Hoyas Get Revenge
NORFOLK, Va. -- In the days leading up to the game, Georgetown players and coaches wouldn't say that tonight's bout with Old Dominion was a chance to exact some revenge for the Monarchs' upset win on the Georgetown campus last November. Even after his Hoyas had come away with a 66-48 victory in front of a sellout crowd at the Ted Constant Center, Head Coach John Thompson III refused to look the team's win as anything but much-needed preparation for the grueling Big East slate ahead. But that doesn't mean his players weren't thinking about it.
"Just to come in here and I guess get some payback it feels good to get the win, but it's more than that," fifth-year forward Patrick Ewing Jr. said.
The Hoyas were led by senior center Roy Hibbert, who turned in his first double-double of the season with 14 points and 10 boards in just 23 minutes of action. Extremely balanced in both minutes -- nine players notched between 17 and 28 minutes -- and points -- seven scored between six and 14 -- Georgetown used an efficient offense and swarming defense to even the all-time series with ODU at two.
After the game, Thompson was quick to laud the defense, but a little slower to compliment the squad's execution on the other end.
"Our offensive is not fluid by any sense of the imagination," Thompson said. "We spent a lot more time working on our defense. I think we can be flexible on defense and there are a lot more things coming. We're just laying the foundation for that as well."
For the Monarchs, it was the Gerald Lee show all night. Lee poured in 24 points -- half of his team's 48 -- and added 12 rebounds in 38 minutes of action. While Lee shot 11-of-20, the rest of his team managed only 9-for-44, an abhorrent 20 percent clip. By contrast, Georgetown connected on 52 percent of its shots.
"He's terrific," Thompson said of Lee.
Early in the game, it looked as the the Monarchs might have been capable of duplicating last year's 75-62 upset. The two teams were tied as late as 21-21 with 3:38 to go, but the Hoyas pushed their lead to seven, 30-23, just before the break on two baskets by Hibbert, a three by Ewing, and a dunk by freshman Austin Freeman.
"Give them a lead and you're in for a long night," Old Dominion Head Coach Blaine Taylor said.
Things only got worse after the half, as the Hoyas went on an 11-1 run over the first 3:49 of the second half to jump to a 17-point lead and essentially seal the deal.
"We softened up at the end of the half and after halftime we didn't come ready to play," Lee said. "We were soft and Georgetown was very good after the half and they played very strong and made plays."
For Lee, who only scored two points against Georgetown last year but has led his team in scoring this season, at least part of the reason for his big night was going up against Hibbert.
"You get jacked up when you know there is a future NBA player playing against you," he said. "I guess that's what made me play better tonight because I got jacked up."
Sam Harris, the Monarchs' 7-foot-3 center, struggled to reach a similar extra level. Though he blocked Hibbert's first shot of the game, it was all downhill from there, finishing with three points, two rebounds, and two blocks in 14 minutes.
"He doesn't play 7-foot guys like Hibbert every day," Taylor said.
In going on the road to Norfolk, the Hoyas faced easily their most difficult road test to date and perhaps their most difficult game overall. For the Monarchs, meanwhile, tonight's contest was their third straight against a ranked team. The 18-point margin was the widest of them all, with UNC beating Old Dominion by 17 and Louisville winning by 11.
Relatively speaking, at least, the Monarchs can breath a sigh of relief when they next take the court at Georgia State on Saturday. That same day, Georgetown is set to take on Fairfield at Verizon Center in the District.
