In their last game of 2020, the Hoyas struggled offensively as Seton Hall dominated from start to finish on their way to a 78-67 victory.
After the momentous commitment of 5-star recruit Aminu Mohammed and a loss at the hands of St. John’s, Georgetown traveled to New Jersey to face a Seton Hall team coming off of an overtime buzzer beater loss to Providence. The Hoyas struggled mightily on offense in the first half, not breaking into double digits in the scoring column until the final 5:30, and finishing the half with 19 points and 8 turnovers while shooting just 22% from the field. Seton Hall’s interior defense, led by junior Ike Obiagu, who finished with 9 blocks, stifled Georgetown’s big men and prevented the team from finding any easy shots or offensive rhythm. While the Pirates’ offense only shot 34% from the field in the first half, Georgetown’s offensive woes were enough to set them behind by double digits heading into halftime.
The Hoyas managed to pick up their offense in the second half, scoring a total of 48 points led by Qudus Wahab, who totaled 16 points and 13 rebounds, and Jahvon Blair, who added another 14 points. Eight out of the nine Hoyas who saw the floor managed to score, but none of them were able to do so consistently and efficiently, with Jamari Sibley being the only player to shoot over 50%, going 2-3. While the offense finally showed up to the party, defensively the Hoyas were unable to ever effectively stop Seton Hall’s offense led by Myles Cale and Jared Rhoden. The two guards continued to make shots down the stretch, extinguishing any chances Georgetown may have had of drawing back within striking distance. In the postgame press conference, Coach Ewing specifically lamented the team’s difficulties defending beyond the three-point line, stating “we need to run them off the three-point line and make them put the ball on the floor.” Ewing’s comments were not unwarranted as Seton Hall shot 62.5% from behind the arc in the second half.
For the Pirates, big man Sandro Mamukelashvili came into the game averaging 20 points per game, the third most in the Big East, but was held to just two points against the Hoyas. Instead, it was Myles Cale, with 30 points and 3 rebounds, along with Jared Rhoden, with 26 points, 12 rebounds, and 4 assists (all career highs for Rhoden), who led Seton Hall to victory. Ike Obiagu served as the defensive anchor with 9 rebounds and 9 blocks, as the Pirates leaned heavily on their supporting cast with their star senior swarmed defensively. Seton Hall never trailed Georgetown in Wednesday’s contest, winning in convincing fashion. If Cale and Rhoden can continue to serve as efficient scoring options next to Mamu, Seton Hall will be a dangerous team in the Big East.
Georgetown senior Jamorko Pickett continued to struggle offensively, contributing 8 points on 3-13 shooting despite playing a full 40 minutes. His high volume of shots combined with his low efficiency have limited his offensive effectiveness over the last few games. The Hoyas will need Pickett to snap this trend in order to create a more balanced offensive attack. In other news, Georgetown freshman Kobe Clark returned to the court for the first time since going down with an ankle injury against Coppin State earlier in the season. Clark only played a total of four minutes, but it was encouraging to see him back on the floor nonetheless.
With the loss, Georgetown heads into the Christmas break with a 1-3 record in the Big East. The Hoyas will look to turn things around in 2021 when they play Marquette on January 2nd back at McDonough Arena.
