On Oct. 4, the Georgetown men’s basketball (BIG EAST) traveled to Winston-Salem, North Carolina to take on the Wake Forest University (WFU) Demon Deacons (ACC) in an exhibition match, winning 94-77. This is the first meeting between the two teams since 1997, when Georgetown lost 54-56. While the Hoya victory won’t count for their regular-season record, the performance sets a high standard for their season opener against Loyola Maryland on Nov. 2.
After a turbulent offseason defined by the transfer portal– which left the Hoyas with few returning players– and NCAA eligibility regulations threatening graduate student center Vince Iwuchukwu’s comeback, the Hoyas sported a new starting lineup. The team featured returning junior guard Kayvaun Mulready and junior center Seal Diouf, along with incoming transfers junior guard Vyctorious Miller, sophomore forward Josiah Parker, and senior guard Jaland Lowe.
Georgetown won the jump ball, but lost it on a bad pass from Parker, the first of many turnovers that plagued the Hoyas for the remainder of the game.
Fortunately, Wake Forest responded with their own turnover, allowing Diouf to steal the ball and dunk on a fast-break, putting up the first points of the game. Alas, Wake Forest again mimicked the Hoyas with their own jumper from redshirt junior guard Jamari McDowell.
For the following two minutes, Georgetown and Wake Forest traded missed shots, turnovers, and fouls, until Parker made a layup, giving the Hoyas a 4-2 lead three minutes into the game.
At minute 16, Lowe scored Georgetown’s first three after WFU tied the game with two free throws, 7-4. The Hoyas would ultimately score 16 three-pointers and shoot 55.2% from the three-point line.
In a pre-season media availability with Georgetown head coach Ed Cooley, he expressed his focus on improving the team’s three-point shot. “In the portal we targeted long-distance shooting,” Cooley said, “that clearly was a sore spot for us.” Cooley’s mission paid off as Georgetown’s three-point success allowed a Hoya runaway win.
For the next four minutes, Georgetown and WFU traded buckets, keeping the score tied until Miller scored his first three of the night. He followed up with two more threes within the minute, pushing the Hoyas’ lead to five. WFU responded with a fast-break dunk from freshman forward Gavin Placide.
Miller, however, did not slow down and banked his fourth three of the night ten minutes into the first half, bringing the score to 24-18.
The Hoyas continued to build on this momentum, taking possession of the ball and outscoring WFU 15-8 in the following five minutes, with two threes from Mulready and four points from transfer junior center Chol Machot.
With three minutes remaining in the half, Mulready attempted his third three, missing. It was recovered by Parker, who turned the ball over, leading to a WFU three from McDowell, bringing the score to 39-29.
Less than one minute later, Mulready made a second-chance three after a missed shot from senior guard Elmarko Jackson and an offensive rebound. With two seconds in the half, junior forward Caleb Williams banked another Hoya three, to bring Georgetown’s lead to 47-33.
The Hoyas excelled offensively in the first half with 16 made field goals of 26 attempts, 20 rebounds to WFU’s eight, and 10 of 16 three-pointers, outshooting WFU’s 2 of 11. Georgetown also displayed a high level of defensive physicality, resulting in both Diouf and Miller gaining three fouls each in the first half. Georgetown’s major downfall of the half was turnovers, of which they had 15, allowing WFU to score 33 points.
Wake Forest entered the second half of the game with intensity, scoring seven points in the first two minutes to quickly shrink the Hoyas’ lead to seven. Georgetown responded to WFU’s momentum with a few buckets of their own. Lowe assisted Diouf for an easy layup and an offensive rebound second-chance jumper from Parker kept the Hoyas in the lead and brought the score to 51-42.
The Hoyas continued their physical play, limiting the Deacons’offense, despite their initial surge in energy. At minute 17, Mulready scored his fourth three of the game which set off a slew of missed threes from both WFU and Georgetown, until Parker assisted Diouf for a dunk.
With Diouf one foul away from ejection, Machot entered the game for him and immediately took over in the post. After a missed layup from Parker, Machot grabbed the offensive rebound and forced a foul on WFU freshman forward Gallagher Placide. Machot’s one made free throw of two grew the Hoyas’ lead to 13 before he grabbed another offensive rebound and made a second-chance layup. Within the minute, Machot made another bucket off of a Deacon turnover, widening the lead and pushing the score to 60-44.
In an interview with the Voice at BIG EAST Media Day, Machot described his playing style as “defensive” and “energetic.” He certainly displayed that on Sunday. Georgetown’s relentless offense continued to outperform Wake Forest, as Jackson and Machot scored two threes within 35 seconds, only separated by a Wake Forest three from junior forward Ring Nyeri in between.
Following a series of substitutions, Jackson grabbed a bad pass from WFU’s graduate forward Justin Abson and scored a fast-break layup, bringing Georgetown’s lead to their largest of the game at 19.
Unfortunately, Georgetown was unable to hold onto their lead for long. Wake Forest picked up momentum after a series of turnovers and fouls from Georgetown. WFU cut Georgetown’s lead to 10 with a 6-0 run in 58 seconds, forcing a Hoya timeout.
After the pause, a series of fouls on both sides led to free throws from Machot, Gavin Placide, and Jackson, bringing the score to 76-63.
Mulready came out of the timeout ready to down his fifth three of the game after stealing the ball from Gavin Placide. Mulready followed his three with another steal, which resulted in a held ball and a substitution for Jackson.
Over the next five minutes, Georgetown regained momentum and scored seven points within a minute, forcing a Wake Forest timeout. With five minutes remaining, Parker banked another three and two minutes later landed a layup.
The Hoyas rounded out their score with two made free throws from freshman forward Justin Caldwell, bringing the final score to 94-77.
Over the course of the game, five Georgetown players scored double digits. Miller led Georgetown with 16 points, while Mulready and Machot scored 15 points each. Jackson added another 11 points and Williams had 10.
The Hoyas outshot WFU on free throws 75% to 56.3%, shot 60.0% (33-55) from the floor and 55.2% (16-29) from three, as well as outrebounded Wake Forest 38-25. Overall, the Hoyas played exceptionally well on both sides of the court. Georgetown consistently dominated on offense, especially in the backcourt, and held strong defense thanks to Machot and Diouf. However, the team still has a long way to go, especially regarding their 22 total turnovers.
In a post-game interview with Georgetown Athletics, Cooley said he was very proud of the team’s effort, “I thought we played hard…I thought our guys were locked in defensively, but we still got a long way to go. But I’m impressed with what we’re able to do, to, you know, to finish the mission.”
Georgetown continues with the second of its two preseason exhibitions on Friday, Oct. 16, when the team takes on the George Washington University Revolutionaries. Tipoff at Charles E. Smith Center in Foggy Bottom is scheduled for 6 p.m., and the game will be available on the Monumental Sports Network.
