Georgetown men’s basketball (2-0, BIG EAST) defeated the Fairfield Stags (0-2, MAAC) 69-57 on Nov. 9 at Capital One Arena. For the second game in a row, freshman center Thomas Sorber proved why he is one of the most exciting freshmen in the country.
Georgetown made just one change to the starting lineup from Wednesday’s win over Lehigh, starting sophomore forward Jordan Burks over junior forward Drew Fielder, who missed the game due to illness. Sophomore Malik Mack, junior Jayden Epps, and graduate Micah Peavy started at guard, while Sorber and Burks made up Georgetown’s frontcourt.
Fairfield started the game on fire from deep, making five of their first seven three-point shots. The Hoyas didn’t do themselves any favors though, repeatedly giving Fairfield players open looks from deep. Thanks to that shooting success, the Stags took a 19-13 lead into the under-12 timeout.
The Hoyas quickly closed the lead though, as a three-pointer from Mack tied the game at 25 heading into the under-8 timeout. The Hoyas couldn’t pull away though, as misplaced passes and defensive miscues stopped any chance of a Georgetown scoring run. Still, the last play of the half showed what the Hoyas are capable of on offense. Georgetown inbounded the ball with six seconds remaining, then swung the ball around to find Epps, who drained a buzzer-beating three-pointer to put the Hoyas up 36-33 at the half.
The Hoyas had a rough start to the second half, with five turnovers in the first five minutes. Despite those mistakes, Georgetown opened up a 49-41 lead heading into the under-12 break, led by Sorber’s dominant post play, who kept maneuvering around Fairfield sophomore forward Peyton Smith. Sorber finished the game with 25 points and 9 rebounds.
The Hoyas and Sorber kept that momentum going throughout the rest of the game, expanding their lead to double digits and never looking back. They also cleaned up some of the offensive miscues that plagued them early in the game, only committing four turnovers after the under-12 break. They ended the game with a 69-57 win, looking dominant at times and very shaky at others.
Lack of team chemistry seems to be a likely culprit for some of Georgetown’s struggles, especially on offense. Saturday, the Hoyas consistently passed the ball to nobody and threw alley-oops to players who weren’t jumping. Mistakes like those could be signs that the team needs more time to gel, especially for a squad with 11 new players, or they could be harbingers of another season of mediocre offense. Tougher teams, like next Saturday’s matchup against Notre Dame, will show whether Georgetown can find their rhythm when it matters most.
Georgetown men’s basketball hosts the Notre Dame Fighting Irish (1-0, ACC) next Saturday Nov. 16 at 1:00 p.m. EST. For continued coverage and updates on Georgetown sports, follow @GUVoiceSports on Twitter.
