Georgetown Hoyas
Big East (17-14, 8-10)
An early February win over Michigan State sparked a Georgetown team that had been struggling up to that point. That win lead to three straight Big East victories and, while it was way too late for Georgetown to make any serious noise in the conference, it was enough to get them into the postseason.
Big Wins: 11/22 vs Kansas State (90-63), 2/1 vs Michigan State (64-60), 3/4 Creighton (75-63)
Bad Losses: 11/21 vs Northeastern (56-63), 1/18 Seton Hall (57-67), 2/20 at Seton Hall (67-82)
Coach: John Thompson III (10 seasons at Georgetown)
Why They Can Surprise:
Coach John Thompson III relies heavily on the backcourt tandem of Markel Starks and D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera. It is not uncommon for those two to spend 40 minutes on the floor in a game. Both are big time scorers who can knock down the long ball and finish above the rim. Starks also runs the point and spearheads the defensive effort, but he and Smith-Rivera will have to score in bunches to have any postseason success. Jabril Trawick is another tough perimeter defender and has shown flashes of offensive potential.
Why They Can Disappoint:
With Joshua Smith, a transfer from UCLA, ineligible for academic reasons since early January, the Hoyas frontcourt has been a problem. Nate Lubick is a versatile big man and Mikael Hopkins can swat away some shots, yet the lack of a scoring forward is something Georgetown really misses. Barring surprising outputs from players like Moses Ayegba and Bradley Hayes, Starks and Smith-Rivera can only do so much when the opposition can guard them from getting to the basket.
Probable Starters:
Markel Starks, Senior, Guard, 17.1 ppg, 4.0 apg
D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera, Sophomore, Guard, 17.0 ppg, 2.7 apg
Jabril Trawick, Junior, Guard, 8.8 ppg, 1.6 apg
Nate Lubick, Senior, Forward, 5.1 ppg, 5.5 rpg
Mikael Hopkins, Junior, Forward, 6.2 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 1.5 bpg
Key Roleplayers:
Moses Ayegba, Senior, Center, 1.9 ppg, 2.8 rpg
Aaron Bowen, Senior, Forward, 5.9 ppg, 3.7 rpg
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 70.7 (194th in nation, 8th in conference)
Scoring Defense: 67.6 (110, 6)
Field-Goal Percentage: 46.2 (78, 4)
Field-Goal Defense: 41.2 (70, 3)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 5.3 (266, 7)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 32.8 (232, 8)
Free-Throw Percentage: 71.7 (108, 4)
Rebound Margin: 0.5 (176, 8)
Assists Per Game: 13.2 (127, 7)
Turnovers Per Game: 11.9 (124, 6)
Recent Postseason Appearances:
2013 NCAA Second Round loss to Florida Gulf Coast
2012 NCAA Second Round win over Belmont
2012 NCAA Third Round loss to North Carolina State
2011 NCAA Round of 64 loss to VCU
2010 NCAA Round of 64 loss to Ohio
2009 NIT First Round loss to Baylor
2008 NCAA Round of 64 win over UMBC
2008 NCAA Round of 32 loss to Davidson
2007 NCAA Round of 64 win over Belmont
2007 NCAA Round of 32 win over Boston College
2007 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over Vanderbilt
2007 NCAA Regional Final win over North Carolina
2007 NCAA National Semifinal loss to Ohio State
*all team stats through 3/9
See All Men’s Basketball Postseason Capsules
