As could be expected in their season opener, the Georgetown men’s basketball team looked a little rusty. Luckily for the Hoyas, their opponent was Hartford. The Hawks, despite playing above expectations, could not make up for what they lacked in talent in comparison to the No. 8 Hoyas, as Georgetown escaped with the 69-59 win at the Verizon Center.
“I think our guys know exactly where we stand, and they know that we have to improve,” Hoya Head Coach John Thompson III said after the game. “No. 8 or No. 80 does not enter into our consciousness. We just have to prepare, and we have to get better.”
Well, the Hoyas are not No. 80, and the Hawks put together a tremendous effort in a game that had them obviously overmatched. Both teams played sloppily with Hartford committing 14 turnovers to Georgetown’s 12. What kept the wind underneath the Hawks’ wings was their three-point shooting. During the game their precision from behind the arc was hardly flawless at 34.6 percent but only seemed like it in comparison to the Hoyas’ measly 26.1 three-point percentage. Leading the way for the Hawks was 6’8” senior forward Alez Zimnickas, who shot a perfect three-for-three from the land of plenty. The threes may have kept the game close, but sometimes too much of a good thing is bad.
“We’re operating with, kind of, fools’ gold at times when you’re making threes, making threes, making threes, but you haven’t established anything solid,” Hartford Head Coach Dan Leibovitz said.
Hartford was able to establish a solid defense, though, on the other side of the ball. Their changing zone defense kept the Hoya offense guessing. The Hawks also made it tough for juniors Roy Hibbert and Jeff Green to establish themselves in the post, while the Hoya guards struggled from outside.
“It was kind of tough because of the defense they played,” Green said. “They played a lot of 1-2-2, 1-3-1, 2-3, and they kind of switched it up a lot. It was kind of tough to figure out what they were doing, so it was tough to throw it inside because they are all going to double[team].”
It was a good sign for the Hoyas, though, to see their two big men quietly combine for 33 points while having a “tough” time. While some of the team struggled, the Hoyas were able to take a 31-27 lead into halftime because of the individual play of some players. Junior guard Tyler Crawford left room for improvement in his one-for-eight three-point shooting but led the team in rebounds (nine) and steals (two). While most of the Hoyas jacked up numerous unfruitful three-pointers, junior guard Jonathan Wallace proved that at least one of the guards can shoot, going three-for-four with two three-pointers for eight points in the half.
The Hoyas also got some big plays that can’t be seen by just looking at the one block and one steal next to freshman DaJuan Summers’ name in the box score. He forced a steal seconds after he came in six and a half minutes into the game, as he tipped away a Hartford entry pass into the low post. This takeaway led to a three by Wallace on the other end. A minute later Summers would step up to take the first shot of his college career. He probably wishes he could have it back, as it airballed long. He quickly forgot about it, though, as on Hartford’s ensuing possession he came from the weak side to make a crowd-pleasing rejection on forward David Bookman’s driving lay-up attempt that looked like it would go uncontested until Summers arrived.
There were several points in the game when Georgetown would get a big play like this block and look to make a run. Every time, though, they would be disappointed by a subsequent Hartford run. One of these Hoya runs was sparked by Green just minutes into the second half. He drove baseline and rose on the other side of the hoop for a rim-rocking dunk. This would be followed by a three by Crawford, a Hartford timeout and then a lay-in by Hibbert. Hartford would answer with a run of its own, though, to take a 39-38 lead at the 13:50 mark.
In the end, Georgetown won the battle of runs and the game itself. The difference in the game, as often is the case in close matches, came down to the charity stripe. In the first half, Hartford made no trips to the line and then shot only 54.5 percent on free throws in the second half. The Hoyas, on the other hand, made their way to the free-throw line often and capitalized on it, shooting 79.2 percent. Despite playing strong against Hibbert and Green down low, the Hawks sent them to the line more than anyone. Much of the two juniors’ point production came from the free-throw line, as they combined to miss only two of their total 15 free-throw attempts.
“Against a team like this, it’s hard for us to post up guys like Hibbert and Green inside,” Coach Leibovitz said. “But I think the guys did a pretty good job, certainly from an effort standpoint. They were scrappy, dug down in the post. So I commend the effort, but it’s about more than just effort.”
Following this game, the Hoyas will look to use this test down the road, making them ready to put together a better effort in close games against tougher opponents.
“Of course a game like this tested us a lot,” Wallace said. “This should help us out a lot, letting us know that nothing’s going to come easy. People are going to gun for us, and we’re going to gun for other people.”
