Daniel Varghese
The Georgetown men’s basketball team (2-3, Big East) will be looking to build its first winning streak of this season when it faces Maryland Eastern-Shore (1-4, MEAC) Tuesday night at Verizon Center. Tip-off is set for 7:00 p.m. EST.
The Hoyas will look to build off their 77-47 route over Bryant (2-5, NEC) this past Saturday, where four players scored in double-figures, including a double-double from freshman forward Marcus Derrickson and a game-high 20 points from sophomore guard L.J. Peak.
Sophomore forward Isaac Copeland tacked on his second successful offensive performance in a row after a slow start to the season. His 13 points against Bryant followed a career-best 21-point outing against Duke (6-1, ACC) in the 2K Classic championship game.
Preseason All-Big East First Team honoree senior guard D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera continued his quiet start to the season with nine points, while his co-captain senior center Bradley Hayes added another strong performance of 10 points and five rebounds to continue the promising beginning of his first year as a starter.
The Hoyas’ victory over Bryant witnessed the return of sophomore forward Paul White, who had sat out the first four games of the season with a hip injury. White, who saw significant minutes last season, deepens a Georgetown rotation that has relied heavily on freshmen forwards Jessie Govan and Kaleb Johnson during their first month of college ball.
White’s fellow sophomore, guard Tre Campbell, was still unable to play after missing the trip to New York for the 2K Classic the weekend before due to illness. He is, however, expected to play Tuesday.
UMES will make the short trip across the Chesapeake following their first win of the season coming against St. Francis (Pa.) (2-3, NEC) 70-57 at home. The Hawks are led by an upperclassmen core of senior guard Devin Martin, senior forward Dominique Elliot, and junior forward Bakari Copeland. Martin is the team’s leading scorer at 14.4 points per game, while Elliot and Copeland both hit the glass for over six rebounds per contest.
Following a grueling opening to the season against Maryland, Wisconsin, and Duke, the Hoyas will look to bounce back to .500 ball before a meeting with their arch-rival, the No. 14 Syracuse Orange, (6-0, ACC) on Saturday. The matchup with UMES and the highly anticipated return of the Georgetown-Syracuse rivalry both come in the middle of a seven-game homestand that runs through the month of December before the Hoyas begin conference play away at DePaul (2-3, Big East) on December 30.
For those not attending, the game will be broadcast on Fox Sports 1.
