• Allen Iverson has yet to play for the Memphis Grizzlies as he injured his hamstring before his new team’s season got started. He did however return to practice this weekend, and he will likely make his Memphis debut tonight.
• Jeff Green has gotten off to a great start with the Thunder as he’s averaging just shy of 20 points in his first three games. Last night, Oklahoma City dropped its first game of the season, but Jeff earned a double-double in the losing effort with 19 and 11.
• Roy Hibbert and the Indiana Pacers are off to an 0-2 start to the 2009-10 season, but the good news is that Roy has been getting some more minutes and he’s been managing his foul trouble situation a bit better than he had in his rookie season. We’ll have to see if he can keep that up, because the more minutes Roy can play, the more of an impact he’ll have. And more good news – the Pacers have picked up the contract option on Roy for the rest of the season.
• DaJuan Summers has yet to see any action with the Pistons so far, as Detroit has gotten off to a 1-2 start. He hasn’t dressed for the first three games, but hopefully his effort in practice will help him break in to the game day roster.

Well apparently, that wasn’t the first time Big Roy has been in front of the camera, as the Indiana Pacers have decided to give Hibbert his very own section of Pacers.com for a video blog called “Roy’s Life.”

In Episode 1, you can see the Big Fella playing Guitar Hero, singing along with “Livin’ on a Prayer” and dancing to “Beat It”.

NBA.com videos don’t let you embed so here’s the link – Roy’s Life: Episode 1

March 3, 2007: Connecticut

The Hoyas crushed the Connecticut Huskies 59-46 to claim the 2007 Big East Regular Season Title. Roy Hibbert had game-highs with 18 points and 12 rebounds, and also added three assists, three blocks, and three steals. The victory also marked the first time that Georgetown beat the Huskies in the Verizon Center.

January 12, 2008: Connecticut

Roy Hibbert made a three-pointer with under four seconds to play to give the Hoyas a dramatic 72-69 victory over the Connecticut Huskies. The final basket of the game gave Hibbert 20 Points to lead all scorers. Patrick Ewing Jr., who would later be named the Best Sixth Man in the Big East, scored 14 points off the bench.

January 19, 2008: Notre Dame

Georgetown dominated Notre Dame 84-65 thanks to a double-double from DaJuan Summers (17 points, 11 rebounds). Roy Hibbert scored a game-high 21 points, but more importantly, he shut down the Big East player of the year Luke Harangody, who managed 13 points on 3-13 shooting from the field. In the teams’ two meetings at Verizon center in 2007 and 2008, the Hoyas beat the Fighting Irish by an average of 18.5 points.

January 21, 2008: Syracuse

In a game reminiscent of the early days of the Big East Conference, Georgetown defeated Syracuse 84-82 in overtime. Jessie Sapp scored five points down the stretch to force overtime, and the Hoyas came up with a critical stop in the final seconds thanks to the defensive efforts of Jeremiah Rivers.

February 11, 2008: Villanova

This was the first time that Georgetown beat the Villanova Wildcats at the Verizon Center. The game was tied in the final seconds and Villanova was going for the final shot. A solid defensive possession by the Hoyas made sure the Wildcats couldn’t even get a shot to the basket. Jonathan Wallace ran down the loose ball and was fouled with less than half a second to play. The senior captain calmly sank both free throws to make the final score 55-53.

March 8, 2008: Louisville

Georgetown defeated Louisville 55-52 to claim their second consecutive Big East Regular Season Championship. The win was a fitting final game for the four Hoya seniors – Roy Hibbert, Jonathan Wallace, Patrick Ewing, Jr., and Tyler Crawford. The game made for a memorable Senior Day, even though freshman Austin Freeman scored a team-high 15 points.

Did we miss one of your favorite games? Let us know in the comments.

When the class of ‘08 were graduating high school (in 2004), Georgetown Basketball was in trouble. The team had just come off its worst season in 30 years, the coach had been fired, and there was not a lot of hope on the horizon. But thanks to the efforts of those 5 players, after their four years as Hoyas, the program is back where it belongs.

There are so many ways that the class of ‘08 helped Georgetown Basketball, but the one that is most relevant in light of the current home winning streak is that for the first time since the Hoyas moved to the Capital Center in the early 1980s, the team has a real home-court advantage.

In the old days, when the Hoyas were national championship contenders every season, it didn’t matter where they played. Honestly, the Hoyas were just as likely to win on the road as at home. In fact, the Hoya Class of 1985 (which included Patrick Ewing, Bill Martin, and Ralph Dalton) lost 3 conference games at home over their final two seasons. The Class of 2008 only lost one. I’m sure Coach Thompson III would have preferred a National Championship like the Class of ‘85 had during their junior seasons, but anytime a group can outperform a Patrick Ewing-led team, it’s definitely noteworthy.

Green, Hibbert, Wallace, Ewing, and Crawford laid an essential foundation across the board, but especially at home: the momentous win over Duke, the ability to close out close games, the back-to-back regular season titles clinched at home, and the longest home winning streak since WWI. Jessie Sapp, DaJuan Summers, Austin Freeman and Chris Wright will continue to lead the Hoyas over this and the upcoming seasons, and these players have excellent role models for how to take care of business at home from their former teammates – the Hoya Class of 2008.

My fiance and I got a couple seats in the front row of some section in the 400s, and we had a nice view of the Hoyas’ new Final Four banner. We were excited to see Roy earn his second career NBA start, and we cheered for him when they announced his name in the starting lineups. After that, he got set up to take his first jump ball in the Verizon Center since Senior Day. It’s kinda neat thinking that the last time he was in this arena, he was holding the Big East Championship Trophy.

Roy won the opening jump and picked up an assist on the first basket of the game, seven seconds in. After that, things started to get ugly. Foul, air ball, foul, rebound, foul, bench. Not to happy a return for the Big Fella, as less than six minutes into the game, he had already picked up three fouls, and was set to sit out the rest of the half.

When he came back in to start the third quarter, he did better, but he still looked suspect on defense and missed a couple putback layups on offense. He had a nice goaltending, which I was very supportive of, and eventually got sent back to the bench. While he was out, the Wizards managed to catch up and tie the game and then fall back behind by twenty.

Roy got to make a final appearance in the final minute of the game, but by that time most of the fans – including the group of Hibbert fans I saw below me wearing We Are Georgetown shirts and a Navy Blue #55 Jersey – had already gone home. That was when Roy picked up his first points back at the Phone Booth off a pair of free throws.

Not the best performance for Big Roy, but he was welcomed home by the Hoya faithful, and we all wish him the best as he learns the ropes of becoming an NBA center.