Georgetown Hoyas
Big East Conference (23-8, 12-6)
Not everyone follows up an unnecessarily treacherous and meaningless basketball brawl with a wildly successful season. Just ask the Xavier Musketeers. A mid-season fight with the Cincinnati Bearcats derailed star Tu Holloway and Xavier so much so that people feared they might miss the NCAA Tournament altogether. However, after a preseason game in China turned to fisticuffs for the Hoyas, involving a testy crowd and an opponent unconcerned with repercussions, they began a season supposedly ready to rebuild and instead flourished. Behind John Thompson III’s system of slowdown offense and mixed in zone defense, Georgetown confounded opponents on their way to a much higher conference finish than anyone predicted. Whether the fight brought this group of players closer together or not, it was the jumping off point for their winning season.
Big Wins: 11/23 vs Memphis (91-88), 12/1 at Alabama (57-55), 12/28 at Louisville (71-68)
Bad Losses: 1/9 Cincinnati (64-68), 1/28 at Pittsburgh (60-72), 2/21 at Seton Hall (55-73)
Coach: John Thompson III (8 seasons at Georgetown)
Why They Can Surprise:
By spreading the ball around and spreading the burden of the team’s success on many shoulders, Georgetown makes it hard for opponents to focus on any one man and contain him. They have five players that average at least 7.4 points per game this season, a staggering number for a team that scores right around 70 points per contest. Led by veterans Jason Clark and Hollis Thompson, the Hoyas’ main contributors also shoot very well from the floor, maximizing their offensive possessions and usefulness. This is important because Georgetown is a good defensive team, slowing games down to frustrate opponents and forcing them into turnovers. They held their opponents to fewer than 60 points an astounding 17 times this year, including more than half a dozen where their foe could not even muster 50.
Why They Can Disappoint:
With great force of will and momentum comes great adverse risk. Much like the Wisconsins and Virginias of other conferences, Georgetown’s ability to slow the game down to possession basketball can easily backfire on itself. They are able to stay in games with teams who are better than them, but they also keep weaker opposition in games that should be blowouts. If shots are not falling, with fewer and fewer possessions, each miss is magnified. In late December, the Hoyas only allowed Providence to score 40 points. However, Georgetown only managed an abysmal 49 points themselves, at home, making what should have been a comfortable win into a battle of wills. Georgetown had a number of wins this season where they did not top 60 points. Come tournament time, a much more flowing offense would be ideal as these types of teams rarely advance far.
Probable Starters:
Jason Clark, Senior, Guard, 13.9 ppg, 1.8 apg, 4.1 rpg
Markel Starks, Sophomore, Guard, 7.4 ppg, 1.6 apg
Hollis Thompson, Junior, Forward, 12.7 ppg, 5.6 rpg
Nate Lubick, Sophomore, Forward, 3.5 ppg, 3.9 rpg
Henry Sims, Senior, Center,11.7 ppg, 6.2 rpg, 3.5 apg, 1.4 bpg
Key Roleplayers:
Jabril Trawick, Sophomore, Guard, 3.4 ppg, 1.3 rpg
Otto Porter, Freshman, Forward, 9.5 ppg, 6.7 rpg
Greg Whittington, Freshman, Forward, 4.2 ppg, 2.8 rpg
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 69.2 (144th in nation, 8th in conference)
Scoring Defense: 59.0 (16, 2)
Field-Goal Percentage: 46.1 (67, 2)
Field-Goal Defense: 38.8 (16, 4)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 5.8 (205, 10)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 35.1 (135, 2)
Free-Throw Percentage: 70.0 (133, 8)
Rebound Margin: 5.6 (27, 3)
Assists Per Game: 13.8 (88, 8)
Turnovers Per Game: 12.7 (93, 6)
Last Five Postseason Appearances:
Georgetown 2011 NCAA Round of 64 loss to VCU
Georgetown 2010 NCAA Round of 64 loss to Ohio
Georgetown 2009 NIT First Round loss to Baylor
Georgetown 2008 NCAA Round of 64 win over UMBC
Georgetown 2008 NCAA Round of 32 loss to Davidson
Georgetown 2007 NCAA Round of 64 win over Belmont
Georgetown 2007 NCAA Round of 32 win over Boston College
Georgetown 2007 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over Vanderbilt
Georgetown 2007 NCAA Regional Final win over North Carolina
Georgetown 2007 NCAA National Semifinal loss to Ohio State
*all team stats through 3/4
See All Men’s Basketball Postseason Capsules
