Some Positives Came Out of the Loss to Maryland

For the first 78 minutes of the 80 minutes Georgetown has played this season, things went exceptionally well for the Hoyas. The final two minutes of the second game were obviously when things went off the rails.

It began with a comfortable 105-60 win over South Carolina Upstate. In that contest, new Hoya Rodney Pryor went off for 32 points in his first game since transferring from Robert Morris. He was 13-of-16 from the floor, hitting six threes, and winning Big East Player of the Week in the process.

It was just the start John Thompson III and Georgetown wanted after a slog of a season a year ago where the team relied too heavily on D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera to get its offense. Pryor gives the 2016-17 Hoyas another option beside L.J. Peak, Isaac Copeland and company.

This roster was injected with a bunch of new life during the offseason. Pryor was a D-1 transfer, but there was also junior-college transfer Jonathan Mulmore and freshman point guard Jagan Mosely, a product of New Jersey. In his first two collegiate games, Mosely already has eight assists and no turnovers while leading the offense.

After the USC-Upstate victory, Georgetown was flying high for most of its game against Maryland as well. It was just those final two minutes...

Georgetown led by nine points with a shade over two minutes left before a 17-7 run for Maryland gave the visitors the victory. But it wasn't just the comeback that leaves Georgetown questioning itself; it was the way it happened.

Maryland needed a bucket, a forced turnover and then two foul shots from Melo Trimble all in the final moments to take the lead. From there, GU had one final shot at the win, only to see the attempt pinned at the glass, securing the loss. Maryland coach Mark Turgeon admitted after the game how fortunate his squad was to win this one. When Tre Campbell stepped out of bounds to give the ball back to Maryland late, Turgeon was bellowing "at the top of my lungs" from the bench for his team to foul. Sometimes the figurative and literal bounces don't go your way.

Still, the Hoyas shot 40 percent from three and got to the foul line an incredible 42 times, connecting on 88 percent of those attempts. They outscored the Terrapins by 20 points from the free-throw line alone. Pryor and Copeland had poor shooting nights from the floor, but the rest of the lineup covered for them. Peak poured in a team-high 21 points, 19 of which came in the second half.

Those stats will usually translate to victory and are a good sign moving forward.

The Hoyas will have one (hopeful) tuneup against Arkansas State before taking on the Oregon Ducks. They will hope to work on finishing strong.