The Georgetown Hoyas are scheduled to play Ohio tomorrow night at 7:25 sharp for their inaugural NCAA Tournament game. They’re ready to go. The Bobcats are going down. What’s left for you to do, besides order more Wingo’s than you can possibly fit in your stomach and hunker down in front of a television?

Rinse out your shot glasses. Because the Voice staff has thought up a Hoya-centric drinking game for this year’s March Madness tournament. Here are the rules:

Take a drink …

• Whenever an announcer mentions Jason Clark’s phenomenal wingspan or preternatural jumping ability
• When a Georgetown play earns a slow-mo replay—twice if one of Monroe’s does
• Every time Greg Monroe pops his mouthguard in and out of his mouth
• Anytime an announcer references the correlation between the team’s success and Chris Wright scoring in double digits
• If an announcer complains about what a shitty job the committee did seeding the tournament.
• Whenever JTIII makes this face

And drink for the duration of time it takes for them to replace a loose contact lens.

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After news broke last night that Austin Freeman had been diagnosed with diabetes, the Hoyas’ leading scorer spoke with the media this afternoon to address his health and its impact on his basketball career.

The junior guard, sitting alongside head coach John Thompson III, professed he was feeling fine after spending the early part of the week in the hospital. While both player and coach acknowledged that there was still a lot to learn about the situation, it sounded like the return to normalcy had already begun.

“When I first found out I was just like, ‘I’m going to have to deal with it,’” Freeman said. “But it’s just going to be a few adjustments I’m going to have to do in my life now. To hear that, it was tough at first, but I know that with me, I can deal with something like this.”

Freeman first showed signs of the disease last Saturday before an afternoon game against Notre Dame, symptoms that at that time were attributed to a stomach virus. He traveled with the team to West Virginia for a Monday night game, but took a turn for the worse Saturday night and was sent back to campus and Georgetown University Hospital.

On Monday, Freeman was diagnosed with diabetes, a disease he said he shares with his paternal grandmother. It is not yet known whether Freeman has the Type I or the less serious Type II form of the disease.

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The two million dollar man

How much does a Final Four basketball coach cost? About $2 million, if the coach is John Thompson III.

In the 2007-2008 school year, Thompson made $2,007,508, plus more than $1 million in deferred compensation and benefits, according to university tax documents obtained by Vox.  Thompson’s salary rose by more than $1.3 million from the previous year, making him the highest paid Georgetown employee.

During the 2007-08 year, we also paid $3,074,487 to Payette Associates Inc., a firm whose website says they have been working on the “Science Facilities Master Plan and new Science Center” and $489,234 to Goody Clancy and Associates, the firm that worked on the new MSB building.  Overall, Georgetown’s net assets decreased by $55,772,042.

Who else besides JT III is making bank at Georgetown? Check out the top earners and the full tax document after the jump!

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Want a shot at your own 15 seconds of internet micro-micro-fame? Start following us on Twitter (GtownVoxPop) and, if you’re connected to Georgetown, we’ll return the favor and you’ll automatically be in the running!

Kristin Janiszewski had a strange encounter while working at Vittles.

Did Fitz Lufkin notice odd behavior from the cleaning staff, or just a little overzealousness?

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Say it ain’t so!

Though he declared his intentions to stay at Georgetown just over a month ago, DaJuan Summers seems to have changed his mind. John Thompson III announced today that the junior forward will be leaving Georgetown before his senior year to enter the NBA draft, saying:

“We wish DaJuan all the best in his future endeavors, wherever they may take him”, said Coach Thompson. “He informed me that he is closing the book on his college career and focusing fully on the opportunity to play professionally. He is in the process of choosing an agent.”

Once Summers hires an agent he will not be allowed to remove his name from the draft and return to play NCAA basketball.

Summers came to Georgetown as a highly-touted recruit out of Baltimore and was an immediate contributor on the 2007 Final Four team. He developed into one of the Hoyas’ top offensive weapons, leading the team in scoring this season with 13.6 points per game.

Overall, this season may have been as disappointing for Summers as it was for the Hoyas. After being placed on the preseason watch list for the Wooden Player of the Year Award, he saw his production taper off during the Hoyas’ slide. Once considered a potential lottery pick, ESPN’s Chad Ford is now predicting that Summers will be “squarely on the first round bubble” of the draft.

Not too cool for school yet

In the Friday press conference that preceded the Hoya’s Saturday victory over Villanova, junior DaJuan Summers told reporters, “I’ll be here next year,” when asked about his plans for the future.

That’s big news, considering the chatter that has surrounded his potential as a high first round draft pick, and that he would be next year’s only senior player if he stays on.

Coach John Thompson III kept more or less mum on the subject at the press conference and said that he and his players will make decisions at the season’s conclusion.

Reporting by Voice Sports’s Tim Shine.

Freshman Greg Monroe in the Kenner Summer League

Georgetown held its annual basketball Media Day on yesterday afternoon. Coach John Thompson III, as well as senior guard Jessie Sapp, junior forward DaJuan Summers, and sophomore guards Austin Freeman and Chris Wright talked about the freshmen, last year’s seniors, this season’s schedule, fitness, goals, Jon Wallace’s facial expressions, and  more. Below are some highlights:

John Thompson III—

On last year’s seniors (Hibbert, Wallace, Ewing, Crawford):

Everyone who has followed us and been around knows how special that group is to me. But they are gone. So, love them, and I think they love me, but they are gone. We’re not going to dwell on who’s not here, we are going to dwell on the guys who are here. The way this group is going to have success is probably going to be a little different than the way that group had success.

What we’re not going to do, I think what the fans and maybe [the media] tend to do, is say ‘okay, we’re going to take Greg Monroe, Henry Simms, Julian Vaughn, and we are going to put them into Roy’s hole’. I have never done that, the year starts and you start over and those guys make their own holes.

After the jump, just what kind of facial expressions does Jonathan Wallace have?

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JT III and a few of his players talked to the media this afternoon about their game tomorrow against Seton Hall, West Virginia cheers and Bryon Jansen’s three pointer at the end of the St. John’s game.

Roy Hibbert:

On the maturation of Vernon Macklin: He’s been working really hard in practice—getting his moves down pat. We do a lot of moves together before and after practice, and it is really beginning to show. The sky-hook and the two-foot hook are his main moves, and whenever he gets in the open court he does his job. I’m trying to get like him in the open court.

On defending Macklin’s hook shot: I’ve blocked it a couple times. Obviously I see it so many times and we learn different techniques [to defend it], but I’m not going to give it away. But there is a way to block it.

On difference between Roy and Vernon: He’s a different player. He’s a lot leaner and quicker, so he makes quicker moves. I’m usually banging against two or three other people, but he’s learning that too.

On Bryon Jansen’s three: I was happy. He works hard so it was great to see that at the end of the game.

Jessie Sapp:

On returning home to New York: It was fun. To be in New York and play that kind of game, where we dominate the whole way—it was fun. Having my family there, and my friends and fans enjoyed it, it was a fun atmosphere. My family had tickets, and then other people were buying tickets leading up to the game so there were maybe 60 or 70 [friends and family].

On his recent outside shooting streak: I just take what’s there. I want to show people that I can do that along with being a leader on this team.

On Bryon Jansen: It meant a lot. That guy works hard, he’s one of the hardest working players I’ve ever seen. For him to make that shot meant a lot and I was proud of him.

On Patrick Ewing Jr: He’s a passionate player. He loves the game and he brings that to the table each and every game. People might mistake that for attitude, but it’s a positive vibe and when he’s energetic and I’m energetic, we all get energetic.

On WVU fans’ insults: I watched the game the day after and I heard it on the tape. I guess it was ‘Sapp is crap.’ I mean, that wasn’t very creative but they tried. I can’t even say what they said to Pat.

Jon Wallace:

On rebounding: We all need to make a conscious effort of pursuing the ball—long rebounds and rebounds around the rim.

On facing Seton Hall: We are going to have to get back quick in transition and identify the ball early on. They get a lot of penetration and kickouts for open shots so we need to shut down that aspect of their game. Top to bottom they may have one of the quickest lineups in the conference. We have the size so we need to close down the lane and cut off the drives to be successful.

On Bryon Jansen: Bryon is one of those guys that comes in every day to practice. He’s not necessarily worried about the minutes he’s going to get to play. He just wants to help us out in any way. He was very excited, I’m pretty sure you could tell from the emotion he showed that it was a pretty big moment for him.

Ewing Jr:

On opposing fans: I hear it. You can’t block out the huge signs or all the expletives they throw out at me during the game, but it’s something that I’ve been dealing with my whole life and I accept that it’s going to happen. I have no problems with it. In the games where the crowd has tried to kill me I’ve definitely had good games. It’s also an asset because it takes pressure off of Roy, DaJuan, Austin, Jessie or any of the other players. Taking the pressure off of them helps them play better also.

On playing at Madison Square Garden: I love to go to the Garden, it’s my favorite place to play. Any basketball player loves the Garden, it’s the basketball Mecca of the world. When I’m out there I’m having fun just like any other game, but it’s always special to play there. I wouldn’t say I was more comfortable there—I’m comfortable in every game, but it’s nice to go there and play and see my dad’s jersey up in the rafters.

On Bryon Jansen: It’s good to see the people who don’t get a lot of recognition for what they do go out there and show what they can do. Bryon works hard every day in practice. Half the time people get mad at him because he is being real physical and they don’t like it, but he works just as hard or harder than everyone else. He’s always in there after practice getting up shots. We will go on away trips and he’s always the guy who says, ‘Yo guys, let’s go to the weight room and lift some weights or something like that’ and we are all like, ‘Bryon, are you serious? We’ve got a game tomorrow, what are you talking about?’ But his work ethic—for him to score those points, especially in the Garden where everyone wants to show what they can do, it’s great. Everyone was proud. I was telling Coach, ‘Let’s run an iso[lation] for Bryon, he needs to get a shot, he needs to get some points on the board.’

On Jansen’s bank shot: I just asked him if he called it. He said he called it—I didn’t hear him though. But in a game a basket’s a basket.

JT III:

On Seton Hall: They are a very good offensive team. They lead our league in scoring and their perimeter people not only make shots, but they can get to the basket and get to the foul line. They put pressure on the defense and no one has found a way to slow them down yet. We just hope they have a bad day.

On the post play:  It’s improving. And I’m happy in that sense, but we have to keep going in the right direction. We have to continue to throw it down, and not just to Roy and Vernon, but to other people.

On Vernon Macklin:  He has developed, and he is still developing. Obviously playing behind Roy, he doesn’t get the opportunity to show his skills as often as he’d like. His options have been limited. But he has worked extremely hard and still has a long way to go, but I think he will get there. At this level there is that pressure, that dialogue and frustration as kids grow and improve. He’s a McDonald’s All-American and realizes he has to get better, but the same thing happened at Princeton with kids I recruited who didn’t have all those accolades. We have 13 guys who want to play, so that’s the balance.

On Bryon Jansen: You have to be happy for him. It’s Madison Square Garden and he hits a three-point shot. We each have our part to do, and the caring and the work that he brings to our team—it’s very similar to Tyler [Crawford], to tell you the truth. He had a big offensive rebound a couple possessions before that could have been a 1-and-1 or a shooting foul.

Vernon Macklin:

On learning from Roy:  I can take a lot of things from Roy. His smartness on the floor, his passes in the post—I can take a lot from his game.

On free throw shooting:  It really is all mental. I just think too much. I just don’t want to miss. I go up there thinking ‘I can’t miss this free throw,’ I just need to clear my mind and go up there and start making them.

On getting more playing time:  I’m still learning, I’m still watching Roy and Pat. I’m going to keep working hard until my time.

On what he can improve:  I need to get some rebounds. To stay out there longer I need to be able to rebound and defend, not just score.

On the team’s transition game:  In the Big East, every team you play knows everything about you, so you need to give them some different looks. It’s hard to run sometimes in the Big East. It’s very exciting to see what can happen this year and next year, but we are going to keep with the Princeton [offense] now.

On having to wait for his chance:  At first it was tough, but then you know playing behind Jeff [Green] and Roy—you learn a lot. At first I didn’t understand, but I’m getting more mature, I’ve learned.

On practice/the hook shot:  I work on the hook every day, left and right. We break up a lot into groups and work on moves. You don’t know what Roy is going to do when you guard him, either power or speed. So watching him and playing against him every day—when I get on the court and guard someone I just visualize Roy.

Senior guard Jonathan Wallace and coach John Thompson III spoke to the press this evening about their upcoming game against Notre Dame, the emergence of Vernon Macklin and how to get the team back on track. The game is slated to start at 1 pm tomorrow at the Verizon Center.

Jonathan Wallace:

On a perceived shooting slump in the last two games: I don’t really want to look at it as a slump. I mean, I’m getting good shots, they’re just not falling. I need to find different ways to be productive when I’m on the floor.

On what the team must do to improve perimeter shooting: We are doing our same drills and routines, as far as shooting goes. We were getting the shots we wanted—we were wide open, they just weren’t falling. I guess it just takes a little more concentration and a little more assertiveness. It is kind of unheard of, with the kind of shooters we have on this team. But that’s not going to happen every night, it’s not going to be the same situation.

On a captain-called team meeting following the Pitt loss: Guys were just getting refocused—getting back to square one and focusing on what we really need to do as a team to be good on the road. It’s just being closer as a team and focusing on what we have to do.

On the slow start against Pitt: Overall we didn’t set the tone early on as far as effort and intensity, and that kind of gave them a jump and let them know they have a chance to play with us. You can’t play around, especially with good teams like Pittsburgh, on the road.

On what the team could have done better offensively: We should’ve worked the ball around a little more and been more aggressive off the dribble to create openings for guys like Roy [Hibbert], Vernon [Macklin] and DaJuan [Summers].

On being the team to beat in conference play: Coach always says that when we play teams it is going to be like their Super Bowl, so to speak. They are going to bring their best effort, and we have to play above and beyond what we usually do to match that. From the start we have to be intense.

On Vernon Macklin’s play against Pitt: Vernon played very well. It was probably the only bright spot in that game, him finding his rhythm and being aggressive.

On Notre Dame’s offense: They are probably not the best, but one of the best shooting teams in the conference, and along with that we have to regroup from what we did against Pittsburgh and guard in transition. Notre Dame really gets out and pushes the ball with [Tory] Jackson and [Kyle] McAlarney, so we have to slow them down in transition and at the same time find shooters on the perimeter.

On Luke Harangody’s emergence as a Big East power: I didn’t expect him to be the leading scorer in the conference, with some many good guys in the conference. He is a good player, and he plays within his limitations. He is really physical and he works to get a lot of good angles and positioning down-low, and he can get up a lot of good shots. We have to be physical with him and make him try to score over Roy as much as possible.

JT III:

On moving forward after the Pitt loss: At this point, I guess at any point in the year, but particularly once you get into conference play you can’t dwell on your wins or your losses that much. You have to analyze and figure out what you can do differently and what you can do better, but this league is too tough—your next opponent will always be too daunting for you to be stuck in the past. You have to move forward.

On what the team can do to improve shooting: Our guys know we can make shots. We need to do a better job of defending shots, and not giving good shooters open shots, particularly going into this game when you face a team that can put five shooters on the floor at the same time.

On transition defense: That has been a point of emphasis. We have good shooters and we are getting open shots. We are not going to stop shooting, that’s part of what we do. We are going to keep taking shots, but we have to understand what that means. We need to be much better in transition defense, and not just stopping the initial surge, but on the second initial offense. We need to work on that. We are going to need to be better at that tomorrow, because [Notre Dame] get out and go and have shooters.

On whether or not the current slump will cause players to take bad shots: No. I think we have a group that is extremely confident in their shooting ability, and each guy knows the shots that they can make. Shooters shoot.

On whether or not the slump is just an anomaly: I hope so. If not, we will make adjustments and collectively figure it out.

On who he fears most of Tory Jackson, Kyle McAlarney, or Luke Harangody: My fear is spread equally. I think it has to be, just because their team is balanced and you can go into this game and say ‘we have to stop Harangody during this game,’ then all of the sudden the perimeter guys go off. You can go into this game and say ‘oh, we can’t let McAlarney get his shot, let’s focus on him’ then Harangody and all the other perimeter guys go off. And Jackson, no one’s been able to keep their body in front of him since our Big East [Tournament] last year. Regardless of who is guarding him, he gets to the rim whenever he wants to. So, that is a dilemma. That is one of their strengths, but I think what goes under the radar is their defense.

Basketball Head Coach John Thompson III and senior center Roy Hibbert stopped in the lobby of McDonough Gymnasium after practice today to answer a few questions about the team and the upcoming match-up with Jim Calhoun and the UConn Huskies. Tip-off is slated for 2 pm at the Verizon Center.

Roy talked about facing Hasheem Thabeet, what the team has been doing well and how he’s going to improve.

On facing the Big East rebounding leaders: “We’re just going to make sure we play very conscious of that, make sure we box out and rebound, Coach has been stressing that. We have to do our part to limit them to one shot and make sure we get the rebounds.”

On how the team has prepared in practice: “Attention to detail obviously, and also we’ve been doing a lot more drills in rebounding and Coach has been getting on us when we play live [scrimmage].”

On his play in the DePaul game: “I just wanted to be more aggressive from the start. I did my part and tried to make sure I got rebounds, and the rebounds led to more buckets for myself on the offensive end.”

On facing Hasheem Thabeet: “I’ve played against him before, I played against him in the summer, so it’s just going to be another game. He does a really good job blocking shots, and I think he’s gotten better offensively. He’s gotten a lot better this year so I’m just going to have to adjust.”

On Thabeet’s athleticism: “I’ve seen him do some dunks that I didn’t think he could do as a 7’3” – 7’4” guy, so he’s pretty good and I’m going to do my part to keep him off the boards and limit his points.”

On the team’s play against Rutgers: “We were focused, but we needed to focus on other things. Our defense played a good part—we started off the game 11-0, I think, in the first couple of minutes. I thought that it was very important to us in limiting them to one shot and just trying to be good defensively.”

On what he can do to improve: “I’m most likely the biggest guy out there, except for this coming game [with Thabeet]. I need to get more rebounds, that’s my department, I need to step up and get more.”

JT III talked about freshman Austin Freeman’s success, the challenges of the Big East and Hibbert’s draft pick.

On the team’s overall performance: “I’m fine with where we are right now. I’m comfortable with many different groups and many different combinations [of players]. That being said, we must continue to get better. We must continue to improve, we must still make progress as the year goes on.”

On the high profile opponents in the next two games (UConn and Pitt): “League play has started. So everyone we play is going to be really good, from now until the end of the year. I haven’t looked at the next couple games, to be quite honest, but I just know that we are in league play now. So now you start to figure out, sift through and sort out to see how you are and where you stand.”

On the importance of league play: “I think that that is what should be important to every team in every conference. It is what determines whether you get to the post-season or not.”

On whether or not Austin Freeman’s success is surprising: “No, not at all. I’m not surprised. The game comes very easily to him.”

On Hibbert’s play: “Obviously every move he makes, every game he plays and every time he touches the ball is going to be critiqued and analyzed—as it should—you know with his stature as one of the best players in the country. He has progressed, and much like our team, he has gotten better. Roy Hibbert is a basketball player who happened to be 7’2” and a center. He is involved at a high level in every aspect of the game. A lot of people just look at the stat sheet, but the nature of how we do things and the personnel we have on our team is that it is going to be spread out. He does a good job of knowing when it’s his turn and when to help his teammates.”

On the fall of Hibbert’s projected draft position:“I haven’t looked at that. We have at least 14 games left, and when the smoke clears at the end of the day we can pick our head up and see where we stand, and he can pick his head up and see where he stands—he’s going to be okay.”

On the team’s early Big East success: “Winning on the road is key for any team in any conference. Our league is so competitive and it is so difficult to win games at home or away, so the ability to go out and get two road wins to start league play is huge for us.”

Photo by Nicole Bush, Staff Photographer