There was no magic to be had inside Madison Square Garden on Sunday afternoon. With Louis Orr at the helm once again, the Hoyas fell to St. John’s 88-69 in a disappointing—though not unexpected—loss. We broke down the good and the bad from Sunday’s loss.
Good:
- The tidal blue uniforms made their first appearance of the season.
- Dante Harris returned to action after missing the previous game against Butler.
Bad:
- Don Carey missed his third straight game with an illness.
- Patrick Ewing was out as well.
Interesting:
- Aminu Mohammed started off the game as Georgetown’s lead guard, with Dante Harris playing off the ball. It only lasted for a handful of possessions, but it was an interesting experiment to see Dante play off-ball. Mohammed did struggle somewhat as a primary ball handler, turning the ball over four times.
Good:
- Georgetown got to work crashing the glass on offense early, and in doing so generated several opportunities for second-chance points. The Hoyas finished the game with 18 offensive boards and outrebounded the Johnnies 39-32.
Bad:
- The Johnnies started off by torching the Hoyas from three, making four treys in the first eight minutes of the game.
- The Red Storm’s on-ball pressure caused all sorts of problems for Georgetown’s offense. Too frequently, the Hoyas burned through the shot clock and failed to get a good look at the basket.
- The Johnnies went on an 8-0 run towards the end of the first half, and the Hoyas had no response. The offense was lifeless, but on a team that lacks offensive creators, that is (sadly) to be expected.
Good:
- Patrick Ewing may have missed another game as the coach, but the Hoyas were able to have the 2003 Big East Coach of the Year step in for Ewing. Gee whiz!
- Through the end of the first half, Ryan Mutombo had been a stable presence for the Hoyas. He was able to draw fouls (going a perfect 5 for 5 from the charity stripe), and he grabbed two offensive rebounds too. Mutombo didn’t stand out, but in a half that saw a lot of sloppy play, he was a stabilizer.
Bad:
- Stop me if you’ve heard this before: Georgetown closed out the first half down double digits. A buzzer-beater three from Dante Harris allowed Georgetown to finish the half down by 11.
- In the first half, St. John’s scored 15 points off turnovers compared to Georgetown’s scoring 3 points off turnovers. This was in large part due to the Hoyas finishing the half with 12 turnovers.
Good:
- The Nickelodeon broadcast had slime cannons in the end zone again. At least I was able to be entertained this afternoon.
Bad:
- Collin Holloway was not his usual self to start the game. He failed to record a single point, rebound, or assist until midway through the second half, while turning the ball over three times and picking up his fourth foul just minutes into the second half.
Good
- In the start of the second half, Aminu Mohammed played like a man on a mission. It wasn’t Mohammed’s best game by any means, but he still injected energy into a Georgetown squad that looked lifeless at times. Mohammed finished the game with a double-double, scoring 13 points and grabbing 12 rebounds.
Bad
- However, Mohammed’s heroics weren’t enough for the Hoyas. As is becoming the norm, the game quickly got out of hand, with Georgetown being down to St. John’s by 20 points 8 minutes into the second half. In the Hoyas’ first three games of Big East play, they have trailed by at least 20 points at some point in each of those games.
- Julian Champagnie torched the Hoyas. He scored 25 points and grabbed six rebounds, and made his presence felt in every facet of the game.
Good:
- Georgetown managed to rattle off a 15-3 run of their own to bring the game at least a little bit closer and give themselves a fighting chance. Dante Harris was instrumental in this run, contributing a three-pointer and a layup, and dishing out two assists to Kaiden Rice resulting in two Rice three pointers.The Hoyas made six field goals in a row, which is, as the kids say, “lit.”
Bad:
- What goes up must come down. Georgetown wasn’t able to sustain their momentum, and St. John’s went on a run of their own that put the game away. The last few minutes were nothing more than a formality as the final result was never in doubt.
Good:
- Kaiden Rice seemed to get back to form after being in a shooting slump the last few games. Rice made 5 three pointers, albeit on 14 attempts. The Hoyas will need Rice to be the sharpshooter that he has shown he can be if they are to win conference games.
- Dante Harris seemed to get back to form. He contributed 13 points and found his three-point stroke again, in addition to dishing out four assists. However…
Bad
- Dante Harris dealt with leg injuries in the second half, something that has plagued him this season—even causing him to miss a game back in December. Harris returned to the game after rolling his ankle, but then headed back to the bench for good for the final minutes, where he appeared to be receiving treatment on his knee.
Bad:
- Georgetown’s defense continues to be abysmal. The defense consistently looks a step behind, and there just hasn’t been a moment this season where the Hoyas were able to string together multiple strong and consistent performances on the defensive end of the ball.
- The lack of players who are able to create offense for Georgetown reared its ugly head yet again. With the atrocious defense the Hoyas have, they need to have multiple players who are capable of scoring buckets at will on the court, and they just don’t have that.
- The Hoyas finished with 21 turnovers and 21 fouls. They played sloppy, undisciplined basketball, and so far, it’s allowed their Big East foes to beat up on them and punish them for their mistakes.
