Your Georgetown Hoyas returned to their home court tonight and defeated the UMBC Retrievers by a score of 90-81. Caleb Williams led with 18 points and 8 rebounds. KJ Lewis had 17 points, 5 rebounds, a pair of blocks and a steal. Malik Mack added 15 points, 7 assists and 3 steals. Julius Halaifonua played 33 minutes, scored 16 points, grabbed 9 rebounds and recorded 4 assists. Isaiah Abraham delivered his strongest all-around performance yet for the Hoyas, scoring several double figures in the process.
It was important that the Hoyas get this game-winning game because the news that Vince Iwuchukwu would be out for six to eight weeks, combined with two straight losses during the Thanksgiving MTE in Orlando, had brought the collective delusion level down several notches.
Georgetown scored 7 unanswered to start the game, with baskets by C. Williams, Mack and Lewis. UMBC held steady and got on the board, and it was 9-5 Hoyas at the first TV timeout.
Langston Love got some early minutes and intercepted an errant Retriever pass that set up Jeremiah Williams for a hard hook shot. Halaifonua also established his position inside early, defending against UMBC’s big man for back-to-backs.
Traditionally, Georgetown didn’t have a big lead. The Hoyas made it 3-4 and that’s about where it hung for the rest of the half. Georgetown shared the ball well with assists on 75% of their field goals, and the sequence that featured a driving finish from Lewis to Abraham, followed by a putback from Halaifonua, nicely sums up the variety of teamwork we like to see.
That said… there were also deep flaws visible. If the Hoyas’ defense had been turned on from distance, they wouldn’t have allowed UMBC to score on 8 of 9 possessions, and scoring 45 points in a half would have made for a much more impressive halftime score. As it stood, they had to settle for a 45-37 lead at intermission.
Georgetown gave up two straight baskets coming out of halftime, taking the margin from “familiar lack of killer instinct” to “shocked flashbacks of past deadly cupcakes.” It was 45-41 with 18:26 to play.
This moment (thankfully) seemed to prompt the Hoyas to get their act together. Georgetown scored 17 unanswered points (10 of them in just 73 seconds), with Mack driving well, Lewis and Abraham contributing and Julius scoring well from both the field and the free-throw line. At 3:03, the Hoyas led 62-41.
A pair of triples from C. Williams and another from Love over the next few minutes allowed the Hoyas to keep their ~20-point lead alive. With just under 10 minutes to play, Georgetown was on top 75-53, and their defense at least partially contained the Retrievers.
The Hoyas dropped the intensity level prematurely more than three-quarters of the way through the second half, giving up four straight buckets. The dominant lead shrunk to something decidedly less comfortable, with Georgetown ahead 84-73 with 3:46 on the clock. That advantage was cut by another two points before Mack knocked down a three from the top of the arc to stop the bleeding.
The Hoyas’ inability to grab an easy rebound on the final UMBC possession was a final moment of frustration, but Lewis’ tough defense within the same sequence was encouraging to see, so we’ll call that a wash. At the buzzer, Georgetown had the only lead that mattered: the one that will go down as a 90-81 win.
Awareness of who has the hot hand or the open shot, getting to the line more consistently than in years past, and a willingness to share the ball well are strengths of this group. The defense had long, dark stretches with a few bright moments and generally improved in (most of) the second half, but will need to function consistently at a much higher level to win games once BIG EAST play begins. It should also go without saying, but they need to learn to finish strong.
Next up, the Hoyas are back on the road as they travel down Tobacco Road to take on #16 UNC on Sunday, December 7. It starts at 5:00 PM ET and airs on ESPN.
#DEFECTIVE #FINISH #Georgetown #Tops #UMBC