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Georgetown Basketball: December 2002 News Archive

Georgetown 85, Virginia Military Institute 48 12/31/02

Mike Sweetney scored 23 points as the Georgetown Hoya defense held off VMI, 85-48, before a matinee crowd of 6,631 at MCI Center Tuesday.

The Keydets (5-6) were without the assistance of leading scorer Jason Conley, sidelined with a foot injury, but played tough early. Georgetown held a three point lead at 19-16 midway through the half, slowed by fouls but supported by expert free throw (shooting 10-10) early. At 28-20, the wheels fell off the Keydets' arsenal. Georgetown's defense kept VMI without a field goal for the final 8:54 of the half, and a 28-20 deficit grew to 50-29 by halftime.

A similar situation faced VMI in the second. Down 21, the Keydets played Georgetown even for much of the first part of the second half, but Georgetown's defense stopped the Keydets cold towards the end. The Hoyas amassed a 27-3 run late in the half as the score increased from 54-39 to 81-42 in a ten minute streak.

For the game, the Keydets were held to 24% (16-66) shooting and 18% (3-16) from three point range. The Hoyas shot only 41% (26-62) but sank 28 of 34 free throw attempts. Sweetney was joined in double figures by Ashanti Cook (15) Wesley Wilson (12) and Gerald Riley (11), although Wilson struggled mightily from the field with a 3 for 10 effort. Sophomores Tony Bethel and Drew Hall combined for only six points, each in foul trouble much of the game.

"I don't think I've seen classier kids on a game like this where it's a runaway," said VMI coach Bart Bellairs said in the Washington Times link below. "Georgetown was tough, they're mean, they've got that Hoya reputation, but they also don't get enough credit for being classy. They're the classiest kids we've played against. It was a real privilege to play them."

Game stats:


           MIN  2FG  3FG  FT    REB  A  PF   PTS
Starters:
Bowman     15   2-6   1-1   0-0   5   1   3    5
Bethel     12   1-1   1-1   0-0   4   1   4    3
Riley      20   3-8   1-4   4-4   2   3   3   11
Sweetney   22   5-9   0-0 13-15   9   1   2   23
Wilson     24  3-10   0-1   6-7   8   0   1   12
Reserves:
Freeman     9   0-2   0-0   0-0   1   1   1    0
Faulkner    2   0-1   0-0   0-0   0   0   0    0
Hall       18   1-2   1-2   0-0   1   3   3    3
Ross        4   0-2   0-1   0-0   0   0   0    0
Hillier     2   0-0   0-0   0-0   0   0   0    0
Samnick    19   4-6   0-0   0-0   6   1   2    8
Owens      22   1-2   1-2   2-4   6   3   0    5
Cook       31  6-13   0-2   3-4   3   3   1   15
DNP: Beal  
TOTALS    200 26-62  5-14  28-34  45  17  20  85

Here are links to post-game coverage.

Virginia 79, Georgetown 75 12/30/02

Holding off a furious Georgetown run in the final minutes, the University of Virginia defeated Georgetown 79-75 before 8,241 at University Hall in Charlottesville and a national TV audience.

The game was battled early in the front court. Virginia's Travis Watson and reserve Elton Brown combined for 25 of Virginia's 36 first half points. For his part, Mike Sweetney was saddled with foul trouble, picking up two fouls in the first three minutes of play and fouling out with 6:40 to play with 11 points and four rebounds.

The Hoyas jumped out to an early 4-0 lead and led 21-17 midway through the half but Virginia took a lead that they held much of the game. The Cavaliers shot well throughout the game and key plays by Devin Smith and reserve guard Todd Byers allowed the Hoos to hold the lead even with Watson hobbled by injury and guard Todd Billet being shut down by the Georgetown defense.

Virginia led 36-30 at the half and built a comfortable 68-54 lead with 7:49 to play. From that point, Georgetown shocked the home crowd with a 20-5 run, capped by an Ashanti Cook drive across the baseline to tie the score at 70, with under three minutes to play. The Hoyas led following a free throw at 71-70 with 2:26 to play.

On Virginia's next possession, Brown sank a jumper to give Virginia a 72-71 lead. On its series, Wilson missed a short jumper and Watson drove inside for the Cavs to lead 74-71 with :38 to play. In contrast to games last year where the Hoyas held the ball for a last shot and had no time for a follow-up, Georgetown drove for a quick shot, but its three point attempt fell short and Gerald Riley was called for his fifth foul a few moments later. Virginia connected on five of six free throws in the final 38 seconds while the hoyas missed four of five shot attempts in the waning moments.

In the post-game press conference, Coach Esherick gave full credit to the Virginia effort but chose his words carefully about the officiating. Georgetown was cited for 27 fouls to Virginia's 19, giving the Cavs 28 free throw attempts to Georgetown's 13. Furthermore, the loss of Sweetney at key points and Riley were major blows to the Hoyas' cause.

"I think that it's interesting that the Big Ten can even think about suspending Mike Davis for six games for running out on the floor, and I have to keep my mouth shut after the job one particular referee did today," Esherick said. "I can't say anything. I'm not allowed to say a word."

Elton Brown's big day came against Wesley Wilson, who was also saddled with early foul calls. I used that move a couple of times in the first half and I realized that their big guys weren't adapting to it," Brown remarked. "I said, 'If they can't stop it, why not keep using it?"

He did, and the Cavaliers earned the win.

Virginia shot 56% for the game and canned 7 of 14 three pointers. Georgetown shot a season low 42% with only 5 of 20 attempts scoring from three point range. The Virginia bench outscored Georgetown's reserves 46-21, with Watson and Brown combining for 30 of the 46.

It's the sixth win in the last eight games between the two schools, five of which having been decided by six points or less. It's also the sixth straight by Virginia in a regular season game over Georgetown in the modern era of the series, and as a result Georgetown has not defeated Virginia in the regular season since this series was suspended after the 1912-13 season.

However, it's the kind of series that should be played year in and year out--good schools, good programs, the very kind of regional rivalry Georgetown has lacked for 20+ years. Time will tell if the two schools can build such a relationship.

Game stats:


           MIN  2FG  3FG  FT    REB  A  PF   PTS
Starters:
Bowman      18   2-7   0-1   2-2   4   1   1    6
Sweetney    15   4-7   0-0   3-4   4   2   5   11
Wilson      28   5-9   0-0   1-1  10   1   4   11
Bethel      37  3-11   1-7   0-0   0   3   4    7
Riley       32  8-16   3-6   0-0   4   2   5   19
Reserves:
Freeman     14   3-5   0-0   1-1   3   0   3    7
Hall        22   0-4   0-4   0-0   1   2   2    0
Samnick     21   2-6   0-0   1-5   6   0   1    5
Owens        3   1-2   0-0   0-0   1   0   0    2
Cook        10   3-6   1-2   0-0   2   1   2    7
DNP: Faulkner, Ross, Hillier 
TOTALS     200 31-73  5-20   8-13 35  12  27   75

Here are links to post-game coverage.

Washington Times Feature On Causey 12/24/02

The Washington Times has an article on the recruiting of guard Matt Causey. An interesting topic, and recommended reading.

Georgetown To Host 2006 Regionals 12/24/02

As noted in a press release at GUHoyas.com, MCI Center has been awarded the 2006 NCAA Eastern Regionals on March 24 and 26, 2006. Georgetown will be the host school, but by NCAA rule will not compete in a region featuring their home arena.

Georgetown 91, Howard 66 12/21/02

Four Georgetown starters finished in double figures as Georgetown ended its homestand with a 91-66 win over Howard at MCI Center Friday night.

Howard was playing in its first game following an eleven day break and the Hoyas took early advantage, leading by 16 at 35-19 with some good inside work from Mike Sweetney and 15 first half points from Tony Bethel. The Hoyas gave up a number of turnovers (13 in the first half) and Howard began to find some rebounding help, and Howard began to make a late run. The Bison went on a 19-8 run at the close of the half, cutting the lead to seven at 44-37 and the first basket of the second half cut the lead to 44-39.

Georgetown's defense stopped the tandem of Kyle Williams and Ron Williamson and the Hoyas began to build the lead. Williams, the transfer from Colorado, was 3-10 in the first half but only 1-10 in the second. Williamson, who had scored 41 in a game versus the Hoyas two years ago, was 4-8 in the first half but 5-17 in the second, leading the Bison with 25.

Georgetown built a 16 point lead midway through the second half. Howard entered the bonus with 10:14 to play and Georgetown did very well at the line down the stretch (6-7), finishing 18-23 from the line.

For the game, The Hoyas shot 59 percent and held the Bison (1-6) to 33% shooting, though Howard had 16 more shot attempts than Georgetown. The Hoyas did not perform as well on the boards, with a 40-37 rebound edge and a 21-21 tie in rebounds at halftime.

Game stats:



           MIN  2FG  3FG  FT    REB  A  PF   PTS
Starters:
Bowman      22   3-6  0-3  0-0   4   2   3    6
Bethel      28  7-10  3-5  3-3   2   5   2   20
Riley       22   4-8  2-4  3-3   1   2   3   13
Sweetney    36  8-13  0-0 7-12  15   3   1   23
Wilson      15   6-7  0-0  1-1   9   1   4   13
Reserves:
Freeman     21   1-4  0-0  4-4    0   5   3   6
Hall        33   2-5  1-3  0-0    1   6   2   5
Samnick      4   0-0  0-0  0-0    0   1   0   0
Owens        6   0-0  0-0  0-0    0   1   2   0
Cook        13   2-3  1-1  0-0    1   1   1   5
DNP: Faulkner, Ross, Hillier, Beal  
TOTALS     200 33-56 7-16 18-23   33  27  21 91

Here are links to post-game coverage.

Georgetown 84, Norfolk State 48 12/17/02

In their first game in 11 days, the Hoyas shook of some exam-time rust and otherwise rolled past Norfolk State, 84-48, before 5,447 at MCI Center Monday night.

After 11 days of inaction with final exams, the Hoyas played like it in the first ten minutes of play. Up 10-7, the Hoyas spotted the Spartans a 10-0 run and trailed by seven, 17-10, with Derrick Smith scoring 10 of the Spartans first 17 points. At that point, Coach Esherick switched the lineup to a smaller, more mobile one and the Hoyas began to bounce back.

Freshmen Ashanti Cook and Brandon Bowman rallied the Hoyas' cause, combining for 17 first half points in a 19-3 run to give the Hoyas a 29-20 lead with 3:52 in the half and a nine point lead at the half, 35-26. Georgetown shot only 39% for the half and had one field goal more than Norfolk State, but connected 10 free throws to build the lead.

The second half was all Georgetown. Mike Sweetney scored 13 of his 17 points in the second half and Gerald Riley scored his eight points all in the second, as the Hoyas' size and depth allowed them to pull away. The Spartans closed to 12 points midway through the period, but no closer. The Hoyas also benefited from good free throw shooting in the second half (17-21) which kept the lead at a healthy distance from the Spartans.

Derrick Smith finished with 23 points for the Spartans on 9-17 shooting, but the rest of the team combined to shoot 8-42. Smith shot 3-7 from three point range, while the rest of the team was 2-14. The Spartans gave up 28 turnovers that led to 31 Georgetown points, while the Hoyas struggled with 22 turnovers of its own.

Game stats:



           MIN  2FG  3FG  FT    REB  A  PF   PTS
Starters:
Bowman      23  5-12  1-4  7-8    9   1   1   18
Bethel      25   2-8  1-2  2-4    3   2   2    7
Riley       20   3-5  0-1  2-2    4   2   4    8
Sweetney    27  5-10  0-0 7-10    5   2   4   17
Wilson      23   5-8  0-0  0-4    8   0   2   10
Reserves:
Freeman      3   0-1  0-0  0-0    1   0   1    0
Hall        32   1-4  1-3  0-0    8   3   2    3
Ross         2   1-1  0-0  4-4    0   0   0    6
Hillier      2   0-0  0-0  0-0    0   1   1    0
Owens       17   0-3  0-0  1-2    3   2   1    1
Cook        25   3-9  2-4  4-4    4   2   1   12
Beal         1   1-1  0-0  0-0    0   0   0    2
TOTALS     200 26-62 5-14 27-38  45  15  19   84

Here are links to post-game coverage.

Various media sources (among them WTNT and the Washington Times report) referred to Georgetown's first meeting with Norfolk State as being in 1942-43. However, the 1943 game was with a team from the Norfolk Navy Base, not Norfolk State. NSU did not field a varsity team until 1954.

Georgetown 67, South Carolina 59 12/05/02

Final exams are next week on the Georgetown campus, but the Hoya men's basketball team passed an important test Thursday night.

Led by 26 points from Mike Sweetney, the Georgetown Hoyas overcame poor shooting and foul problems to defeat South Carolina, 67-59, before a weather-limited crowd of 5,469 at MCI Center. South Carolina, one of four nationally prominent teams on the non-conference schedule, held a second half lead but struggled down the stretch with Georgetown's defensive pressure and some key free throw shooting.

The game started with physical play, leading to five Georgetown team fouls in the first four minutes and sending Gerald Riley to the locker room with a chipped tooth. Still, the Hoyas built leads of 16-5 and 21-11 early, but the Gamecocks (4-1) began to narrow the count with free throw shooting. Sweetney was off his form, missing a number of close-in shots while the Gamecocks' Carlos Powell keyed an early SC run to close the lead to 31-29 at halftime.

Counted upon for early scoring, Georgetown's Gerald Riley picked up his fourth foul a minute into the second half, and the Gamecocks took a lead at 40-39. After the team went 1 for 7 from three point range in the first half, Tony Bethel added a three to take the lead at 42-40, but South Carolina scored the next five to lead 45-42 with 12:30 to play. Powell picked up his fourth foul with 9:55 to play in the midst of a 13-0 Georgetown run, where defense shut the Gamecocks down on 13 consecutive field goal attempts.

South Carolina closed the count to three, 53-50, when freshman Ashanti Cook scored an important three pointer to increase the lead to 56-50. When SC's Chuck Eidson picked up his fifth foul with 3:01 to play, it appeared that the Hoyas would have to hold the game at the line, which is exactly what they did. Georgetown converted nine of its final 11 points from the line on 9 for 10 shooting, ending any hopes of a rally even though the Gamecocks scored on its last four possessions.

A key stat was the defensive pressure on Eidson, the Gamecocks' leading scorer. South Carolina coach Dave Odom called his performance too "casual", but the Hoya defense held Eidson to two points and eight turnovers before Eidson fouled out late.

Georgetown still has some work to be done. The Hoyas shot a season low 39%, 29% from three. The guards shot a combined 5-16, and center Wesley Wilson had another quiet game in the paint (6 points, 3 rebounds), allowing an opponent to out rebound the Hoyas for the second straight game. With foul trouble and the aforementioned injury, Gerald Riley was only 1 of 7 in limited action. And while Sweetney missed an uncharacteristic 12 shots, the 12 he made were the ones that made a difference.

The Hoyas are still on the outside looking in at the Top 25, but they remain on track to earning a seat at the table. After an eleven day break for exams, the Blue and Gray return to action December 16 against Norfolk State.

Game stats:



           MIN  2FG  3FG  FT  REB  A  PF PTS
Starters:
Bowman       9   0-3 0-2  0-0   0   1   2   0
Bethel      35   3-8 2-5  4-4   5   5   2  12
Riley       18   1-7 1-4  2-2   3   1   4   5
Sweetney    33 12-24 0-0  3-6  11   0   3  27
Wilson      22   3-6 0-0  0-0   3   0   2   6
Reserves:
Freeman     10   0-1 0-0  0-0   2   1   2   0
Hall        27   1-3 0-2  4-5   2   3   0   6
Samnick     19   2-4 0-0  0-0   2   0   1   4
Owens       13   0-0 0-0  2-2   1   1   2   2
Cook        14   1-2 1-1  2-2   4   3   2   5
TOTALS     200 23-58 4-14 17-21 33 15  20  67

Here are links to post-game coverage.

Georgetown 87, Coastal Carolina 60 12/03/02

Michael Sweetney led all scorers as the Georgetown Hoyas took their fourth straight at the hands of an overmatched opponent, this time in a 87-60 win over Coastal Carolina.

The Chanticleers (2-3) played tough early, closing to four points at 21-17 and 25-21 midway through the first half. Foul trouble and turnovers began to do the Chants in, and a 20-4 Georgetown run at the half increased the halftime lead to a more comfortable 45-25.

The second half was more of the same--although the Hoyas were not crushing the Chanticleers, the Hoyas continued to consistently build the lead to as many as 34, 73-39, before reserves filled the final minutes of play. Holding the Hoyas back from an all-out rout were turnovers--16 of its 20 giveaways were in the final half. For their part, the Chanticleers posted 30 turnovers and gave up 20 steals to the Hoyas.

Statistically, the game showed a number of contrasts. Coastal had six more shot attempts than Georgetown and actually out-rebounded the Hoyas 40-28--it's the lowest rebounding effort for a Georgetown team since Dec. 8, 1998 versus Rutgers."

"I want to be able to rebound no matter who we put in the game," Coach Esherick told the Washington Post, "Right now, I'm not too happy with that."

Sweetney's 26 points led the Hoyas but only one other teammate was in double figures. By contrast, CCU's leading scorer Torrey Butler was held to eight points on 4-13 shooting and none of its starters made it to double figures. Reserve Kelvin Coggins led the Chants with 10 points.

Georgetown's dominance was apparent at the free throw line. The Hoyas added 24 points from the free throw line, the Chanticleers six.

Game stats:



           MIN  2FG  3FG  FT  REB  A  PF PTS
Starters:
Bowman    13   1-4   0-2 0-0   0   0   3    2
Bethel    26   3-7   0-1 2-4   4   3   1    8
Riley     19   3-9   3-4 2-3   1   1   3   11
Sweetney  26  7-11 12-15 0-0  10   2   1   26
Wilson    11   3-6   0-1 0-0   2   0   0    6
Reserves:
Freeman   20   1-3   2-2 0-0   3   1   2    4
Faulkner   2   0-0   0-0 0-0   0   0   1    0
Hall      22   3-4   0-0 1-1   3   4   1    7
Ross       5   0-1   0-0 0-0   0   0   1    0
Hillier    4   1-1   0-0 0-0   0   0   0    2
Samnick   16   3-4   0-0 0-0   0   1   2    6
Owens     17   1-1   4-4 0-0   1   2   1    6
Cook      17   3-3   3-4 0-0   0   2   0    9
Beal       2   0-1   0-0 0-0   0   0   0    0
Team Rebounds                  4
TOTALS   200 29-55 24-31 5-10 28  16  16   87

Here are links to post-game coverage.

Column: Big East Not Drawing Fans? 12/03/02

Columnist Phil Axelrod of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette asks if the early scheduling patterns of Big East teams are contributing to a lack of national attention for the schools. Big East schools are 27-1 at home to date but 8-10 on road or neutral sites.

The article reports league attendance ranges from 18,874 (Syracuse) to 1,920 per game (Miami). Through the game Monday night (which drew 4,366), Georgetown is averaging 6,464 per game.

 

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