The Hoyas had a chance, but it slipped away too quickly.
With 9.8 seconds remaining in Georgetown’s 70-67 loss to St. John’s (21-13) in the National Invitation Tournament Finals Thursday night, Hoyas junior swingman Gerald Riley threw up a off-balance three pointer that clanged off the rim and into the hands of Red Storm junior forward Grady Reynolds.
The basket would have put the Hoyas (19-15) up by two and probably secured their first NIT championship, but Riley’s attempt was a little too quick and a little too forced.
St. John’s first-year guard Elijah Ingram hit a pair of free throws on the other end and Hoyas sophomore guard Tony Bethel’s three at the buzzer hit the backboard and rim sharply and fell to the floor.
The game showcased two of the most underrated stars in the nation, Hoyas junior forward Mike Sweetney and Red Storm senior guard Marcus Hatten. Both players were contained at times, but played spectacularly at others. When it counted, Sweetney happened to be stifled more.
The 6-8, 260-pound forward controlled the first half, scoring 15 points on 5-10 shooting. The Red Storm had no answer for him, at one point throwing in massive 7-2, 322-pound junior center Curtis Johnson to guard Sweetney. Johnson promptly picked up two fouls in his first two minutes.
In the second half, Sweetney took only six shots, including only one in the last five minutes, a product of both better defense from St. John’s and Georgetown’s inability to work the ball inside. Sweetney finished with 25 points, nine rebounds and six blocks, one fewer than his career-high. For the tournament he averaged 24.4 points and 10 rebounds.
Hatten started out the game on fire, hitting two threes in the first minute and a half. He then was held scoreless for the next 15 minutes, until he hit an open three with 3:13 left in the half. Throughout the half, Riley and sophomore guard Drew Hall hounded him defensively, both limiting his driving options and denying him the ball. Riley and Hall’s effort paid off: The Hoyas held a 38-32 lead with 49.6 seconds left before the break. But after a Georgetown timeout, Bethel missed a terrible shot, Hatten hit an easy lay up on the rebound and the Hoyas could not counter before time expired. What could have been a six- or eight-point lead, was only four: 38-34.
That lead would prove to be fleeting for the Hoyas, as Hatten quickly found his stroke after the break. After three minutes without either team scoring to open the second half, including three missed shots from Hatten, the Red Storm went on a 9-0 run, seven by the senior guard. He finished with 22 points, including the free throw that put the Red Storm up to stay, 68-67, with 1:13 left.
The remainder of the second half was tight basketball; neither team could put together anything more than a six-point run, but St. John’s held the lead for most of the period. Bethel’s jumper with 1:30 remaining tied the game at 67, but the Hoyas did not score again.
Role players for both teams also played a major part, particularly on the glass for the Red Storm. When Hatten’s shot was missing in the first half, junior forward Kyle Cuffe kept St. John’s in the game. He scored all eight of his points in the half and finished with seven rebounds, all of them offensive. Reynolds recorded a double-double with 13 points and 14 boards. For the game, the Red Storm outrebounded the Hoyas 43-34, including 17 offensive boards.
For the Hoyas, first-year forward Brandon Bowman stood out at times, most notably at the end of the first half when he scored Georgetown’s last five points, including a nifty alley-oop from Bethel. Bethel also added 12 points and four assists.
The championship is St. John’s sixth, an NIT record.
Georgetown’s only other NIT finals appearance also ended in defeat. In 1993, Minnesota beat Georgetown 62-61.
