Thin rotation has put heavy load on starters
It’s been established that Georgetown’s thin rotation has caused its starters to shoulder a heavy load. It won’t get any easier to carry as the 12th-ranked Hoyas (13-3, 4-2 Big East) trek deeper into conference play to face the hottest team in the country, No. 9 Pittsburgh (15-2, 5-0), which wasn’t even ranked three weeks ago.
But if Georgetown can’t win with just six players — and it can’t — what do the reserves need to provide in their sporadic yet crucial minutes on the floor?
A little bit of everything.
“Coach doesn’t ask anyone to just score or just play defense,” said Hoyas sophomore center Greg Monroe. “Just coming in and affecting the game any way they can, I think that’s going to be helpful for us.”
After being hampered at the start of the season by an ankle sprain that limited him to just one game with more than 10 minutes of playing time over the first 13 games, freshman Jerrelle Benimon is starting to prove he can make that kind of impact.
The bruising 6-foot-7, 210-pound forward from Warrenton, Va., has played at least 10 minutes in each of Georgetown’s last three games. He had season highs of 21 minutes and six rebounds, and matched his season high with four points in Sunday’s loss at Villanova.
Like any budding first-year player, Benimon’s increasing moments of recognizable contribution — including a shot clock-beating heave for his first career 3-pointer during Georgetown’s second half comeback attempt against the Wildcats — were counterbalanced by head-shaking plays, too, such as an airballed 3-point attempt minutes later.
But the signs of growth are hard to ignore, and every minute of experience is precious. Look no further than junior forward Julian Vaughn (8.1 ppg, 5.4 rpg. 2.0 bpg), who has turned his shaky first season with the Hoyas last year (1.8 ppg, 1.7 rpg) into a distant memory.
“I’m more comfortable with the system and what coach needs me to do in the system, the Princeton,” said Vaughn. “Just being a year older helps, too.”
Said Vaughn of Benimon: “He knows how to play hard, knows what he’s supposed to do out there. He doesn’t get rattled or nervous, which is good, and he’s a great rebounder. We really need him and his presence. I think he’s going get better as the year goes on.”
