Hoya Madness: Dunk Contest Preview and Rundown of Recruits Attending

So, it is FINALLY that time of year. Georgetown's basketball teams will officially tip off their seasons at the annual Midnight Madness celebration in the McDonough Gymnasium that we all know and love. In order to prepare, I decided to put together a preview of tonight's festivities. I'll start with the featured event: the dunk contest.

Dunk Contest Competitors:

The Returning Favorites:

#55 Jabril Trawick, 6'5" Senior Guard

Throughout Trawick's three years on the Hilltop, he has been mostly inconsistent in terms of on-court performance. However, one thing he has shown is exceptional athleticism. Even though his athletic ability can't always shine through on the court, he has proven in the past that he is an excellent contest dunker. He has a unique blend of power and agility, and has also shown creativity and a flair for the dramatic in past contests. All of these traits combine to make Trawick one of the leading contenders in this year's dunk contest.

#23 Aaron Bowen, 6'6" Senior Forward

Bowen came to Georgetown as a lightly regarded three-star recruit, and did not receive much playing time during his first three years on the hilltop. However, he played 20 minutes per game last season, averaging 6.0 points per game on 49% shooting. Similarly to Trawick, he possesses the kind of athleticism that can turn heads. He has also been successful in past dunk contest, although he is more of a pure leaper than a power dunker. He has effortless bounce, and is always a threat to pull some magic out of his hat.

The Party-Crasher

#0 L.J. Peak, 6'5" Freshman Forward

A consensus top-100 recruit, Peak has received general acclaim for his play in high school basketball, and more recently in Kenner League. His main strength is his uncanny and relentless ability to get to the basket. And when he does get there, he has the ability to make something spectacular happen. Peak's senior season at Gaffney High School in South Carolina resulted in consistent fireworks, as he scored 38 points per game en route to being named Mr. Basketball in the state of South Carolina, and many of those points were scored via dunks, often of the spectacular variety. Peak has proven himself to be a great in-game dunker, and while he is more of an unknown dunk contest quantity than Bowen or Trawick, he has the potential to bring the house down on Friday night.

The Dark Horse

#11 Isaac Copeland, 6'9" Freshman Forward

Trawick, Bowen, and Peak are all cut from a similar cloth: athletic wings in the same size range, all with explosiveness leaping ability. Copeland is a different kind of player, a long, lanky forward with smooth athletic ability and agility, rather than a pure vertical leap. However, even though Copeland isn't an obvious dunk contest candidate, his length gives him the ability to do things that the smaller guys simply cannot. Even though he isn't the favorite in this contest, Copeland is definitely one to watch.

The Pick: Jabril Trawick

The Recruits:

While Midnight Madness is about celebrating the current edition of the Hoyas, it is also an important recruiting tool in order to showcase the program for potential future Hoyas. So, here are the recruits that will be attending this year's Hoya Madness.

Class of 2015 Recruits:

Perry (P.J.) Dozier, 6'5" G, Spring Valley High School (SC)

Dozier is the big fish out of the recruits that will be attending Friday's festivities. As we all know, the Hoyas have a shortage of guard depth. However, Dozier, a long, athletic combo guard, would provide much more than depth for Georgetown. He has the potential to be one of the best guards of the JT3 era.

Tacko Fall, 7'6" C, Liberty Christian Academy (FL)

Make no mistake about it; Tacko is a huge project. He needs to gain weight in order to compete at the high-major level. His low-post moves are far from developed. He needs to improve his understanding of the fundamentals of basketball. However, Tacko has one massively important trait: height. At 7'6" and with decent athletic ability, he has the potential to develop into a great Hoya big man, and that would have to start with a commitment.

Kaleb Johnson, 6'6" SF, Carlisle School (VA)

Johnson is a largely unknown and unranked recruit. He has versatility and a solid skill set on the defensive end, with active hands and quick feet, but it remains to be seen whether he can play at the Big East level.

Marcus Derrickson, 6'8" PF, Paul VI High School (VA) and

Jessie Govan, 6'10" C, Wings Academy (NY)

Both of the Hoyas' 2015 commits will attend Midnight Madness, and will participate in next year's version.

Class of 2016 Recruits:

Randall Broddie, 6'2" PG, Potomac High School (MD)

Broddie is a left-handed point guard with good ball-handling ability and a developing jumpshot. He is generally regarded as a fringe top-100 recruit, and as a local DMV kid he would be a good pull for the Hoyas' guard depth down the road.

Anthony Cowan, 6'0" PG, St. John's College High School (DC)

Cowan is another local 2016 lead guard who is also regarded as a fringe top-100 recruit. However, Georgetown has a few advantages in his recruitment. Cowan grew up as a Georgetown fan, and was actually the team's ball boy as a kid. In addition, he has a relationship with current Hoya Tre Campbell, his former teammate at St. John's College. We can only hope that these connections will help in Cowan's recruitment.

Sacha Killeya-Jones, 6'10" PF, Virginia Episcopal School (VA)

Killeya-Jones is a lengthy forward with good skills for his size and age. He is very mobile and showcases solid athleticism for his position. He definitely needs to put on weight to play at the Big East level, as he is currently listed as 190 pounds, but he has a lot of potential to be a solid contributor down the road.

Markelle Fultz, 6'3" SG, DeMatha Catholic High School (MD)

Fultz played JV basketball as a sophomore at DeMatha Catholic, but has been a fast riser with a strong summer performance. He received a Georgetown offer on his recent unofficial visit, along with one of his teammates...

Class of 2017 Recruits:

DJ Harvey, 6'5" SG, DeMatha Catholic High School (MD)

Harvey, Fultz's teammate at DeMatha, is one of the highest-rated prospects in the class of 2017. ESPN, Rivals, and 247Sports all rank Harvey in the top-25 2017 prospects nationally. Even though he is three years away from setting foot on a college campus as a student, we can hope that Midnight Madness gives us a head start in his recruitment.

Blake Harris, 6'3" PG, Carlisle School (VA)

Harris is a highly-regarded point guard prospect, a teammate of Kaleb Johnson's at Carlisle. 247Sports rates Harris as the #16 prospect in the Class of 2017, and bills him as a creative passer and a capable scorer at all three levels of the floor. Harris obviously has a long way to go, but he could eventually play a big role on future Hoyas teams.

Check out highlights of these recruits in "yaboynyp's" Fanpost from yesterday.

Get ready everyone. The 2014-15 season is finally here. Hoya Saxa.