In the post-game press conference after Georgetown’s emphatic beatdown of Duke, the most pertinent question came from a radio reporter in the back of the room.
That reporter happened to be former Georgetown head coach John Thompson Jr.
“At what point will you win a game and they’ll stop talking about last year?” he asked Georgetown head coach (and his son) John Thompson III.
After the No. 7 Hoyas (16-4, 6-3 Big East) dismantled the No. 8 Blue Devils (17-4), the answer to Big John’s question should be “Now.”
Georgetown put on a blistering shooting performance, connecting on 71.7 percent of its field goals, while getting major contributions from its big three of Greg Monroe, Chris Wright, and Austin Freeman, who all finished with 20 or more points.
It was a good time for the Hoyas to play their best game of the season, with 20,039 fans, including President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden, looking on in a packed Verizon Center.
“We just never matched their emotion. This place was electric, their team was electric, and they played that way for 40 minutes,” Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “They just played a lot better than we did.”
The Hoyas came out ready to play from the opening tip, taking a 9-3 lead early. But the Blue Devils were able to keep pace, and even took a one point lead with just under ten minutes to go in the first half.
After that, the Hoyas caught fire. Georgetown outscored Duke 30-16 over the rest of the first period, largely on the back of Wright, who scored 16 of his 21 points before haltime.
Georgetown went into the locker room shooting 77 percent from the field.
“Our team with each game is getting a heightened sense and a better understanding that we don’t have to take a bad shot,” Thompson said. “The offensive players that we have, the guys know where their shots are coming from and they’re doing an outstanding job, night in night out, trying to help each other get shots.”
The electric atmosphere inside the arena undoubtedly had an influence on the Hoyas’ play. Despite a few specks of blue, the sea of gray filling the seats offered Georgetown a clear home court advantage, something not always apparent in the cavernous Verizon Center. Student support was particularly strong, with some fans camping out overnight outside the arena.
“Whenever we’re in anyone’s place, the atmosphere is pretty good,” Krzyzewski said. “If you invite us to your party, usually people want to have a good time.”
Of course, the presence of a number of VIPs, most importantly Obama, heightened the atmosphere above that of your average Duke game.
“It was exciting,” Wright said. “The crowd was pumped up, Obama was there. So it was exciting. I think that we all came out with a little more energy than usual. Not to say we don’t play with energy, but this game was something that we really wanted to get.”
Georgetown came into the second half with a 46-33 lead, and they never gave it up. The closest the Blue Devils would come was a 6-0 run to open the half, but the Hoyas quickly buckled down on defense and continued to shoot the lights out.
It was Monroe’s turn to take the spotlight in the second half. He scored 13 of his 21 points after the break, repeatedly getting into the paint and drawing contact to get to the foul line. The sophomore also had five rebounds and five assists.
Local product Nolan Smith, who played AAU ball with Wright, Freeman, and Hoya forward Julian Vaughn, led the Blue Devils with 19 points.
Freeman had 20 points for the Hoyas, but Georgetown’s large margin of victory owed greatly to solid contributions from the Georgetown reserves. In a game where foul trouble was always a lingering concern (seven Hoyas finished with three or more fouls), freshmen Hollis Thompson and Jerrelle Benimon came off the bench and combined for ten points.
“I thought everyone did their job,” Thompson said. “It’s easy to talk about the shot Hollis hit, but he had a couple terrific contests on the defensive end. And he had a few working, fighting over [Kyle] Singler in the post. I thought his defense was just as good. And then Jerrelle is Jerrelle. Jerrelle came in and he’s a presence in there for us.”
Saturday afternoon offered a much different scene than last year’s Georgetown-Duke meeting, a discouraging Hoya defeat marred by a phantom technical foul and an alleged locker room scuffle.
That loss sent the Hoyas into a downward spiral that cost Georgetown an NCAA tournament bid after a promising start. No matter how well the Hoyas started this season, the specter of that collapse would haunt the team.
But after exorcising last season’s biggest demons—or Devils—it’s time to put the comparisons to last year to rest.
“Light years,” is how Thompson described the difference between the squad that lost in Durham and the one that triumphed in front of the President.
“That’s what happens when you go from being a freshman to a sophomore,” he said. “That’s what happens when you go from being a sophomore to a junior. You mature, you get better.
“I think that this group can beat any team in the country—if we do what we’re supposed to do. And if we don’t, we’re going to lose to everyone else on our schedule.”
Best part about this: ad on the side is for Duke basketball gear