For the second straight game, Georgetown held its opponent without a field goal for ten-plus minutes, keeping South Florida scoreless from five minutes after the tip until barely four minutes remained in the first half. The Hoyas were aided in their defensive efforts by the Bulls themselves, who committed numerous and egregious turnovers (at one point, five straight USF possessions ended in turnovers), missed free throws and lay-ups, and generally shot themselves in the foot offensively. But Georgetown’s defense also limited perimeter looks, rotated crisply, and held its own on the boards.

Initially, the offense wasn’t much to speak of, shooting just 35 percent for the first half and managing just three free throws over a nine-plus minute stretch. But that all changed after the half, when the Hoyas rattled off a 16-4 run to open the half, then scored on 14 straight possessions to end any thought of a South Florida comeback. Some of the new-found offensive production was the result of better ball movement, as Sims, Otto Porter (12 points, 4 assists), and Jason Clark (11 points, 2 assists) all picked up nifty assists. But the onslaught also was fueled simply by hot shooting, as seemingly ill-chosen long two-pointers and one-on-one forays alike led to baskets. Regardless, the jump in production, after recent bouts of offensive ineptitude, was plenty welcome.

In all, the win, its sixth holding a major-conference opponent under 60 points after four such victories last year, was further proof that Georgetown can win games with its defense. For all of Sims’s passing virtuosity, the absence of a true play-maker will continue to cause offensive lapses, but many fans exasperated by frequent defensive indifference in years past are willing to be patient with offensive difficulties. Saturday’s victory also runs Georgetown’s conference mark to 8-3 which, combined with Notre Dame’s win over Marquette, puts those three teams in a three-way tie (in the loss-column) for second place. The Hoyas’ position will be challenged Wednesday, when Georgetown travels to Syracuse to face the streaking Orange. The Hoyas will enter that game as underdogs, but, as they proved last year in the Carrier Dome, anything can happen.

The Hoyas turned things around very quickly in the second half. The Hoyas scored the first six points of the half, and kept the game out of reach, eventually extending to a 30-point lead. The scoring was very balanced for Georgetown, with five players in double figures, led by Henry Sims who scored 13.

Georgetown has now won two in a row, and five out of their last six. The winning streak will be put to the test on Wednesday night when they travel to the Carrier Dome to take on the top team in the Big East, the Syracuse Orange. The game is set to begin at 7:00 and will be broadcast on ESPN.

The referees today are Mike Stuart, Bill McCarthy, and Jeff Clark. Stay tuned for updates during the game, and be sure to check back for in-game comments and commentary.

Georgetown’s next opponent is South Florida. The Bulls have won four of their last five conference games and sit at 6-3 in Big East play, just a half game behind the Hoyas. And while the Hoyas held the Huskies to their lowest scoring output of the season of 44 in their last game, the Bulls put up 81 in their most recent contest, South Florida’s season high. We wonder where the final score will end up tomorrow.

How many points will USF and Georgetown combine to score?

We think this will be a a little higher scoring than the Connecticut game, with Georgetown probably getting into the 60s. We are guessing the total points scored will be 122. Leave a comment with your predictions.

Teams

Georgetown:
After a pair of poor performances on the offensive end of the floor, the Hoyas decided to inflict some pain on their opponent for a change, turning up the intensity defensively to soundly defeat Connecticut, 58-44. Georgetown’s defense set the pace for the game, as the Hoyas were very active, deflecting passes on seemingly every possession, and holding the Huskies to 30% shooting on the night.

While the offense was still not firing on all cylinders, they slowly but surely took the lead and extended it to double digits in the first half, and kept the lead for the rest of the game. They also controlled the pace of the game, keeping the score low and not allowing the Huskies to turn the game into a track meet. And especially given how much Connecticut struggled to score in the half-court offense, that was a key to success.

Connecticut:
The Huskies are in a free fall, having now lost four straight. But unlike the other contests which were all one possession games, this time Connecticut lost by double digits and were not closer than six in the entire second half. Their shooting was abysmal, and even their free throw shooting was under 50%. The Huskies were not getting stops and couldn’t make any outside shots, going a frigid 10% from three-point range. Connecticut trailed by ten at halftime, and briefly threatened in the second half, but then quickly fell behind by double figures again, and at that point the game was over.

Players

Georgetown:
Hollis Thompson had his best game in two weeks, scoring 18 points and grabbing nine rebounds. He again showcased his scoring versatility, slashing to the basket as well as hitting his three pointers, and his length caused problems for the UCONN offense. The Hoyas needed a strong performance against the Huskies, and Thompson certainly answered the call.

Connecticut:
Coming into the game, Jeremy Lamb and Shabazz Napier were the two leading scorers for the Huskies, averaging 32 points per game. They were well under that average against the Hoyas, only scoring 15 points on atrocious shooting. Lamb was 4-18, or 22% from the field, and 2-11 from beyond the arc, and Napier was even worse, missing all nine of his field goal attempts.

Andre Drummond was the only UCONN player to shoot over 50% from the field, scoring 18 points on nine of his 12 attempts, while the rest of his teammates combined to shoot under 19%. Drummond did have an Achilles’ heel though, as he missed all four of his free throw in spectacular style, including an airball.

Coaches

Midway through the first half have, it became clear that the Connecticut offense wasn’t working. But, Coach Calhoun seemed to make no adjustments, allowing his star players to keep shooting, even though they were clearly struggling from the floor. Even in the second half, the Huskies did not seem to change their game plan, even though it was apparent that their three pointers were not going to fall.

Number of the Game

10.5: Consecutive minutes without a field goal for Connecticut. The Huskies started the game 6-7 from the field, jumping out to a six point lead at the 16:30 mark in the first half. However, Connecticut would go without a field goal until there were just six minutes to play before the break. The damage had been done, as during that stretch the Hoyas took a lead that they would never relinquish.