Turnovers, fouls finally manage to hurt Hoyas Georgetown’s 11-game winning streak that ended with Saturday’s 74-62 loss at West Virginia was perfect in record only.
From overtime heroics against Memphis in Maui in November to a comeback from 17 points down against Marquette last week, the Hoyas (13-2, 3-1 Big East) were on the brink of defeat on multiple occasions. But they have found ways to prevail, each time adding to the myth and mystique of a team unknown and unheralded coming into the year.
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| Up next |
| Cincinnati at No. 9 Georgetown |
| When » Monday, 9 p.m. |
| Where » Verizon Center |
| TV » ESPNU |
The task now — with only short preparation before facing equally capable Cincinnati (12-4, 2-1) — is to rebuild that aura after struggles both familiar and expected from a young team surfaced against the Mountaineers, including turnovers, foul trouble and toughness at the defensive end.
“For large stretches this year I think we’ve been a very good defensive team, and we were not a good defensive team [vs. West Virginia],” Hoyas coach John Thompson II said. “Our communication wasn’t where it needed to be, and I think that was the game.”
The Mountaineers shot 50 percent from the field against the Hoyas, the best of any Georgetown opponent and slightly better than Kansas, which shot 47.1 percent to beat Georgetown in Maui.
But the Hoyas also turned the ball over 15 times in Morgantown, the fourth time in the past five games that they had reached that mark. In the second half against Memphis and the first half against Marquette, stretches in which the Hoyas haven’t been crisp with ball possession have kept games closer than they’ve needed to be. Six turnovers in the first six minutes against the Mountaineers prevented Georgetown from establishing its rhythm offensively, and normally sturdy freshman Otto Porter matched his season high with four.
Foul trouble, which played a part in forcing Thompson to use four freshmen and Jason Clark for a long stretch against Marquette, was similarly disruptive at West Virginia, forcing Jason Clark to the bench for much of the first half. Clark finished the game 0-for-4 from 3-point range, matching his worst performance of the season from beyond the arc.
Henry Sims and Nate Lubick also fouled out against the Mountaineers, the second and third Georgetown players to do so this season after freshman Greg Whittington was disqualified in the overtime win against Memphis. Despite maintaining his spot in the Hoyas’ starting lineup, Lubick has averaged just 2.9 points and 3.6 rebounds in the last nine contests.
The Bearcats are first in the Big East in points allowed (57.2) and fourth in field goal percentage defense (.392). Like West Virginia, they also have had recent success against Georgetown, having won four of their last five meetings. Before a buzzer-beating loss to St. John’s on Saturday, Cincinnati had won seven games in a row, the first six without senior center Yancy Gates (12.4 points per game, 9.1 rebounds per game) and freshman center Cheikh Mbodj (3.9 ppg, 3.4 rpg), who were among four players suspended for their part in a brawl with Xavier in early December. Sophomore guard Sean Kilpatrick leads the Bearcats with 15.7 points per game.
