It is difficult to beat a team three times in one season.  Georgetown found that out on Friday night.  The No. 5 Hoyas (25-6, 14-4 Big East) fell to the No. 19 Orange of Syracuse (26-8, 11-7 Big East) 58-55 in overtime of the Big East Tournament.  It was the third time Georgetown faced Syracuse this year, with the Hoyas winning the two other match-ups.

“Obviously we will learn from this experience,” junior guard Markel Starks said. “Obviously it hurts right now.  At the same time, we just didn’t execute when we really needed to.”

It was only right that the final game of one of the fiercest rivalries in college basketball had to go to an extra period.

“Yes, It’s fitting it went into overtime,” Georgetown Head Coach John Thompson III said. “It is a shame they are heading down to Tobacco Road for a few dollars more.  This is rivalry that has meant a lot to our program and their program.”

The Blue and Gray fought back from a 12-point deficit in the second half to tie the game with seven seconds remaining in regulation. Sophomore forward Otto Porter Jr. sent the contest to overtime with two clutch free throws that tied the game at 51-51.

In overtime, Brandon Triche’s lay-up on the first possession gave Syracuse a lead they wouldn’t relinquish.

A few plays later Starks fouled out.  Without him in the game, the Hoya offense stalled and mustered only one field goal in overtime.

Nonetheless, with the Orange up by 3, the Hoyas had a chance to tie the game twice with under a minute remaining.  First, Syracuse swarmed Porter Jr. outside the three-point line and forced him to make a bad pass and turn the ball over.

With 3 seconds remaining, Syracuse’s C.J. Fair missed two free throws giving the Hoyas one last chance to tie.  Sophomore guard Jabril Trawick heaved a shot from half-court at the buzzer but it banged off the backboard.

“I thought it was going in,” Thompson said.

“Definitely,” Porter agreed.

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On Monday night, one of the hottest teams in college basketball, no. 15 Georgetown (18-4, 8-3 Big East), grinded out a 63-55 win over no. 18 Marquette (17-6, 8-3 Big East).  The Hoyas have now won six straight games and eight of their last nine, putting them at second place in the Big East.

As has been the case during this streak, sophomore forward Otto Porter Jr. and junior guard Markel Starks led the way for Georgetown.  Porter Jr. finished with 21 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 assists.  It is the fifth time Porter Jr. has scored over 20 points this season.  Starks had 16 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists.

Junior forward Nate Lubick also reached double figures with 10 points and a team-high of four assists.  Lubick did most of his damage from the free throw line where he had eight free throws.  Sophomore Mikael Hopkins had a career-high and game-high of 9 rebounds and also added 6 points and 3 blocks.

“God bless him.  [Hopkins] has to do it again on Saturday,” Georgetown Head Coach John Thompson III said. “He did a good job in that regard, but he is supposed to do a good job in that regard.”

The Hoyas held Marquette’s leading scorer Vander Blue to just 7 points and powerful forward Davante Gardner to 2 points.  Georgetown also caused 19 Marquette turnovers including 11 in the first half.

“Mikael [Hopkins], Nate [Lubick], and Moses [Ayegba] did a good job of not letting their big men get the ball down low,” Thompson said.

Marquette grabbed an early 11-6 lead five minutes into the game.  The Golden Eagles scored easy baskets in the post including 6 points from center Chris Otule.  The Hoyas quickly responded, though, with 2 three pointers from Starks that started a 10-2 Georgetown run.  The Blue and Gray claimed a 14-11 advantage that they would not lose for the rest of the game.

“I think our big guys got in a rhythm of what they were trying to do,” Thompson said. “We didn’t necessarily make a tactical change.  Our big guys just did a better job of guarding [Otule].”

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In a game that ended just as we expected, the Georgetown Hoyas blew the NJIT Higlanders out of the Verizon Center 84-44. The Hoyas were paced early by a career-high six three pointers from junior Hollis Thompson, who finished with 20 points on the afternoon. All 12 players saw action on the day, including extended minutes for Tyler Adams and Mikael Hopkins. The two freshmen finishd with 8 and 12 points, respectively, while controlling the glass against a smaller NJIT team.

Big Tyler and Company

Thus far this season, John Thompson III has not utilized Tyler Adams or Mikael Hopkins very often. With just Henry Sims and Nate Lubick down low, however, it definitely falls on Thompson to get his two freshmen comfortable to provide the Hoyas with depth in the paint. The coach admitted as much after the game, appreciating the opportunity to give these players extra minutes and focusing in specifically on Adams’ play.

“Big Tyler.. Big Tyler showed just a little bit of flash”, the eighth-year coach said. “He’s still no 100 percent, but big fella showed us a little flash of what we’re going to see.”

Adams dominated the paint on the offensive and defensive end during his 11 minutes on the floor. The Highlanders may not have the equivalent of a Thomas Robinson or JaMychal Green, but they did have some height. His play, coupled with Hopkins’ presence in the paint, shut down any opportunities down low for NJIT. Both players also showed an array of strong offensive moves, in addition to some grit. Adams added six rebounds and three blocks, a very promising footnote for the Hoya season as he works to get back to full health.

No Letdown, No Dropoff

While no one at the Verizon Center expected a loss, one couldn’t necessarily expect the Hoyas to perform at full throttle the entire game. Despite a sparse crowd, including an entire half empty from the student section, the Hoyas did take it to the Highlanders from start to finish. Though they did experience a short lull during the middle of the first half, Georgetown came out after halftime firing on all cylinders to break the game open with a 16-0 run. Hollis Thompson continued his sweet shooting during the contest, with his coach adding a remark that six would not be Hollis’s career-high by the time he’s done as a Hoya. On the day, the Hoyas hit on 50 percent of their field goals and three-pointers, while holding the Higlanders to a mere 17.2 clip during the second half. The Hoyas suffocating interior defense really shone through, as they dominated in the paint with 47 rebounds and 13 blocks.

After the Hoyas guaranteed themselves the win, Thompson turned to his bench, as the last ten minutes of the game showcased the Hoyas’ depth. Thompson noted that there is very little dropoff for this group when they turn to their bench, a group that he’s been confident in since their summer trip to China. Jabril Trawick, Otto Porter, Adams, and Hopkins were all able to contribute seamlessly on both ends despite their relative inexperience. Read the rest of this entry »