Georgetown Preview

Georgetown and DePaul Battle to Stay Out of the Bottom of the Big East at Wintrust

The Setup

DePaul plays the Georgetown Hoyas on Tuesday, 1/2/2018 at 8:00 pm Central at the Wintrust Arena in front of what will most likely be a couple of thousand blue seats.  It will be carried on FS1 (Channel 237 on Comcast) and on the Score (Radio 670).

Georgetown comes into the game with 10 wins against crap opponents.  8 victories against sub-300 teams and 2 victory against sub-200 teams.  However, in their 3 games against top 55 teams, they have had 2 games go to Overtime (Syracuse and Butler), and they played competitively against Marquette.  In many ways, the Hoyas have mirrored your DePaul Blue Demons.  They have beaten the teams that they are supposed to beat, and have come agonizingly close to getting a big win.  Both teams have this game circled on their calendars as a win.

Gambling Corner

Vegas has DePaul favored by -3.5.  Kenpom expects DePaul to win by 3.

Recent History

Last Meeting:  DePaul Won!!!!  67-65 in DC.

Things have not gone well for DePaul with Georgetown, but then again, which Big East team has DePaul had success against?  Since DePaul joined the Big East in 2006, the Demons have gone 2-16 against Georgetown (the other win was in 2014 BE Tournament).

All time:  This is the 38th meeting between the two teams. Georgetown leads the all-time series, 29-8.

Fun Facts

I was at the last home victory that  DePaul had over Georgetown  on an early Saturday morning start in January 1994 on CBS.  I actually got on TV and stuff.  We have hosted them at least 8 times since then.  Pathetic.

Religious affiliation:  Jesuits

What the Hell is a Hoya?

Back in the day, all Georgetown students were required to learn Greek and Latin.  The University’s teams were nicknamed the ‘Stonewalls’, a student started a new cheer screaming Hoya Saxa which roughly translated to ‘What Rocks’.  There is your knowledge of the day.

Old Footage of Georgetown Coach Patrick Ewing Destroying DePaul

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gTSS_I_rObI

 The Current Flavor of Hoyas

Who Should Scare the Blue out of Us?

Best Player:  Jessie Govan

6’ 10” 270 pound Junior center.  He gets a huge percentage of available offensive and defensive rebounds as his among the national leaders in both categories.

Quick Note

This is a winnable game, and DePaul better win.

Beatable team

The Hoyas like to turn the ball over a ton.  They turn the ball over about 1 in every 5 possessions, which would be 299^th out of 351 teams.  They are a below average 3pt shooting team, which is generally DePaul’s Achilles heel.  The bang the ball inside, and have a highly efficient offense.  They shoot 2pt shots and free-throws incredibly well.  They draw a ton of fouls, and they get a ton of offensive rebounds.  Some of the items may be skewed, since they have played the worst schedule in the Division 1 basketball.  They are a tall team (28^th tallest), although this may also be skewed with 7’3” 9^th man Chris Sodom.

The start 2 Freshman, Jahvon Blair and Jamorko Pinkett.

In games against top 60 opponents, G’Town has not shot the 3 well (11.8%, 31.8%, and 32.1%), and has turned the ball over 16, 21, and 25 times.  Their opponents shot 43%, 14.3%, and 50% from 3pt. land.  Marcus Derrickson has been there most consistent player in these games.

How does DePaul Matchup?

Let’s go to the tail of the tape.

Offense

Both teams are relatively impatient on offense.  When the Hoyas do not turn the ball over, they have one of the most effective offenses in college basketball.  42^nd in the country at 2pt shooting and 16^th in the country at free throw percentage.  They cause a lot of contact and go to the line often.  Most of their points come via an assist.  They shoot less 3 pointers than most teams 269^th, and they make a lower percentage of the ones that they shoot.  If Georgetown does not turn the ball over, it will be a long night for the Demons.

DePaul continues to be an inefficient offense.  Although they had a train-wreck of a half against Xavier , the Demons still turn the ball over less than most teams, and have a high offensive rebound rate.

Advantage:  These are 2 highly flawed offenses.  Push

Defense

Both teams make their opponents hold the ball longer.  Both teams defend the lane well.  The key difference is that the Hoyas also defend the 3pt line well.  Their versatile team can contest both inside and outside the arch.  Georgetown likes to host block parties in the lane, 47^th in the nation at blocks.  The Hoyas also excel at rebounding on the defensive end limiting offensive rebound (DePaul strength).  At the end of the day, Georgetown’s defense is highly efficient (18^th best in the country.)

Advantage:  Georgetown

Other Stuff:  Which lineup are we going to see?

It will be interesting to see which lineups Coach Leitao deploys.  Georgetown’s front line is 6’ 10”, 6’ 8”, 6’7”.  Maric should match up with Govan size wise, as will McCallum with Pinkett, but who will guard Derrickson?  Is Butz going to start instead of Cyrus?  Is Roberts going to get additional playing time, and if so, who is out?  Cyrus, Cain or both?  Strus will have a size advantage over Jahvon Blair, along with an experience advantage.

Possible Debut of Flynn Cameron

17 year old Flynn Cameron became eligible as of January 1st, and may very well debut in this game.  To read more about him, click on the link in the prior sentence.  He is another non-true point guard, but we all know this team needs help at the point.

In Conclusion

Expect two desperate teams playing hard.  The game will come down to whether the Hoyas protect the ball or not.  If they do, they will get their first Big East win.  If the Demons can get Georgetown to mishandle, Blue Demon Nation, all 23 of us and growing, can celebrate our first victory of the Big East season.