Teams

Georgetown:
The biggest problem for the Hoyas in this game was rebounding. They allowed Pittsburgh to get 18 offensive rebounds, and even when they didn’t lead to second-chance points, it made the Hoyas exert themselves on defense, which in turn made the offense struggle.

Pittsburgh:
The Panthers played a great game on the defensive side of the ball, rarely leaving Wallace open and collapsing on Hibbert at times. However, their free throw shooting was abysmal, missing 22 free throws and shooting only 50%. It’s a shame the Hoyas couldn’t take advantage.

Players

Georgetown:
Big Roy had another good night, scoring 17 points on 8-14 shooting. But he was scoreless for long stretches of the game, and Pittsburgh used physical play to disrupt him offensively. Perhaps if the Hoyas had made a more concerted effort to get him some touches, the offense might have found its rhythm.

Pittsburgh:
Ronald Ramon led the team with 17 points, his most critical basket coming in the final five minutes of the game. The Hoyas began to mount a comeback, but Jonathan Wallace had just missed a three-pointer that would have cut the lead to four. IN transition on the other side of the court, Ramon makes a three of his own to push the lead back up to 10. The game got closer afterwards, but it was a clutch shot that in my opinion won the game for Pittsburgh.

Coaches

One criticism I had for Coach Thompson was that he was not whistled for a technical foul. When the fouls are going consistently against your team, sometimes a tech will help get you a few calls, at least temporarily. But, Coach chose against it, and by the time the fouls started going Georgetown’s way, it was already too late.

Referees

While the referees are not to blame for the loss, they certainly did no favors to Georgetown. At one point in the second half DaJuan Summers had committed as many fouls as their entire team. The refs were a factor in the loss, but in the end the missed free throws by Pittsburgh almost neutralized the foul imbalance.

Number of the Game

35: Difference in the free throws attempted. Granted, Georgetown was fouling for the final few minutes of the game, but the Panters still attempted nearly five times as many free throws as the Hoyas, 44 compared to just nine for Georgetown.

Revenge

We talked about revenge earlier, and Pittsburgh was the one to get it. Hopefully, the Hoyas will be able to shake this loss off quickly and make a strong run in the NCAA Tournament.

Pittsburgh did a good job defensively, making sure Georgetown’s offense never got in sync. The Hoyas were also plagued with foul trouble for the whole game, as DaJuan Summers and Jeremiah Rivers fouled out, and Roy Hibbert and Patrick Ewing Jr. each had four. Despite the larger advantage from the free throw line, Pittsburgh let the Hoyas linger, as they shot a miserable 22-44 on the night. In the end, the Hoyas couldn’t pull out the victory, despite 17 from Hibbert.

The Hoyas now have to wait until tomorrow to see what seed they will get in the NCAA Tournament and where they will have to travel.

It’s going to be an exciting game - a rematch of last year’s final and the chance for Georgetown to beat the only Big East team it has yet to defeat. I’ll check back with whatever info I get, so stay tuned. And feel free to tell me what you think about the game or ask me any questions you have in the comments.

Teams

Georgetown:
The Hoyas continue to show their ability to win in different ways. Against Villanova, the team got no offensive production from Roy Hibbert, but used a three-point barrage to coast to victory. In this game, Georgetown used a revitalized Hibbert to pound West Virginia inside. They also continued their stellar defense, holding the Mountaineer’s hot hand Joe Alexander to just 12 points on 5-16 shooting.

West Virginia:
West Virginia had no answers inside to Hibbert, and each of the different defensive looks they tried ended with the same result. They started the game shooting a poor percentage from the field, but heated up to start the second half, making five straight threes. It was clear though that the blistering pace would not last the whole final twenty minutes, and they were held scoreless by Georgetown for nearly eight minutes.

Players

Georgetown:
Big Roy was huge, putting up 25 points and 13 rebounds. The Mountaineers were at his mercy all game, as he seemed to score at will. Hibbert’s performance hopefully shows that the Villanova game was nothing more than an aberration.

West Virginia:
The Hoyas did a good job of putting the clamps on Alexander, which meant someone else would have to step up. Da’Sean Butler had a good night, scoring 16 points on 6-9 shooting, but it would not be enough to move West Virginia into the finals.

Referees

Roy was whistled for an offensive foul early in the first half, and for a moment it seemed like he would again be mired in foul trouble. But, that did not materialize, as for the most part the referees called the game even. The most questionable call was the technical foul assessed to Chris Wright, as he shoved a West Virginia player off him after retrieving a loose ball.

Number of the Game

14.3: Free throw percentage for Georgetown. The Hoyas were only 1-7 from the stripe, and while it didn’t have an impact on this game, one has to hope the Hoyas can significantly improve that for the remainder of the post-season.

Revenge

Georgetown will take on the Pittsburgh Panthers in the Big East Tournament final again this year. The Hoyas were victorious the last time these two teams met in Madison Square Garden, but Pittsburgh beat the Hoyas earlier in the season. Revenge is a dish best served cold, and we will have to wait and see which team successfully avenges the earlier loss.

Pittsburgh was in control from the tip-off, leading by as many as 14 in the first half, and 13 at the intermission. The second half started to look like more of the same, as Young jumper put the Panthers up 16. But, despite getting little production from star guard Dominic James who was only 3-16 from the field, Marquette slowly but surely played their way back into the game. James missed an alley-oop layup but put back his own miss to cut the lead to three with under a minute and a half left. That would be the last field goal for Marquette, however, and Pittsburgh would close the game from the free throw line.

Marquette was led by Jerel McNeal, who scored 17 points despite foul trouble. Lazar Haywood added 10 points and seven rebounds in a losing cause.

The Pittsburgh win sets up a rematch of last year’s Big East Tournament Final, which the Hoyas won 65-42. The final tips off at 9:00 PM.