Georgetown Hoyas First Quarter Analysis

The team as a whole:

Dear Lord, we're a top 20 team, have knocked off two teams that were ranked in the top 10 at the time, we've played both incredible defense and sharp offense, and we haven't peaked yet.

Player performances after The Jump:

Henry Sims:

We knew Henry could make a 18-foot jump shot, we knew he could make a few post moves going away from the basket, and we knew he could pass well from the top of the key. I don't think anyone could have honestly seen the quickness Henry has shown to blow by his man from the top of the key (repeatedly) and also beat his man on the blocks for reverse slams. And do all of these things well almost all the time. He's using the most possessions on the team (25.8%) and he's been incredibly efficient (124 ORtg, 2nd best on the team and top 100 in the country). Whatever your upper bounds of expectations were for Henry coming into the year, he's exceeded it.

Jason Clark's Handle & Leadership:
Jason has shot the ball well, but even though he's been draining from deep (up until last few games) we knew he could do that. His handle was suspect coming in and it remained to be seen if he was a true #1 option. Well, despite not being a creator for others, I can't remember a time I've worried about his handle all season and he's been the best at the team getting dribble-drive penetration into the lane. He's been using those wildly long arms for an array of difficult finishes and in the second most important shot of the year, he stepped up and put away Memphis in OT with a deep three.

Hollis Thompson's Hair Volume and Jumper:
Hollis has let the hair grow the longest in his career, and he's helped put the knew look front and center with the most beautiful jumper in the nation. I can't remember ever seeing live a jump shooter scoring more effortlessly than Hollis over NJIT -- the Ninjas might has well have not been on the court. His offensive rating is an astounding 133.4 (25th in the country) and he is slowly taking on a greater offensive burden. Oh, and that Albama game...

Otto Porter:
There are five starters on the team -- and there are five finishers. Otto hasn't started a game this season, but he's always on the floor at the end of the game when it matters most. He already has a Casual Award named after him: The Otto Porter Award for Filling the Boxscore. Here's why: he's 3rd on the team in minutes, first in rebounds, second in steals, third highest offensive rating, fourth in points, second lowest turnover percentage, second in blocks, so on and so forth. In short, he does almost everything very well and his presence seems to anchor both the offense and defense. The one drawback is that he's about 15 percentage points from 3 away from immortality: he's shooting 24% from three and he's rimmed out a number of almost-game changing shots -- notably late in the Alabama game that would've eliminated the need for Hollis' heroics. If When those start falling, the Prince-town offense is going to add a whole new dimension of ferocity.

There are a few cynical questions that must be raised when peering into the future:

1) What can we expect from Jason Clark? Clark similarly started shooting out of his mind early in the season last year, but couldn't sustain it. His recent slump at least raises the question about what level of 3-point performance we can expect from him.

2) Similarly, with even more lurking doubts, is can Henry keep this up? There's absolutely zero reason to think he cannot based on on-court play -- he's been incredibly consistent and dependable... but after three years, is this really a mirage or cool trick?

3) Depth inside: Tyler Adams is out indefinitely, Nate has been a step slow, and we've relied heavily on Otto/Hollis at the four. Can this pass for a full year?

Delusion Trumps:
These questions exist, but right they shouldn't keep any Hoya fans up at night. Why? Because this team is only scratching the surface of it's potential. They're already playing tremendous team defense, forcing turnovers, getting out on breaks, and running a crisp half court offense -- and we haven't seen the best they have yet. Otto still getting his footing as an outside shooter and as a creator for himself; Whittington and Trawick have shown great offensive potential against elite opponents and even upperclassmen Henry, Hollis and Jason seem to be growing into their leadership roles.

As much as I'd like the Kansas game back with the recent stumbles of Memphis and Alabama, it's probably for the best this team lost that game. You cannot question the hunger and dedication of this team as a whole -- it's clear they have high aims.

The Sweet 16 has turned from a pipe dream... to a pretty standard expectation. That's a helluva first quarter. Let's hope the rest of the season follows suit.