Washington, D.C. — Merrimack missed multiple layups in the final seconds with the chance to send the game to overtime, allowing a shorthanded Georgetown to escape with a 69-67 win Wednesday night at Capital One Arena.
Merrimack intentionally missed a free throw with four seconds remaining and recovered the loose ball, but were unable to capitalize on good chances at the rim as time expired. Georgetown senior guard Wayne Bristol, Jr. recorded a block in the final second to seal the win.
The Hoyas found a way to move to 5-2 on the year without star guard Jayden Epps after the sophomore left the game late in the first half with an apparent head injury. Head Coach Ed Cooley said after the game that Epps “got scratched on his eye pretty good” but indicated the injury was not severe.
Georgetown was paced by Bristol’s 14 points, eight of which came from the foul line. Senior center Supreme Cook chipped in with a 12 point, 12 rebound double-double, albeit on just 4-10 shooting. Epps contributed 11 points in just 13 minutes before leaving the game. Sophomore guard Jordan Derkack led the Warriors with 22 points in a team-high 33 minutes. Derkack singlehandedly scored Merrimack’s first 10 points.
The Hoyas were ice-cold from the field, shooting 18-50 (36%) for the game. Junior forward Dontrez Styles had an evening emblematic of the team’s night, putting up just 6 points on 1-6 shooting. The difficult outing snapped Styles’ streak of three straight 20+ point games. Styles also went 1-2 on a late trip to the line with the chance to make it a two-possession game.
Georgetown also struggled to take care of the basketball, committing 10 turnovers in the first half after conceding just nine overall in their previous game against Jackson State. The Hoyas finished with 18 giveaways overall.
The Hoyas had trouble with Merrimack’s stout zone defense, which caused the offense to stagnate and prevented open looks. Georgetown attempted just 13 three-pointers on the night, which Cooley said was “probably the lowest we’ll take all year.”
Georgetown’s struggles at the free throw line continued, even as they excelled at drawing fouls. The hosts shot 28-42 (67%) from the stripe, including Styles’ late miss that kept the Warriors in it.
Merrimack struggled to find their rhythm from distance, going 0-7 on three-pointers in the first half. However, they went on a tear early in the second frame, hitting two 3’s as part of a 15-0 run to take a lead into the under-12 minute timeout.
The Warriors led by as many as eight in the second half, but Georgetown was able to close the gap via two timely three-point plays, one from Bristol and the other from Cook.
The last seven minutes of the contest were a tense affair, with neither side able to find a decisive blow. Merrimack Coach Joe Gallo was charged with a technical foul with 1:39 left to play after arguing a traveling call against the Warriors. After the game, Gallo was critical of the officials, and said “In a two point game, in a Big East game, there’s no way that guy is calling that.” He went on to say, “I just thought for him to do that and take the game out of the kids’ hands was very unfortunate.”
The game marked the Georgetown debut of grad transfer forward Ismael Massoud, who had been out since preseason with a hand injury. Massoud played 31 minutes to lead the Hoyas. Cooley said Massoud was “rusty,” but “he’ll play a lot better the next time around.”
Next up for Georgetown is a home date with Big XII power TCU on Saturday. The Horned Frogs are ranked just outside the top 25 and are 6-0 on the year, albeit against what KenPom rates as the nation’s weakest schedule so far. Tip-off is set for 5:30 p.m. at Capital One Arena.
