BIG EAST GAME PREVIEW: GEORGETOWN @ VILLANOVA

February 28, 2009


An old school Big East battle is rekindled at the Wachovia Center at high noon on Saturday as the Villanova Wildcats will host the Georgetown Hoyas. This game was expected to carry much more meaning in the Big East standings, but the struggles of the Hoyas have left them down and out of the Big East race.

Villanova is still in the mix for a top-four seed for the 2009 Big East Tournament as they enter Saturday’s contest 11-4 and with a 23-5 overall mark. The Wildcats have been one of the hottest teams in the nation, winning nine of their last 10 games. They will look to keep the pressure on UConn, Louisville, Pitt and Marquette by claiming an early afternoon win on Saturday.

Georgetown, on the other hand, has been mired in a head-scratching slump, losing nine of their last 11, with wins coming against South Florida and Rutgers. Last weekend’s Saturday/Monday dual losses at home to Marquette and Louisville have dropped the Hoyas to 5-10 in the Big East and 14-12 overall, not very impressive for a team that boasts former McDonald’s All-American recruits such as Greg Monroe, Chris Wright and Austin Freeman in their starting line-up along with DaJuan Summers, who was also a very highly regarded recruit when he signed with the Hoyas.

Georgetown certainly has high-end talent, the problem has been that that talent sees a significant drop-off in level and experience following the starting five. As the losses began to mount, the team’s confidence and chemistry seemed to erode rapidly. Guards Wright and Jesse Sapp had a much-publicized halftime confrontation in a loss to Duke and Sapp has also been benched for his attitude toward the coaching staff in another game.

Georgetown showed some signs of snapping out of the funk, nearly stealing a win at Syracuse and then blowing out USF, but last weekend’s pair of losses seemed to take the final wind out of their sails.

Villanova had a classic letdown performance on Wednesday as the DePaul game followed their frantic win over Syracuse in the Dome last weekend, a game where SU missed four game-tying attempts in the last seconds and the Wildcats escaped with a win over a big rival.

The Wildcats will need a better performance on Saturday to beat Georgetown. Look for Jay Wright’s crew to extend defensive pressure and force Chris Wright to make proper decisions in pushing the ball or pulling it back out to run the Hoya offense. This defensive philosophy will also make it difficult for Georgetown to go inside to freshman Greg Monroe, an under-used weapon in their arsenal. Coach John Thompson III acknowledged the Hoyas problems this week during the Big East coaches conference call with their decision-making within their intricate offensive system.

“We always have given guys a lot of freedom to play,” JTIII told reporters. “You have to make the right decisions, you have to share the ball.”

It has been a long season for Georgetown since the calendar has flipped from 2008 to 2009. Playing a hot Villanova team on the road is unlikely to make things any better after the crushing defeats of last weekend. This could be a very tough game for the Hoyas to big themselves back up for.

NBE Blogger Preview:

Villanova 78
Georgetown 66

Georgetown Could Learn from Nova (Washington Times)

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GEORGETOWN'S FALL CONTINUES IN BIG EAST

February 24, 2009


There was a lot riding on last night' 'Big Monday' showdown in the Nation's Capital between Georgetown and Louisville. With the Cards able to but away the Georgetown in a 76-58 decision, Louisville Carves Out It's Slice of the Big East Lead (Kentucky.com) and Yet Another Home Loss for the Hoyas (Washington Times) could spell doom for their NCAA Tournament chances.

In front of 12, 653 fans in the Verizon Center, Louisville hands the Hoyas their ninth loss in 11 games as the Cards Get in the Zone and Stifles Georgetown (Louisville Courier-Journal). The win had to be a small amount of revenge for UL as the Hoyas can't Play Spoiler this Time (Louisville Courier-Journal) in the Cards quest for the Big East regular season title. Last season, Georgetown upended Louisville 55-52 in the regular season finale to take the regular season title from the Cards, a game tap Rick Pitino did not show his team until Sunday night, reminding them how they felt losing that game to the Hoyas.

The motivation worked as Louisville came out strong out of the gates as Georgetown looked anything but a team with their season on the line. The Hoyas were flat and Louisville connected on their first nine field goal attempts to build an early 26-13 lead and go into halftime leading 41-31, only after a 7-0 run by the Hoyas in the last three-minutes of the half showed the first signs of life of any opposition to a Louisville win.

After a Jesse Sapp basket cut the lead to 41-33 early in the second half, Georgetown never really threatened any more as the Cards were able to hold them at an arm's length or more through the rest of the game.

Junior Earl Clark had 22 points and 8 rebounds in the win while senior Terrence Williams, as usual, did a little bit of everything as he scored 10 points, grabbed 12 rebounds and doled out 7 assists.

It is the 2009 Big East Tournament that is looking like Georgetown's last gasp hope at a NCAA Tournament bid, maybe even an NIT bid, which poses the question, What Happened to the Hoyas (Washington Post) this season?

Inexperience and a lack of depth was expected to cause some issues over the course of an 18-game Big East schedule, but their lack of progress as a team has been quite stunning. Confidence and chemistry issues seem to be at the forefront, but a listless early game effort is unexplainable as the Hoyas Can't Match Cardinals (Washington Post) in experience and strength, but the fact they couldn't match their effort early on while playing on their own home floor is something that likely has John Thompson III very concerned.

Chris Wright had a team-high 12 points and he put forth an admirable effort. The once efficient Hoya attack registered just seven team assists in the game last night and turned the ball over 15 times and shot just 39% from the field. JT III has been going deeper and deeper on his bench to find some combination that will work, but it continues to be to no avail.

After a game at Villanova on Saturday, Georgetown finishes up the regular season next week at St. John's before coming home meet DePaul.

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GEORGETOWN LOOKS TO SALVAGE LOST BIG EAST SEASON

February 23, 2009


Big Monday is upon us once again and a match-up that looked like a big one a couple months ago now becomes possibly a last stand for one participant in the regular season for the NCAA Tournament chances of the Georgetown Hoyas. After starting the season with much-hype and expectations, which hit a crescendo after a conference-opening upset of UConn, Georgetown staggers into tonight's game with a 5-9 Big East mark. Georgetown has lost eight of their last 10 games, only beating lowly Rutgers and South Florida along the way.

Louisville is very much in the Big East title chase, just a half-game behind conference leader Connecticut, tied with Marquette and Pittsburgh. At 12-2 in the Big Eat and 21-5 overall, the Cards have their eyes on a high seed in the Big Dance and another win on the road will help that case.

Here are a few pregame stories and previews:

Cards in Third Long Weekend (Courier-Journal)
Hoyas Miss Finishing Touch (Washington Times)
With Little Time, Hoyas are Facing a Long Climb (Washington Post)


We keep waiting for Georgetown to snap out of their funk and play to their potential for a full game. They came close to knocking off Syracuse in the Dome recently let a chance for a quality win over Marquette slip away this past weekend. The Marquette-Louisville two-game swing, both at home, was a chance for the Hoyas to put themselves back on track, now they must have tonight's game for even a mathematical chance at reaching .500 in the Big East season.

The season has been a frustrating one and signs of frustrations boiling over have been seen as reports of a halftime confrontation between starting guards Jesse Sapp and Chris Wright during the loss to Duke had surfaced. Sapp, the lone scholarship senior on the roster, has seen his minutes dwindle more and more since that time, leaving the Hoyas nearly void of any upper-class leadership. Junior DaJuan Summers is their leading scorer, but has battled an injured ankle and inconsistency.

Wright, a sophomore, is in his first full season as the starting point guard after following in the shoes of Jonathan Wallace, who started four-straight years under John Thompson III. Wright is still learning the intricacies of leading an offense as complex as the one used by Georgetown and the continuity of the attack has not been the same. With a team very short on depth and experience, they have been hit hard by the depth of the Big East.

Louisville has been pretty much playing to their season expectation. While guard play is still a bit too inconsistent, their bread is buttered by senior Terrence Williams and junior Earl Clark. With freshman center Samardo Samuels, the Cards boast a nearly NBA-ready frontcourt in the college game. Williams was in a little of an offensive slump recently, mostly attributed to a sore elbow, but he has been 'on' the last two games, highlighted by his 20-point, 8-rebound, 5-assist and 3-steal performance Saturday in a 72-63 win at Cincinnati.

Louisvlle will look to press throughout the game against a Hoya team very limited in ball-handling options and look to test the decision making and feel of the offense of Chris Wright. Of course, being able to set up the press is dependent on scoring, so the UL guards will need to show the ability to convert buckets to get the press started.

Louisville is the deeper team and that depth should help Louisville, a 1 1/2-point favorite, press the Hoyas into another loss.

NBE Blogger Prediction:

Louisville 69
Georgetown 62

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BIG EAST GAME PREVIEW: MARQUETTE @ GEORGETOWN

February 21, 2009

Chances are running out for Georgetown to make their case for a NCAA Tournament bid, but a win on Saturday against visiting Marquette could re-ignite their confidence and propel them into March. We could know the fate of the Hoyas rather quickly, seeing that they also host Louisville on Monday. Winning one might keep hope alive (road game with Villanova follows), winning both gets them to 7-8 in the Big East with St. John’s and DePaul to close the regular season after ‘Nova. Losing both…well, it has been quite a fall from grace since they opened conference play with a win over Connecticut and a spot in the top 10.

Marquette is fighting for the conference title and rebounded from their first two conference losses by beating St. John’s and Seton Hall at home. Those wins were crucial as MU has a five-game closing stretch that has long been considered to be brutal. Beginning with the road game with Georgetown on Saturday, the Golden Eagles host UConn, travel to Louisville and Pitt, before finishing up hosting Syracuse, all in 14 days. Welcome to the REAL Big East coach Buzz Williams.

“I think every game has critical impact on postseason, on your seed, on all those things, good and bad,” Williams told reporters this week. “I think if you don’t take care of your business today, none of that matters.”

There is a lot of business to take care of. Both teams are fighting for important positioning in the conference and national scene.

Earlier this season, Marquette outscored Georgetown 94-82 in Milwaukee to earn their eighth conference win of the season. The Marquette streak hit nine before they were sidetracked by South Florida in the biggest surprise of the Big East season to date. They followed that mis-step with a loss at Villanova. Now, after taking care of business at home, MU hits the road again.

Georgetown has lost seven of their last nine, but their last two games do offer some hope that things might be getting a little better. Even though they lost last Saturday at Syracuse, they but quite a scare into the nearly 32,000 fans in the Dome as they rallied from a 16-point halftime deficit in the final eight minutes of regulation to force overtime after having a chance to win it in regulation. They also looked like the efficient Hoyas we have become used to by dismantling South Florida on the road, 65-40, this week.

Hopefully they have overcome some of the internal issues that had Georgetown struggling earlier this season and their individual talent starts playing more as a complete team. They will certainly be tested with the guard trio of Dominic James, Jerel McNeal and Wesley Mathews. I am not sure the Hoyas will have an answer for McNeal, but I think Georgetown will also pose a difficult match-up for Marquette with Greg Monroe inside and definitely if they are able to slow the pace of the game, something they could not do on the road.

Expecting this one will be different that the first. Georgetown established the fact they could score against Marquette in the earlier meeting. Showing more basketball savvy and controlling the pace will key the Hoyas getting a big win on Saturday.

NBE Blogger Prediction:

Georgetown 67
Marquette 63

Trial By Fire (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)
Sapp Swap Has Hoyas Thinking Tournament (Washington Times)

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GEORGETOWN LOOKS FOR WIN IN SOUTH FLORIDA

February 18, 2009


The Georgetown slide continues as the Hoyas lost for the seventh time in eight games when they fell in overtime to Syracuse in the Dome last Saturday afternoon. While it looked like another lifeless performance as they trailed by 16 points with around 8 minutes left in the game, the Hoyas showed some life with a frantic rally that actually had a chance to win the game at the buzzer.

At 4-8 in the Big East and 13-10 overall, Georgetown can not afford any more slip ups along the way and with Marquette, Louisville and Villanova right in front of them on the schedule, this is a must-win game.

The Bulls have little to play for with a 3-9 conference record and an 8-16 overall mark. The Bulls could be motivated to win a fourth Big East game, which will be a new season best in their short Big East history. Earlier this month, they upset Marquette, 57-56, in the Sun Dome and will try and do the same to Georgetown tonight.

Here are some pregame stories and previews on tonight's match-up from the internet:

Hoyas seed Need to 'Relax and Play' (Washington Post)
Preview: USF vs. Georgetown (St. Petersburg Times)
Few Positives for Hoyas (Washington Times)


With the touhest strength of schedule rating in the nation and wins against UConn and Memphis on their resume, Georgetown remains very much in the mix for the NCAA Tournament despite their current location of 12th in the Big East standings. There is no denying the individual talent of Chris Wright, Greg Monroe, Austin Freeman, DaJuan Summers, etc on the Hoyas' roster, but their depth, size and inexperience has made things very tough in the deep, physical and mature Big East. Inconsistency was expected, but the highs have not come as often as the lows in conference play and some internal dysfunction which has spilled over at times has made this a trying season for the Hoyas.

There is still time to turn it around and it could begin tonight in South Florida. With some momentum of their comeback, even though it was a loss, against SU fresh in their minds, maybe just getting a win is a key step forward. Back-to-back home games on the short Saturday-Monday turnaround against Marquette and Louisville await the Hoyas, so getting some confidence with a win could put the the Hoyas in position to make one last run at the NCAA Tournament.

The Bulls are led by sophomore Dominique Jones and senior Jesus Verdejo. However, lack of depth upfront and overall Big East-level talent is still making life tough on the Bulls in this conference. The upset over Marquette was a great lift to their spirits, but the truth remains, USF is just 1-9 in the Big East against teams not-named DePaul. Maybe it is progress to know there is at least one team clearly below you (Rutgers might be as well), but the gap between the bottom of the conference and the rest of theleague remains a wide one.

Georgetown is a 6 1/2-point favorite on the road. While they are certainly the better team based on individual talent, the question is can co-exist together and accept roles that allow the team to become better. Tonight might be a case of taking out some frustrations, but in the games ahead, they have opportunity, but must come together much better.

NBE Blogger Prediction:

Georgetown 68
South Florida 58

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BIG EAST GAME PREVIEW: HOYAS LOOK TO SNAP OUT OF FUNK, BEAT RIVAL ORANGE

February 14, 2009


The Rivalry Week theme promoted by ESPN continues on Saturday with a high noon showdown in the Carrier Dome between longtime Big East rivals Syracuse and Georgetown. With both teams in a downward spiral through the Big East standings in the last month, this is a very important game for both teams hoping to keep their place at the table for the NCAA Tournament next month.

This is the second meeting of the year between the Orange and Hoyas. The first one, exactly one month ago today, was won by Georgetown, 88-74, at the Verizon Center in Washington, DC. However, that was the last high-point of the season for John Thompson III’s club as they have lost six of seven since.

Heading into the game on January 14, Syracuse was 4-0 in the Big East and 16-1 overall. The Hoyas jumped all over SU and got out to a big lead and the Orange never challenged on that night. The Orange followed up that loss with a resounding win over Notre Dame back home, but they are currently in a tailspin, not helped by injuries, that has seen them lost five of their last six game.

Here are some pregame stories and previews on today’s game:

Hoyas Keep Confidence (Washington Times)
Two Teams Have Come Back to Earth (Post-Standard)
Orange Scouting Report: Syracuse vs. Georgetown (Post-Standard)
History With Hoyas Filled With Drama (Post-Standard)


Following their win over SU last month, the Georgetown season quickly, and surprisingly, unraveled, beginning in their very next game, a loss at Duke. At halftime of that game, reportedly, senior guard Jesse Sapp and his backcourt mate, sophomore point guard Chris Wright, got into a heated altercation. Sapp, who has been in a near season-long shooting slump, has seen increased pine time since the incident, but this could be an area of team chemistry pulling the Hoyas apart from within.

Syracuse is a banged up team. They lost Antonio Jardine prior to the season and then Mookie Jones went down for the year with a hip injury last month. Now, Arinze Onuaku is playing on virtually one leg and Andy Rautins has been beat up, again causing Jonny Flynn to be an iron man on the floor. Syracuse is also looking pretty ragged in terms of teamwork, but playing in the Dome usually gives them an extra shot of confidence and energy, something they will need today from the large crowd.


NBE Blogger Prediction:

Syracuse 71
Georgetown 63

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LACK OF LEADERSHIP UNRAVELS HOYAS

February 11, 2009


While the Irish slide has shocked many, Georgetown is another team falling apart, but they have seemed to fall apart from within as 'dysfunctional' could be a term used in describing the Hoyas in the last month.

The young team has not seen it's veterans pick up the leadership duties and Finding a Leading Reason (Washington Times) for their slide seems to be pointed in direction of senior Jesse Sapp and junior DaJuan Summers.

The season began to unravel in the second half of their loss to Duke as the Hoyas collapsed emotionally. Summers missed crucial free throws and Sapp was on the bench following a halftime spat with sophomore point guard Chris Wright. In a loss to Seton Hall the following weekend, Sapp and Summers launched consecutive late game three's seemingly defying the instructions of John Thompson III to pound the ball inside to freshman Greg Monroe.

Sapp sat the entire second half of their latest loss, an OT decision at home to Cincinnati because of what Thompson dubbed a "coach's decision" after the senior guard apparently lost his cool concerning Thompson's wholesale, disciplinary first-half substitutions.

Bottom line...leadership and experience mean so much. Look at the top of the conference with Connecticut having senior guards AJ Price and Craig Austrie along with Jeff Adrien and juniors Jerome Dyson, Hasheem Thabeet and Stanley Robinson, Pittsburgh is led by Levance Fields, Sam Young and Tyrell Biggs, all seniors in the starting line-up, Marquette has the trio of senior gaurds in Dominic James, Jerel McNeal and Wesley Mathews and Louisville has Terrence Williams, Andre McGee, Earl Clark, Jerry Smith and Edgar Sosa as upperclassmen to lead. Georgetown seems to be missing that important trait and the impact is pretty staggering.

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GEORGETOWN CONTINUES TO SLIDE IN COLLEGE HOOPS

February 7, 2009


The way Georgetown started off conference play, with a win at UConn, nobody foreshadowed the fall that has occurred the past few weeks. Saturday might have been rock bottom as Cincinnati finished off a sweep with a 64-62 overtime win at Georgetown.

The Ice Cold Hoyas Continue to Skip (Washington Post), now losing six of their last seven and find themselves at 4-7 in the Big East.

UC Beats Georgetown in OT (Cincinnati Enquirer), despite not making a field goal in the extra session. The Bearcats scored all five of their OT points from the line. Georgetown missed all eight of thier field goal attempts in OT, including Austin Freeman's attempted three-pointer to win at the buzzer.

Deonta Vaughn had 16 points, 9 rebounds and 6 assists to lead UC while Mike Williams, Larry Davis and Yancy Gates each scored 11. Cincinnati is 6-5 in the Big East and have won six of their last eight games.

The offensive woes continued for the Hoyas, who shot 41% from the field and their five starters were a combined 11-36 from the field. Freshman Greg Monroe had 13 points, 6 rebounds and 5 steals to lead Georgetown.

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BIG EAST GAME PREVIEW: CINCINNATI @ GEORGETOWN

February 7, 2009


Georgetown finally tasted victory again on Tuesday night with a 57-47 home victory over Rutgers. The win snapped a five-game losing streak for the Hoyas who saw their record plummet to 3-6 in the Big East before picking up the much-needed win.

One of those five losses came on the road at the hands of Cincinnati, 65-57, just 10 days ago. Now, the Hoyas will look to even things up by beating the Bearcats at the Verizon Center. UC is coming off an impressive 93-83 win over Notre Dame on Wednesday night, evening their Big East record at 5-5, one game better than the Hoyas.

Here are some pregame stories and previews found on the internet:

Back on Track: Georgetown’s Sapp Eager to Lead (Washington Post)

In their earlier meeting, Cincinnati got a game-high 20 points from junior Deonta Vaughn, out-rebounded the Hoyas 36-31 and held them to 40% shooting in a 65-57 victory. Georgetown’s leading scorer DaJuan Summers played just 13 minutes in the game and did not return to the floor after spraining an ankle late in the 1st half with the Hoyas leading. He is healthy now and scored 22 points in their game at Marquette just a few days later.

Georgetown’s biggest problems, aside from the loss to Marquette, have been on the offensive side of the ball in their recent slump. They have scored 60 or less four times in the last six games and in their three consecutive losses to WVU, Seton Hall and Cincy, they were a dismal 10 of 55 from three-point range. The UC and SHU were close games and they shot themselves out of it from beyond the arc, going 8-39 in the two losses.

Losing their point guard and leading scorer from last year’s team has stripped much of the consistency of the Hoya offense. John Thompson III runs an intricate system based on the Princeton offense and this year’s team has had trouble finding the efficient harmony that the offense promotes against Big East competition. They also miss last year’s size and toughness that Roy Hibbert, Patrick Ewing Jr and Vernon Macklin could provide as they are routinely out-rebounded and out-toughed in the paint.

Cincinnati is a pretty sizeable challenge with a frontline of Mike Williams (6’7, 235), Yancy Gates (6’9, 255), Steven Toyloy (6’8, 255) and Anthony McClain (6’11, 245) rotating up front. Vaughn provides much of the scoring, and is coming off a season-high 34-point performance in the win over Notre Dame. The offense goes through Vaughn, who doubles as the team’s point guard, and he will be the area of concentration for the Hoya defense.

This is unlikely to be a very pretty game. Both teams need the win for their NCAA Tournament hopes and expect the defensive effort and intensity to pick up considerably down the stretch in conference action. If Georgetown can find anyone to knock down some shots, and they have players like Jesse Sapp, Summers, Chris Wright and Austin Freeman who are capable of doing so, they should be able to win this game.

Cincinnati will defend and hit the boards, which will give them a chance to win, but in the end, look for the home team to escape with a win, keeping their season alive.

NBE Blogger Prediction:

Georgetown 67
Cincinnati 60

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HOYAS SNAP LOSING STREAK AT RUTGERS' EXPENSE

February 4, 2009


The Georgetown/Rutgers games was definitely not a pretty one. However, the result was one that the Hoyas needed desperately as Georgetown Puts an End to Five-Game Skid (Washington Times) with a 57-47 victory over the Scarlet Knights in the Verizon Center on Tuesday night.

While their offense is still in need of some work, the Hoyas' defense did the job as Rutgers is Held to a Season-low 47 points in Loss (Star-Ledger) to Georgetown.

Senior guard Jesse Sapp showed signs of snapping out of his extended shooting slump, scoring a team-high 11 points on four of five shooting from the field and hitting both of his three-pointers. Greg Monroe added 10 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists as the Hoyas move to 4-6 in the Big East.

Rutgers seemed more intent on imitating Plaxico Burress and wounding themselves as Miscues Lead Georgetown Over the Knights (Asbury Park Press) as RU turns the ball over 21 times against the Hoyas.

Mike Rosario scored a game-high 20 points for RU, who trailed at one point, 49-29, before chipping away at the final margin of defeat.

Georgetown will host Cincinnati on Saturday as the two meet for the second time in 10 days with the Hoyas looking to revenge an earlier loss.

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BIG EAST GAME PREVIEW: RUTGERS @ GEORGETOWN

February 3, 2009


It is now or never got John Thompson III and his Georgetown Hoyas. If they can not snap out of their funk tonight in the Verizon Center when they host Rutgers, it might never happen this year.

Georgetown has lost five games in a row and now sit at 3-6 in the Big East at the halfway mark of conference play. They return home after an 0-3 road swing that included losses at Seton Hall, Cincinnati and Marquette.

Rutgers snapped their own nine-game losing streak with a 75-56 drubbing of DePaul at the RAC this weekend. It was the first conference win for the Knights who are 1-8 in conference play.


Here are some pre-game stories and previews from around the internet this morning:

At Big East Midpoint, Hoyas Face Steep Climb (Washington Post)
Knights Draw Sliding Hoyas (Asbury Park Press)

Georgetown did get injured DaJuan Summers back for their game against Marquette over the weekend. The Hoyas' leading scorer had missed the entire second half with an injured ankle the previous game, a loss to Cincinnati, and was listed as doubtful for the game with the Golden Eagles. Summers helped the struggling Hoya offense with a team-high 22 points and Chris Wright added his best performance in a while with 19 points and 8 assists.

However, on a day they got some offense (was averaging just 58 points in their previous three losses), Georgetown could not stop Marquette from scoring in the 94-82 loss. The game was tied at 42 at halftime, but the quickness of Marquette was too much for Georgetown as they committed 27 fouls and were outscored 30-8 from the foul line. So, despite shooting 56% from the field and hitting 10 of 20 from three-point range, it was another loss for the Hoyas.

Rutgers won the Big East Super(bad) Bowl on the eve of the Big Game by keeping DePaul (0-9) winless in the conference. Led by Mike Rosario and Jaron Griffin's season-high 16 points a piece, RU cemented the place of the Blue Demons in the conference basement.

Georgetown is listed as a 16 1/2-point favorite in the latest NCAA basketball betting odds. The line seems to be dead-on, but could be skewed with the early season effeciency numbers of the Hoyas which have not been the same of late.

Rutgers seems dysfunctional at times on the floor with poor decisions and gameplanning, but they do seem to play hard and they can utilize some size that might give the Hoyas some trouble at times. Georgetown definitely has more talent, especially in the starting line-up, but their lack of depth and inside muscle could keep Rutgers hanging around, at least a little bit.

NBE Blogger Prediction:

Georgetown 76
Rutgers 63

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