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"Last two games here at home have been terrible you can tell the fucking commissioner and everybody else in the Big East that I said that": John Thompson Jr with an impromptu cameo during the Hoyas press conference
LINK TO PRESS CONFERENCE VIDEO HERE
BIG EAST statement below:
Expect the unexpected: We saw a lot of things happen tonight outside of the normal parameters of what you would expect from Georgetown and for the most part it worked when it needed to work.
Legacy: Trey Mourning came off the bench towards the end of the first half to spark an 8-0 run that saw the Hoyas take a 32-31 advantage into the break. Mourning scored six of those points as the erased a 31-24 deficit and stopped a 10-0 Bluejays run. Those points set a new career-high for the sophomore who saw his performance earn him a second half start while both Bradley Hayes and Jessie Govan sat with foul troubles.
Taking it to the Rim: After going down 70-59 with 2:32 left in the game, Georgetown - which shot 31 threes over the weekend in the loss at UConn - attempted just once in closing the game on a 15-3 run. Marcus Derrickson nailed a shot from deep to bring the Hoyas back to 70-62 but it was all drives after that for Georgetown. Speaking of Derrickson, he hadn't hit a 3-pointer in three straight games since returning after missing the St. John's game on Jan 13.
Offense/Defense: JT3 was able to sub in guys for offense/defense mutliptle times in the final 2:15 seconds despite having no timeouts. Riyan Williams was one of the guys going in and out three times as the Hoyas needed to keep LJ Peak and Bradley Hayes in the game despite having four fouls and needing to foul. It worked out perfectly as both Wiliams and Kaleb Johnson provided the cover on defense and provided some offense.
Rare FT: With D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera - game high 19 points - drawing all of the attention the senior guard was able to find a cutting Riyan Williams for a good look at the basket with 1:40 remaining and the Hoyas still trailing 70-62. Williams was fouled but had hit on just 1-of-5 free throw attempts this season and just 3-of-7 for his career (.429). With the Hoyas trying to mount a comeback that at the time seemed a bit unlikely, Williams split to pair to give the Hoyas life.
Thieves: While the win could be considered a steal all in itself, Georgetown matched a season high with ten steals (UMES). None were bigger than Kaleb Johnson's picked Maurice Watson Jr's pocket at midcourt with 51 seconds remaining and turned into a dunk to cut the deficit to 71-70. For Johnson, who played just five minutes, it was only his seventh steal of the season. DSR led the Hoyas with three steals.
All Eleven: All 11 Hoyas that were healthy and able to play not only played but they all scored including Riyan Williams lone point that provided vital. In fact both Williams and Johnson only scored during that final 15-3 push to earn the Hoyas a victory that kept them with a share of second place behind just Villanova.
Career Highs: Caught in a scoring slump in which he had scored just two points total as the Hoyas split a pair of road games with Xavier and UConn last week, Isaac Copeland set career highs with ten rebounds and seven assists. Copeland also finished with seven points in a game where he drew praise from his coach.
"Today he went out from the very beginning and made a concerted effort to play the whole game. He's skilled and talented enough where he can have these games where he's got the assists, the rebounds, the steals, the deflections, the communication on defense and if he keeps doing that the offense will come."