The wait is over. At 7 pm today, the Georgetown Hoyas will tip off their much anticipated 2019-2020 campaign against the Mount Saint Mary’s Mountaineers (alliteration much?). While the Hoyas will be heavy favorites against the Mountaineers, who hail from the Northeast Conference, the game will give Georgetown fans their first chance to see the team in action.
The last time Georgetown played Mount St. Mary’s was two years ago, when the Hoyas defeated the Mountaineers 102-68, in the second win of Patrick Ewing’s tenure as head coach. Tonight, the Hoyas hope to go for Patrick Ewing’s 35th win as head coach, and this time with a much more talented roster. Still, the Hoyas still retain a number of players from that team, including Jahvon Blair, Jagan Mosely and Jamorko Pickett, who all tallied double figure scoring efforts against The Mount.
Although the Mountaineers were an abysmal 9-22 last season, they hope to build around their young core, as the team returns a whopping 97% of its scoring from last season (no, that is not a typo). Sophomore guard Vado Morse was named the Northeast Conference Rookie of the Year last season, and thus will have increased confidence directing the offense in his second season. Morse led the team with 14.7 points per game last year, and thus will likely be a target of Ewing’s defensive strategy to stop the Mountaineers
One area in which the Blue and Gray have an obvious advantage is in the post. No player on Mount St. Mary’s roster measures greater than 6’9” tall, and thus it will be a tall task for the Mountaineers to stop the Hoya bigs. Georgetown’s Omer Yurtseven will certainly be primed to make a big impact in his first game at Capital One Arena. The 7’ center makes his Georgetown debut Wednesday night after sitting out last season due to transfer rules. Look for James Akinjo and the rest of the Georgetown guards to force feed Yurtseven in order to exploit the mismatch in the frontcourt.
One interesting thing to look out for in Wednesday’s game will be how the newcomers perform in their first live action. At the very least, one would expect freshmen Qudus Wahab and Myron Gardner, along with transfers Terrell Allen and Galen Alexander to see the floor. Outside of the small amount of tape from the team’s trip to the Bahamas, fans have been left to speculate how substantial a role each of these four will play this season. Wednesday night will be the first chance to see Ewing’s plans for the rotation, as well as an opportunity to evaluate the freshmen against college competition.
Mount St. Mary’s might not be the most eye-catching opponent on the schedule, but so what? Basketball is back.
Jacob’s Prediction: Georgetown 92, Mount St. Mary’s 64
Will’s Prediction: Georgetown 101, Mount St. Mary’s 69 (nice)
