Georgetown men’s basketball (8-15, 1-11 BIG EAST) fell in embarrassing fashion to AP No. 1 UConn (22-2, 12-1 BIG EAST) 89-64 on Saturday, Feb. 10 at Capital One Arena. Junior guard Dontrez Styles led the Hoyas with 23 points as the team dropped their third consecutive home game by more than 20 points.
The Huskies had their foot on the gas from the very beginning, with a layup from sophomore forward Alex Karaban followed by a pair of threes from Karaban and graduate guard Cam Spencer putting UConn up 8-2 in the first two minutes. Layups from Styles and sophomore guard Jayden Epps brought the Hoyas to a 10-6 deficit at the under-16 timeout, but UConn’s offense continued to soar. The Huskies skyrocketed to a 28-12 lead, capped by a Karaban three pointer which prompted Georgetown head coach Ed Cooley to call a timeout with ten minutes left in the half.
Out of the timeout, a missed three by senior guard Wayne Bristol Jr. was rebounded by UConn before Huskies freshman guard Stephon Castle hit a wide open dunk, forcing Cooley to call another timeout just 40 seconds after his previous one, and leaving the Hoyas with only one more stoppage timeout for the rest of the game. Bristol Jr. made an impressive shot from the field after the pause before a foul on freshman guard Rowan Brumbaugh resulted in an embarrassing UConn dunk off the inbounds pass from junior forward Samson Johnson.
These frustrating spectacles and more left Cooley irate on the side of the court. A shot from the field by Castle brought the Hoyas down 20 with four minutes left in the half, and despite three pointers from Styles and Bristol Jr., the Hoyas’ defense never looked prepared as the Huskies broke 50 points before halftime. A missed free throw from senior forward Supreme Cook put an exclamation point on the lousy half, and the Hoyas went into the locker room down 52-28.
Early in the second period, a quick Cook layup and a Styles jumper gave fans early hope that the game wouldn’t be a blowout, but ultimately the Hoyas’ halftime adjustments were not discernible down the line. The Hoyas were never able to bring the score within 20 in the second, and were still dominated by the likes of Karaban and sophomore center Donovan Clingan.
Although a good defensive stretch for the Hoyas resulted in UConn not scoring for four minutes straight, Georgetown’s lackluster offense continued to struggle, with Epps scoring his second and last jumper from the field at the ten-minute mark.
A three from Karaban brought the Huskies up 27 with five minutes left in the game. At that point, UConn head coach Dan Hurley, confident in the Huskies’ lead, pulled Karaban, who received deafening cheers from UConn fans as he took the bench.
In the final minutes of the game, Cooley, having admitted defeat, began to pull Georgetown’s starters as well, and junior center and fan-favorite Ryan Mutombo scored the final points before UConn dribbled out the clock to a 25 point victory.
There are many things to complain about from this game. Jayden Epps, once the leading scorer in the BIG EAST, only put up four points as he slid down the rankings to fourth in the conference in points per game. Off the court, it’s become apparent that Georgetown doesn’t have any home-court advantage, as Capital One Arena was once again swarmed by opposing fans and the student section was unable to deafen the loud cheers from the UConn faithful.
The Hoyas play another Top-25 team on Tuesday, Feb. 13, when they visit the No. 19 Creighton Bluejays (17-7, 8-5 BIG EAST) at 8:30 PM in Omaha, Neb. The game will be broadcast on FS1. For continued coverage and updates on Georgetown sports, follow @GUVoiceSports on Twitter.
