Coming off their biggest win of the season over rival Syracuse, the Georgetown Hoyas (5-4) will stay at home for a tilt with the Howard Bison (5-4). While Howard may not be the same caliber opponent as Syracuse, the Hoyas cannot afford to look past the Bison.

Game info

TV Network: FS1

Location: Capital One Arena

Time: 6:30 pm

All time record vs. Howard: The Hoyas are 10-0 all-time versus Howard. The two teams last met in December 2018, when Georgetown rolled to a 102-67 victory.

Who we’re playing

Howard started the season on a three-game winning streak, before dropping four of their next five games. In their most recent outing, the Bison defeated American 90-56. However, that game was 11 days ago, giving Howard plenty of time to prepare for Georgetown. Howard’s only major conference opponent thus far was Villanova—the Bison played the Wildcats fairly tight before ultimately falling 100-81.

Opposing Player to Look Out For

Kyle Foster

At 57.8%, Kyle Foster is the leading three-point shooter in the nation. (Yes, you read that right: IN THE NATION). Foster’s teammate, Steve Settle, also shoots over 50% from deep, and the Bison rank 11th in the nation as a team in three-point percentage. Knowing the Hoyas’ struggles to guard the three-point line, slowing down Foster and the Bison’s three-point threats should be Georgetown’s number one priority. With Foster standing at 6’5”, Aminu Mohammed will likely draw the assignment of shutting down Howard’s sharpshooter.

How Georgetown Matches Up

As mentioned above, Howard shoots the ball particularly well from three. That’s not great news for a Georgetown team that has had three pointers rained down on them by the likes of Dartmouth and St. Joe’s. That being said, the perimeter defense has looked much improved in recent outings, giving reason for optimism.

Howard is also a team that likes to play up-tempo. This won’t bother Georgetown much, as both the Hoyas and the Bison rank in the top-60 in the country in adjusted-tempo, per KenPom. Still, the Hoyas will need to be careful not to turn the ball over and let the Bison get out in transition. Howard ranks 15th in the country with just over 18 forced turnovers per game. Dante Harris and the rest of the Georgetown guards will need to stay composed and value the basketball.

In the frontcourt, Steve Settle is the only Bison over 6’7” who sees significant minutes. If the Hoyas can get Settle in foul trouble, it will be interesting to see if Patrick Ewing rolls with the small-ball line-up that worked so well in the second half comeback against ‘Cuse.

Additional Notes

• Saturday’s win over Syracuse saw the most electric environment inside Capital One Arena in quite some time. With students either already gone for winter break or grinding on final exams, Wednesday’s game will be far more subdued. Can the Hoyas continue their recent streak of strong play without being able to feed off the energy of thousands of fans? We’ll find out on Wednesday night.

Predictions

Jacob’s Prediction (5-4 on the season): Georgetown 91, Howard 85

I’ll be straight-up: I’m worried about this game. Coming off a big home win over ‘Cuse and with another power conference opponent to look forward to in TCU, this is your stereotypical trap game. A week ago, I would have picked against the Hoyas here. But over the course of the last two wins, Georgetown has done just enough to convince me that they’ll scrap out a W over Howard, though I don’t expect it to be pretty.

Will’s Prediction (7-2 on the season): Georgetown 68, Howard 61

I don’t quite expect a post-Syracuse hangover, but I do think Howard will play Georgetown closer than people think. A solid three-point shooting team, the Bison have the key to defeating Georgetown. This will be a game where we’ll see Georgetown bend, but not break.