 17 of its first 18 shots.

At halftime, Georgetown posted its lowest halftime score, 30-14, in the Big East era, only three points removed from the all-time conference record of 11. It was the fewest points scored in a first half since a 37-36 loss to St. Joseph's in 1979 in the pre-shot clock era. Georgetown's 3 for 22 shooting defies description--Brandon Bowman accounted for 3 for 8 shooting, the rest of the team was 0 for 14.

The Hoyas shot better in the second, but by this time their defense had left them slow-footed and ripe for the picking, Seton Hall Andre Barrett was the fourth guard in as many games to torch Ashanti Cook and the Georgetown guard defenses, hitting eight straight shots en route to a 25 point game for the senior. Georgetown never closed within 12 and was simply not a factor.

Brandon Bowman led the team with 20 points, including six of the team's combined 10 two point field goals. Gerald Riley will get his share of catcalls for turning in a statistic without peer in Georgetown shooting annals: 0 for 11 from the field. But bear this in mind--if Riley had shot 11-11, the Hoyas would still have been five points short, thanks to a defense allowed Seton Hall 18 points off turnovers and 63% shooting in the second half. Outside of Bowman's 20, no other Georgetown player had more than two field goals. Center Courtland Freeman had as many turnovers as rebounds (three), while Darrel Owens turned in only five points. Owens scored in double figures in nine of his first 11 games; in his last eight, he is averaging less than two field goals a game.

Bench scoring was, again, negligible: six points.

It was the fifth consecutive game Georgetown has scored 60 or fewer points, and its lowest score against a Big East opponent since a 40 point effort against the Hall in the 2001 conference tournament.

Coaches can exhort, fans can cheer them on, but in the end, the players have to produce. Whatever strength and pride the 2003-04 Hoyas have left in them must be expended this week, or the season ends with it.

The Georgetown half of the full box score follows below.

          MIN   2FG  3FG   FT  REB  A   PF  PTS
Starters:
Cook       29   1-3   0-1  2-2   3   1   5    4
Riley      37   0-7   0-4  8-9   2   1   2    8
Owens      25   1-2   1-4  0-0   4   0   2    5
Bowman     39  6-14   1-3  5-7  11   0   4   20
Freeman    26   1-4   0-0  3-4   3   1   3    5
Reserves:
Faulkner    1   0-0   0-0  0-0   0   0   0    0
Reed       15   0-3   0-0  1-2   1   0   1    1
Causey     17   0-1   1-2  0-0   2   3   3    3
Beal        1   0-0   0-0  0-0   0   0   0    0
Kilk.-Diaw 10   1-1   0-0  0-0   1   0   1    2
DNP: Izzo, Dizdarevic
TOTALS   200  10-35  3-14 19-24 27   6  21   48

Post-game links follow below.

5. Feb. 9, 2002: Notre Dame 116, Georgetown 111 (4 OT)
In a game that featured 190 shots, 108 rebounds and 72 free throw shots over four overtimes, Georgetown fell to Notre Dame 116-111 at MCI Center. Each team played inspired basketball and each had more than its share of opportunities to win. In the end, Notre Dame was able to maintain its key players on the floor while Georgetown fouled out four of its starting five. Notre Dame took control in the final minute, but for 59 of those 60 minutes, it was a game with more tosses and turns than anyone could have expected.

Both teams started out crisp in the first half. Georgetown's offensive plan was to punch the ball inside to Mike Sweetney (18 first half points) and Wesley Wilson (10 first half points), both of which were huge. Notre Dame's plan was to shoot well and hit the boards, and they did that as well: at nearly a 60% shooting mark for much of the first half, the Irish led by as many as 12 in the first half, yet the Hoyas parlayed a 7-0 run into intermission to trail 48-43. Of GU's 43 points, 35 came inside the paint.

The game tightened in the second half, and Georgetown tied the score at 61-all with 13:24 to play. A 7-0 ND run extended the lead to seven, 68-61, but the Hoyas fought back to four with 8:00 to play and tied the game on a three pointer by Drew Hall (3-3 from three) and a foul shot with 7:29 to play. From there defense kicked in on both teams, as both teams combined for 3-20 (15% shooting) the rest of regulation, much of them the result of fierce defense on both sides of the ball. GU led late 84-82 when Matt Carroll tied the score late and the Hoyas held off a late rally to force the game into overtime...the first overtime, that is.

The first three overtimes were strikingly similar. ND built an early lead, withstood a GU drive, than forged ahead in the last two minutes, only to see the resilient Hoyas bounce back and tie the score. Then, following a defensive stand, Georgetown held the ball for a final shot. Three times the Hoyas could have closed the door, three times they failed.

In the first OT, Georgetown had the ball with 17 seconds left. Kevin Braswell brought the ball up the court but did not pass the ball, settling for a long shot that rimmed away. In the second, Braswell fared even more poorly, ignoring options in Mike Sweetney and Tony Bethel and launching up a 30 footer that had little chance. In the third OT, Gerald Riley had the ball and a chance to win, but his shot was blocked by Ryan Humphrey and deflected to Kevin Braswell, who sank a 20 footer at the buzzer, only to be waived off for a shot clock violation (the shot clock expired at 0.7 seconds to play).

The Hoyas were beginning to deplete its resources by the 4th OT. Wesley Wilson had fouled out, Courtland Freeman had been injured, and before too long, Gerald Riley and Kevin Braswell followed. Yet the Hoyas led in the fourth OT when the amazing Mike Sweetney fouled out and with it, Notre Dame took the momentum and built its lead for good. By game's end, the rotation of Hall, Bethel, Freeman, Thomas, and Hillier were no match for the Irish, who ascended into a tie for second in the division and won their fifth straight game since falling to Georgetown on Jan. 21.

The loss could not have come at a worse time for the Hoyas, now tied with Rutgers at a distant fourth in the division and with four of its next five on the road. The players gave all that they had, and with it, the loss cannot diminish the efforts of some great individual and team performances.

Chief among those accomplishments was Mike Sweetney, achieving the first "30/20" in GU and Big East history with 35 points, 20 rebounds, six blocks, and six assists. Wesley Wilson turned in a career high 26 points, seven rebounds, and five blocks. Freshman Drew Hall played 46 minutes and collected ten points on 3-3 three point shooting, without a single turnover.

On the other side of the ledger, Kevin Braswell will get much of the blame for the loss. Despite contributing 10 assists and committing no turnovers, his 5 for 19 shooting (including 0-4 from three) were crucial missteps. In Georgetown's last four games, Braswell's scoring has suffered:


                        FG    3FG     
Jan. 26 vs. Pitt        3-14  1-8     
Jan. 28 vs. Syracuse    6-12  1-3  
Feb. 2  vs. W.Virginia  1-5   0-2
Feb. 9  vs. Notre Dame  5-19  0-4
Totals                 15-50  2-17
                       30.0%  11.7%

Gerald Riley (2-9) and Tony Bethel (1-6) also struggled mightily, but it was Braswell who stood in the spotlight and put up two foolish shots when the Hoyas' inside game had no peer on the MCI court. The starting five missed 10 of 11 three point shots, any one of which would have been part of a historic win. Instead, it is soon forgotten.

For the Irish, freshman Chris Thomas was superb: he played all 60 minutes, scored 22 points, 12 assists, and even a blocked shot. Matt Carroll, with five three pointers and 28 points in 54 minutes, was the game's MVP for the Irish.

Perhaps the most disturbing stat can be seen on the boards, where the smaller Irish lineup had their way inside, including 19 offensive rebounds. In the first game between the two teams, GU held a 51-35 advantage; Saturday, ND led 64-54, a Big East record.

But no matter the score, the fans who watched the game saw a true classic. In a game where the two teams were shooting well, rebounding well, and gave up only 13 turnovers each, it was a game that would turn on a dime. Losing Sweetney put the Hoyas in a hole, and when the G-men had their chances earlier, it slipped through their hands.

Whether the Hoyas' NCAA hopes have slipped away as well will be seen in the weeks to come.

Here are the records set or broken in Saturday's game:

Georgetown Records:

Big East Records:

The game was the longest game in the NCAA since a seven overtime game between Cincinnati and Bradley in 1981. It was the first four overtime game in Notre Dame history but not for Georgetown, where the Hoyas defeated Spring Hill (AL) 82-75 in January, 1955.

Game recaps follow below.

4. February 8, 2003: UCLA 71, Georgetown 70
This weekend's readings at Mass opened with words from the book of Job. Georgetown fans can relate.

For the third time in five games, Georgetown was on the wrong end of a one point loss, a 71-70 decision to UCLA that sank the Hoyas' losing streak to five straight heading into another week on the road. The streak includes two overtime losses and two one point losses.

While broadcast on national TV, the two teams did not look the part. Georgetown started off slow, hampered by two quick fouls on Mike Sweetney, who finished with 10 points in only 21 minutes of play, his lowest output of the year since a game with Towson on November 30. Without Sweetney, the Hoyas made do with a patchwork lineup, still lacking a healthy point guard or a capable center. At point guard, Tony Bethel turned in a poor first half, shooting 1 for 8. The center tandem of seniors Victor Samnick and Courtland Freeman were, at best, inconsistent low against the UCLA offense, and the Bruins took a 36-32 lead into halftime.

Georgetown's defense was improved in the second half, with Gerald Riley keeping UCLA's Jason Kapono to just four field goals during the game. UCLA picked up valuable points, however, from center Ryan Hollins. Hollins, averaging 2.5 points a game, collected a season high 14 points and nine rebounds on the Samnick-Freeman duo, as UCLA was able to get a number of easy second chances on Georgetown's weak interior defense.

Georgetown's second half run erased a nine point Bruin lead and built a 61-56 Hoya lead with 5:40 to play. UCLA answered with six straight points, while Georgetown contributed an air ball, a missed shot, and a turnover. The final four minutes were back and forth, with Gerald Riley's game high 20 points keeping the Hoyas in contention and a three pointer by Drew Hall in the final minute that gave Georgetown a one point lead in the final 30 seconds.

Holding for the last shot, guard Cedric Bozeman drove the lane but was stopped by Brandon Bowman, whereupon Tony Bethel was called for a reach-in foul with 4.9 seconds to play. Bozeman, a poor free throw shooter averaging 49 percent, would be hard pressed to sink two shots on the road, but because this is a game at Georgetown, anything is possible. Bozeman sank both free throws for the lead.

On Georgetown's final possession, UCLA collapsed on Sweetney and Bozeman swarmed over Hall as he was racing up the sideline. Much as he did against Notre Dame after a late foul, Hall's long three pointer sailed wide and with it, UCLA ended a nine game losing streak and Georgetown dropped another bewildering home loss.

Georgetown's early shooting woes continue to make the team and its staff look bad at game's end. Tony Bethel and Brandon Bowman continued a month long shooting odyssey which has hurt the Hoyas more than writers and fans care to notice. Bethel missed 10 of 12 shots in the game, and his three point shooting has dipped to 31 percent in the last nine games. Bowman's shooting average has dipped to 37 percent in the last nine games, and only 6-9 Courtland Freeman (6 for 24, 25 percent) has less to show for the last nine games. And while Gerald Riley continues to play hard on both sides of the offense, he has now fouled out in eight of his last nine games, fouling out one series before Cedric Bozeman's final run at the basket.

Georgetown ends its non-conference record at 8-3; however, to many fans, the real non-conference record was 1-3 against South Carolina, Virginia, Duke, and UCLA. Of these four teams, only Duke returns for the 2003-04 slate. Ironically, UCLA will go down as the Hoyas worst RPI loss of the season, as the Bruins had slid to 204th before Saturday's game, and bounced to 186 as of Sunday morning. The Hoyas' win against South Carolina holds no weight for the Hoyas, since the Gamecocks have slumped to an 8-11 mark.

As Job had his share of trouble, so do the Hoyas. Job endured and prevailed, and that's what the Hoyas must do.

Georgetown's half of the box score:


          MIN  2FG  3FG    FT  REB  A  PF  PTS
Starters:
Bethel     32  2-12  1-6  4-4   4   4   3    9
Riley      32  6-15  4-6  4-4   1   1   5   20
Bowman     32  4-10  1-2  4-4   6   2   3   13
Samnick    23   1-5  0-0  0-0   5   0   4    2
Sweetney   21   4-8  0-0  2-3   9   2   4   10
Reserves:
Freeman    19   2-5  0-0  0-1   7   0   3    4
Hall       22   3-5  2-4  2-2   1   4   2   10
Owens      14   0-1  0-0  0-0   2   1   0    0
Cook        5   1-1  0-0  0-0   0   0   0    2
DNP: Faulkner, Ross, Hillier, Beal
Totals    200 23-62 8-18 16-18 35  14  24   70

Post-game reports:

3. February 19, 2002: Connecticut 75, Georgetown 74
Twenty years ago this Wednesday, February 20, 1982, marks a turning point for Georgetown Basketball. Before a raucous 4,620 at 4,200 seat McDonough Gymnasium and a national TV audience, Georgetown set its course for the Final Four with a dominant 63-52 win over #4-ranked Missouri, the first win in a streak that would take the Hoyas to New Orleans and to national respect.

Twenty years later, February 19, 2002, the Georgetown Hoyas took a decided stumble in a season of lost opportunities, with a baffling last minute play that cost the Hoyas a 75-74 loss to Connecticut. The ending not only cost the Hoyas whatever intangible NCAA hopes it enjoyed, but cut the heart out of many fans who have seen just too much this season.

The game followed an eerie pattern of Georgetown's previous losses--a good early start, foul trouble inside, a first half lead shaved at intermission, a good second half lead heading into the final minutes, and a wild scramble at the end. But there were some differences, chief among them a career-low 3 for 13 shooting from forward Mike Sweetney, still looking as if the four-OT game with ND robbed him of his strength. Sweetney managed one field goal in a first half that saw the Hoyas lead by as many as seven, until the winds turned north and UConn, held without a field goal for 5:30 in the half, managed to cut the lead to two at half, 40-38.

The second half saw the Hoyas lead by as many as seven early before the game tightened to a four to six point range. Mike Sweetney picked up his third foul with 17:18 to play but struggled throughout the game, while Wesley Wilson picked up his fourth at 9:54 and his close-in shooting (5-14) was off all night. While the shooting was an unsteady 33% from the field, the ever-steady Georgetown free throw effort faltered throughout the game, missing 12 of 36 attempts. Still, the Hoyas were tied 72-all with under two minutes when things started to unravel. Again.

Leading 71-70 with 1:57 left, Georgetown picked up a foul that allowed UConn to take the lead. Sweetney was fouled on his next possession but made only one of two shots, tying the score.With 1:37 left, UConn went for a game leading field goal that was off and georgetown rebounded the lead. Sending the ball into Sweetney, UConn's Caron Butler forced Sweetney into a bad shot and a huge lost possession. Butler later told the Hartford Courant that "[Sweetney] called for the ball like I was a chump. We played together all summer. He knows I'm not a chump."

On the ensuing possession, Georgetown's guards missed an assignment and let freshman Ben Gordon more than alone, whereupon Gordon hits a three pointer to lead 75-72. The Hoyas closed to one on a pair of Kevin Braswell free throws, and UConn regains possession with 39.7 seconds to play, up one.

Then, in a decision already receiving snickers around the league, Esherick opts not to foul the Huskies and defend for a last possession. The Huskies dutifully oblige, and the Hoyas actually get what they want--a UConn miss and the ball...only that there were now less than four seconds to play. Kevin Braswell races down the floor, not calling timeout, and has one furtive look at the basket, only to pass to Gerald Riley whose shot is well after the buzzer.

The decision gave the Hoyas insufficient time to put together a shot, and given the Hoyas' penchant for ragged last second shots--where it has lost many more than it won this season--it seemed a unlikely way to win the game. At 15-10 (14-10 for RPI purposes, thanks to scheduling Marymount), the Hoyas will be playing for seeding in the conference tournament for the next ten days. In the end, the most important 39 seconds of the game were essentially wagered for a defensive stand and a miracle shot.

That's a gamble, plain and simple. And it came up snake eyes.

In five Big East games this season, Georgetown had a lead or the ball heading into the final play, and has lost them all: Rutgers in OT, Pitt by one, Notre Dame in four OT's, Villanova in one OT, Connecticut, by one. How much different would life be like if the Hoyas were now 17-8, 19-6, or 20-5?

Instead, it's 15-10 with lots of unanswered questions.

Here are post-game articles:

Hartford Courant (2)

2. January 18, 2003: St. John's 77, Georgetown 72
"You could see they were scared."-- St. John's guard Willie Shaw

One would be hard pressed to remember a more disheartening finish in the modern history of Georgetown basketball.

Trailing by 17 points in the final 7:23 of play, the St. John's Redmen (nee Red Storm) turned to senior Marcus Hatten, who scored 19 of his game-high 34 points down the stretch in a 77-72 win at MCI Center. The lack of composure by Georgetown's play left its coaches stunned and solicited audible booing from some in the MCI crowd at the conclusion of the game. Were it not for a wild Tony Bethel shot at the end of the West Virginia game, the Hoyas would be staring at 0-3 in Big East play.

The two teams battled to a 35-all tie in the first half, with Mike Sweetney leading the Hoyas and Hatten held in check by the defensive prowess of Gerald Riley. Georgetown built its lead with a halftime correction by the coaching staff that held the Redmen to seven points in the first nine minutes of the half and a 53-42 advantage. A pair of free throws than built the lead to 69-52 when St. John's made their move. The Redmen closed to eleven but GU built the lead back to 14, and when Gerald Riley fouled out with under five minutes to go, Hatten had no equal on the Hoya defense, and was glad to oblige as the Hoyas self-destructed.

The win marked St. John's fifth straight victory over Georgetown dating back to 1997. The MCI Center court continues to be every opponent's best friend--since 1998, Georgetown is 22-22 (.500) on its own "home" court, and since the 2000-01 season has done about as well on the road (10-7) as at home (10-8).

The problem is that you can't count on the road to advance in the standings. Following Monday's game with Rutgers, five of the Hoyas' next seven are on the road, with one conference home game between Jan. 20 and Feb. 15.

No, this sign wasn't on the MCI sideline, but the finish to Saturday's game could have used the warning, because the players on the court were much like a deer crossing the road--the headlights of the oncoming Redmen simply blinded the Hoyas. For no apparent reason, and oblivious to its bench imploring them to respond to the pressure defense, the Hoyas not only allowed St. John's back in the game, but committed five fouls and seven turnovers in the final 4:22.

Hatten led a comeback that erased nine points off the lead in two minutes. With 2:04 left, here is the game sequence:

GU Possession	SJU Possession	Score
		G, 67-58
	Ingram 3 pointer	G, 67-61
Turnover (Hall)		G, 67-61
	Hatten jumper	G, 67-63
Sweetney jumper		G, 69-63
	Hatten 3 pointer	G, 69-66
Offensive foul (Bowman)		G, 69-66
	Hatten 3 pointer	Tie,69-69
Samnick FT, turnover (Sweetney)		G, 70-69
	Hatten layup	SJ, 71-70
Turnover (Samnick)		SJ, 71-70
	Hatten layup	SJ 73-70
Hall free throws		SJ 73-72
	Hatten free throws	SJ 75-72
Turnover (Hall)		SJ 75-72
	Ingram free throw	SJ,76-72
Offensive foul (Bowman)		SJ 76-72
	St. John free throw	SJ 77-72
Missed shot (Bowman)		Final

Game stats are below. But here are three stats the team and staff would do well to ponder:

1. In three conference games, the Hoyas have given up 65 turnovers, an abysmal assist to turnover ratio of 0.44. Put another way, that's a turnover every 110 seconds of action.
2. In three games, the Hoyas are 7 of 42 from three point range (16 percent), the Hoyas' lowest statistic in conference play since the three point shot went into effect.
3. In three games the GU bench has contributed an average of only 14 points a game, and has not topped 10 points in the last two. Saturday, the bench contributed two field goals and seven of the Hoyas season-high 24 turnovers.

A full review of stats at the halftime point of the season follows Thursday.


           MIN  2FG  3FG  FT  REB  A  PF   PTS
Starters:
Bowman       34 4-7  0-2  4-7   8   3  5    12
Bethel       37 3-11 2-5  2-2  10   3  5    10
Riley        29 2-7  1-4  5-5   2   0  5    10
Sweetney     29 5-8  0-0 11-13  7   0  3    21
Wilson       22 2-5  0-0  5-5   7   0  2     9
Reserves:
Freeman      10 0-5  0-1  0-0   3   0  1     0
Hall         19 2-3  0-0  5-6   3   1  0     9
Samnick      17 0-0  0-0  1-2   3   0  2     1
Owens         3 0-0  0-0  0-0   2   0  0     0
DNP: Cook (injured), Faulkner, Ross, Hillier
TOTALS        18-46 3-12 34-40  45  8  23   72

Post-game reports:

1. February 18, 2004: St. John's 65, Georegetown 58
"Still undermanned, St. John's beat a woeful Georgetown team, 65-58, last night at Madison Square Garden, proving that for at least one night, there was a basketball team worse than St. John's."--New York Times

"Before the game, Courtland [Freeman] said 'Don't underestimate anybody because anybody can win.' And I think a lot of people came out lackadaisical."--Darrel Owens, in The HOYA

"We'd sure hate to be in Georgetown's shoes today."--Duke Basketball Report

Displaying the worst elements of an unprepared, unmotivated, and increasingly unresponsive team, the Georgetown Hoyas turned in its worst on-court performance in three decades in a humbling 65-58 loss. The Big East setback came against a winless St. John's team with only four scholarship players, a team which lost its last three games by an average margin of twenty points.

And this was no buzzer beater, either. Georgetown last held a lead with 15 minutes to play in the first half, despite picking off lazy St. John's passes and owning an edge on at least three player to player matchups. St. John's two best players, guards Darryl Hill and Andre Stanley, had little opposition in shooting 13 for 26 (50%) and combining for 35 of St. John's 65 points. Georgetown's starting tandem of Ashanti Cook and Gerald Riley combined to shoot 5 for 20 (25%), with 11 turnovers between them.

Still, this was a team effort.

Georgetown opened the game with an effort and attitude more akin to a game with Grambling State, replete with poor shots, out of position passing, and numerous mistakes unfit for a Big East conference game. At one point, the Hoyas were outrebounded 10-2 on the offensive boards, and finished with six baskets in the last 16 minutes of the half. Its 11 turnovers allowed the Redmen a 28-24 lead and an dangerous intangible for a winless team--confidence.

The Hoyas tied the score at 30-all but continued a pattern of errors and bad judgment which only bolstered the St. John's cause. Once known as the best shooting team he had seen at Georgetown, Craig Esherick saw his starter-heavy roster whiff on its first 10 three point attempts, while Gerald Riley turned in the poorest performance of his college career, failing to collect a single field goal until 3:29 to play.

And amazingly, the Hoyas were still down only five with 3:29 to play, but a Darryl Hill three pointer at the shot clock buzzer put away the game with 1:45 to play. Georgetown's 11 first half turnovers had by then doubled to 22, allowing the Redmen more than enough opportunities to build its lead. A brief run of garbage-time threes narrowed the gap but never threatened it, and frequent fouling help St. John's pad the final score.

No coach or player escapes scrutiny for a wholly embarrassing effort. The repercussions from such a poor showing will not be soon forgotten, but this is not the end of the road. Syracuse University (and five or six thousand of its own paying customers) arrive at "The Friendliest Road Arena In The Big East" on Saturday.

And this modest proposal to the coaching staff: Spare us from the "we just didn't do well, but we'll try harder next time" stories. Send a message to a starting five that has grown soft, complacent and increasingly non-responsive in game situations: sit the starters for the first five minutes against Syracuse. Every single one of them.

Let's see what Ray Reed, Matt Causey, Ken Izzo, Sead Dizdarevic, and Amadou Kilkenny-Diaw can do. (Can they do any worse than seeing Riley, Bowman, Cook, Owens and Freeman open the game 2 for 13 against St. John's?) So even if the Hoyas trailed by 10 or 15 at the first time out, let them do so with some enthusiasm, with some drive, and with some heart...all of which was in short supply Wednesday at the Garden.

If you do your best, there is no dishonor in losing. Make no mistake: this was a dishonorable game in every sense of the word.

The Georgetown half of the box score follows below.

           MIN   2FG  3FG   FT  REB  A   PF  PTS
Starters:
Cook       37   3-8   1-3  0-0   4   2   4    9
Riley      32   0-3   1-6  3-6   3   1   5    6
Bowman     38  7-13   1-4  3-5   9   3   0   20
Owens      31   2-3   0-4  1-1   2   4   4    5
Freeman    25   3-7   0-0  4-4   4   0   4   10
Reserves:
Faulkner    3   0-0   0-0  0-0   0   0   0    0
Reed       14   0-1   2-4  0-1   3   1   3    6
Causey      5   0-0   0-0  0-0   1   1   2    0
Kilk.-Diaw 14   1-3   0-0  0-0   6   0   3    2
Dizdarevic  1   0-0   0-0  0-0   0   0   0    0
DNP: Izzo, Beal
TOTALS    200 16-48  5-21 11-17 32  12  25   58

Extensive post-game coverage follows in the links below.