Hoya Madness: Welcome to The Delusional Bracket ROUND OF 64

Hey sports fans!

In keeping with this site’s trademarked (and “kid tested, mother approved”) balance between cynicism and delusion, we are bringing you the ultimate adventure in pain and glory. Want to relive the doom and gloom of our 2008 second round loss to Davidson, which was re-aired on CBS Sports Network last night (THANKS CBS)? We’ve got you covered. Feel like being inspired by Otto’s majestic 33-point performance at the Carrier Dome in 2013? No problem, it’s all here.

For the next couple of months, we’ll slowly reveal two monster 64-team brackets: one for Hoya Madness (The Delusional Bracket) and one for Hoya Sadness (The Cynical Bracket). Importantly, the date range for these high highs and low lows will only span the last 16 years of this program’s history (the entire JTIII and Ewing eras).

So, if you’re desperately craving content in these covid-filled days, you’re about to be smacked over the head with a rolling pin filled with content. If you’re a single guy or gal who is bored out of your mind, done with Netflix, and you don’t feel like using this apocalyptic time for “personal development”, we’ve got some content for you. And if you’re spending every waking minute of the day trying to balance homeschooling your kids with doing your day jobs, we’ve got some content for you (you know, during those five minutes each day when you’re crying in the bathroom).

Here’s how this works. Each day or two, we will reveal a new matchup (or two) and a new poll. Each matchup will include a quick synopsis of the game. We encourage you to reminisce, comment like crazy, express all the feels in the world, and then VOTE. Voting on each and every one of these matchups will be good practice for voting in November. We will alternate matchups between Hoya Madness and Hoya Sadness, so you will receive the appropriate balance of elation and depression. Hooray? Yes, hooray.

Global pandemics are terrible. Our hope is that this little cathartic exercise will be slightly less terrible.

We hope you enjoy. But, FFS, if you argue with anyone over the results of these brackets, or the memories that these brackets recall, please keep all violence at a respectable distance of six feet. AND WASH YOUR FREAKING HANDS.

Sincerely,

That Child Actor Who Starred in the movies What about Bob?, Dick Tracy, Hook, and Can’t Hardly Wait

Delusional Bracket — First Round Matchups:

Jonathan Wallace Region

1 - Georgetown 96, North Carolina 84 - March 25, 2007: A massive comeback at the Meadowlands. An earth-shattering Jonathan Wallace three. Domination in overtime. No further explanation necessary.

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16 - Georgetown 73, St. John’s 72 – February 2, 2020: The Groundhog Day comeback at the Garden. Yurtseven’s lay-in with ten seconds to go capped off a frenetic comeback win for the Hoyas, who overcame a 17-point second half deficit to steal this game on the road and keep their slim Tourney hopes alive. Despite not having McClung (who was out with a lingering foot injury), Georgetown used a full-court bench and a bevy of little-used reserve players, including walk-ons George Muresan and Jaden Robinson, to fight back. Blair scored a career-high 23 points and Jagan Mosely might’ve played the most complete game of his career, filling up the stat sheet with 16 points, seven rebounds, five assists and three steals in 40 minutes (we’ll ignore the six turnovers because, hey, he was exhausted).

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8 - Georgetown 79, Memphis 70 – December 13, 2008: Avenging their loss from the previous season, the Hoyas won a thriller against the Tigers in overtime, as Chris Wright hit a gigantic basket in the extra session after picking up a loose ball, spinning at half-court and ultimately hitting a clutch layup while drawing a foul in the final minute. DaJuan Summers led Georgetown with 21 points, while Tyreke Evans scored 20 for Memphis.

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9 - Georgetown 111, Missouri 102 - November 30, 2010: In a fast-paced, high-scoring affair, Georgetown squandered a seven-point halftime lead, tied the game at the end of regulation with a dramatic Chris Wright three, and then used Jason Clark’s hot hand in overtime for the big victory. Austin Freeman led the Hoyas with 31 points, Wright chipped in with 21 points and ten assists, and Jason Clark hit three massive three-pointers in overtime to seal the win. The speedy Marcus Denmon led the Tigers with 27 points.

The Jonathan Wallace Region - First Round Matchups

(4) Georgetown 62, Boston College 55 – March 17, 2007: In their second-round matchup against Jared Dudley and BC, the Hoyas stormed back behind Roy Hibbert’s 17 points and Jeff Green’s two three-point plays in the final two minutes of the game. Tyrese Rice scored 22 points for the Eagles, who had opened an eight-point lead in the second half before Georgetown roared back in the first matchup between these teams since BC left the Big East for the ACC.

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(13) Georgetown 65, Oregon 61 – November 21, 2016: The only positive moment in Maui. Following two devastating losses to Maryland and Arkansas State, Georgetown faced a killer first round opponent in Maui: #13 Oregon (a team which would eventually win the Pac 12 and go to the Final Four). Rodney Pryor wasn’t impressed. His 26 points and ten rebounds (including a deep three just before the half) propelled Georgetown to a massive win. The Hoyas led by 17 at the half and held on for dear life in the second frame. Sandwiched in between a bunch of dreadful losses, this proved to be one of the final bright spots of JTIII’s tenure.

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(5) Georgetown 72, Connecticut 69 – January 9, 2010: The Austin Freeman game. Matching the same exact score as their 2008 win against the Huskies, the #12 Hoyas stormed back from a 15-point deficit to shock the #13 Huskies by scoring 47 points in the second half. Freeman netted 28 of his 33 points in the second frame, as Georgetown held UConn without a bucket in the last three and a half minutes. After the game, Jim Calhoun said: “Part of the thing is you hear sometimes about Georgetown, ‘They run a five-man system. Nobody is a star.’ Austin Freeman was a star today, I’ll tell you that.” Yes, he was.

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(12) Georgetown 81, Xavier 72 – January 19, 2016: The Tre Campbell game. On the road, in front of a raucous crowd in Cincinnati, against a team ranked fifth in the country, Georgetown improbably dominated this game, led by Tre Campbell’s career-high 21 points (17 in the first half). DSR chipped in with a cool 20 points.

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The Jonathan Wallace Region — First Round Matchups

(2) Georgetown 91, Syracuse 84 - March 11, 2010: This was the quarterfinals of the 2K10 revenge tour. The #8 Hoyas defeated the #1 Orange on a Thursday afternoon at the Garden. Chris Wright led the way with 27 points and Greg Monroe poured in 15 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists.

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(15) Georgetown 88, Illinois 80 – November 13, 2018: This hard-fought early season victory on the road was the first time most of the fan base caught a glimpse of the new freshmen core, featuring Akinjo, McClung and LeBlanc. Akinjo led the way with 19 points and seven assists, including a game-clinching floater (and a foul!) with 39 seconds to go. Akinjo exhibited steely leadership, McClung was fiery and carefree (and had a pretty reverse dunk), and LeBlanc was everywhere, chipping in with 14 points and seven boards. The season’s potential was on full display and this game got us excited for both the next few months and next few years.

(7) Georgetown 61, Pittsburgh 58 – February 5, 2006: Georgetown erased a 15-point deficit and survived a late rally to edge the #9 Panthers and give the Hoyas their sixth straight win. Jeff Green scored a career-high 22 points, while Georgetown’s defense did not allow Aaron Gray to score a single point after intermission. In the closing minute, Georgetown almost squandered a ten-point lead, but Ronald Ramon missed an open three as the horn sounded.

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(10) Georgetown 64, Michigan St. 60 – February 1, 2014: Super Sunday. It was Super Bowl weekend at Madison Square Garden and the struggling Hoyas put together a late-game run to overpower the banged-up #7 Spartans. It was easily Georgetown’s best win in an otherwise frustrating season. Jabril Trawick ended the game with an emphatic dunk to seal the victory. JTIII won his one-and-only game against Tom Izzo.

The Jonathan Wallace Region — First Round Matchups

(3) Georgetown 55, Louisville 52 - March 8, 2008: Senior Day at the Phone Booth. In this final game of the 2007-08 regular season, the Hoyas edged Louisville to claim their second regular season title in a row. Austin Freeman led the way with 15 points and DaJuan Summers hit a dramatic three from the corner with less than a minute to go to give the Hoyas the win. Hibbert, Wallace, Crawford and Ewing celebrated by posing with the plaque at the end of the game.

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(14) Georgetown 84, Butler 76 – January 2, 2019: The Greg Malinowski Game. Connecting on 6 of 7 from long range, Malinowski poured in a career-high 26 points (with six rebounds and four assists to boot) as Georgetown kicked off Big East play in memorable fashion by doing what it typically does: winning at Hinkle Fieldhouse.

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(6) Georgetown 79, Connecticut 78 – February 27, 2013: The Hartford thriller. In a game that Georgetown should have lost multiple times, the Otto Porter-led #7 Hoyas surged back from seven points down in double overtime to keep their massive winning streak alive and steal one at the XL Center. Despite only scoring one point in the first half, Porter erupted for 21 in the second half and overtime to help the Hoyas edge UConn. The lasting image from this game is Otto Porter streaking down the court for a silky-smooth lay-in with twelve seconds to go to cap an 8-0 run to end the game.

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(11) Georgetown 60, Butler 54 – March 3, 2015: DSR’s homecoming. This battle between two teams competing for second in the Big East, on Butler’s senior night (significantly, Roosevelt Jones’s senior night) ended up being DSR’s Indianapolis homecoming. His 16 points and seven rebounds led the way, but it was a crafty steal at the end that most folks will remember. Clinging to a two-point lead with ten seconds to go, Joshua Smith missed the front end of a one and one; Butler grabbed the rebound, but DSR alertly swiped away the ball and secured the massive win for the Hoyas.

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The JTIII Region — First Round Matchups

(1) Georgetown 87, Duke 84 - January 21, 2006: The game that put us back on the map. We beat the undefeated #1 team in the country and restored the program to national prominence.

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(16) Georgetown 72, Connecticut 69 – January 14, 2017: There’s just something about playing UConn at home. Giving the Hoya faithful flashbacks of the Roy Hibbert game (the GW three-pointer) and the Austin Freeman game (in which he fueled a massive double-digit comeback victory), the Hoyas played inspired basketball in the second half, as they overcame a 14-point deficit to secure the win. Peak scored 16 of his 21 points in the second half, while Govan and Pryor chipped in with 15 and 14, respectively.

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(8) Georgetown 84, Eastern Washington 74 – March 19, 2015: The year we (finally) took care of business in the first round of the NCAA Tourney. This up and down affair, while not always pretty, ended emphatically with a Jabril dunk. Bradley Hayes was the unsung hero (after other bigs were in foul trouble) and Georgetown seemingly exorcised a bunch of demons by actually winning a game in the Tourney against a lesser opponent. This, sadly, was the last time Georgetown won a postseason game of any kind.

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(9) Georgetown 57, Alabama 55 – December 1, 2011: Hollis, FTW. This was the game that featured a last-second game-winning three by Hollis Thompson to allow the Hoyas to escape a tough contest on the road. This one was fierce and competitive throughout, and the Hoyas found themselves trailing by a single point with 12 seconds to go before Thompson buried a three after a pass from Jason Clark to finish off the Crimson Tide.

The JTIII Region — First Round Matchups

(4) Georgetown 72, West Virginia 55 – March 14, 2008: In the semifinals of the 2008 BET, Georgetown left no doubt that it deserved to win these teams’ earlier matchup in Morgantown (that ended with the controversial Ewing block), as the Hoyas absolutely pasted the Mountaineers by 17. The day before, Georgetown hit a barrage of threes to beat a pesky Villanova squad, as Roy Hibbert was held scoreless. In this contest, Hibbert absolutely dominated, scoring 25 points and grabbing 13 boards. After the game, he said, “I’m a monster. I’m a monster. Be afraid.”

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(13) Georgetown 77, Seton Hall – March 2, 2019: Jessie Govan’s Senior Day and the Akinjo floor slap. This double OT game was exciting as hell, but most will probably remember this one for two key moments. The first was Govan’s heroic performance: despite having one of his worst shooting performances from the field, he put things together and scored all 11 of Georgetown’s points in the second overtime, while finishing the game with 21 points and 12 boards. The second moment was Akinjo’s floor slap play. Mocking Quincy McKnight’s constant chirping and floor slap of his own, Akinjo scored a tough lay-in, got in McKnight’s face, slapped the floor, and energized the crowd. Notably, Josh LeBlanc also chipped in with 14 points and a career-high 17 rebounds. Myles Powell’s 35 points just weren’t enough.

(5) Georgetown 78, Villanova 58 - January 19, 2015: This was the win that finally put Georgetown on the national radar in 2015, as the unranked Hoyas raced out to a 22-point halftime lead and never looked back against the #4 Wildcats. DSR and Isaac Copeland paced the Hoyas with 17 points apiece, while Jabril Trawick filled in admirably at the point, while also using his patented hard-nosed defense to fuel the Hoyas’ offense with four steals and one memorable step-back three-pointer at the end of the first half.

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(12) Georgetown 66, Florida 65 – November 26, 2014: DSR’s buzzer-beater capped off a frantic finish in overtime at the Atlantis, as these two heavyweights traded baskets at the end, until DSR hit a step-back jumper from the top of the key to give the Hoyas some measure of revenge for the loss in 2006. The freshmen were huge for the Hoyas, as both L.J. Peak and Paul White hit big shots down the stretch.

The JTIII Region — First Round Matchups:

(2) Georgetown 65, Pittsburgh 42 - March 10, 2007: Big East champions. This was a coronation, as the Hoyas secured their first Big East tournament title since 1989 and their first and only title under JTIII.

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(15) Georgetown 93, St. John’s 89 – January 20, 2018: This double OT thriller was probably the most memorable game of Ewing’s first year as head coach. In arguably Marcus Derrickson’s best game as a Hoya, he led the way with a career-high 27 points, including 16 during the two overtime periods to overcome a monster game by Shamorie Ponds (33 points). This game appeared over until Derrickson hit a massive game-tying three at the end of the first overtime. His clutch shots, along with a key three-point play by Jagan, propelled Georgetown to a gutsy win on an otherwise sleepy Saturday afternoon at Capital One Arena.

(7) Georgetown 55, Notre Dame 54 – January 23, 2005: Hibbert dunks, Hoyas win. This is the game that ended with a game-winning Roy Hibbert dunk at the buzzer. After leading for most of the second half, the Hoyas gave up a three-pointer to Colin Falls with just six seconds to go, and then Ashanti Cook raced down the court, found a streaking Hibbert and watched the big fella throw the ball through the hoop for the victory. Keep in mind that this was when Hibbert was still uncoordinated and could barely make it up and down the court. It was a good win against a hated rival. Brandon Bowman and Jeff Green played well against the likes of Chris Quinn, Chris Thomas and Falls.

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(10) Georgetown 91, Indiana 87 – December 27, 2014: DSR dominates his home state. This one was an overtime thriller, as DSR (29 points), Aaron Bowen (22 points) and the rest of the Hoyas overcame a ten-point halftime deficit and a barrage of late-game threes by Yogi Ferrell to put away the Hoosiers in overtime at Madison Square Garden.

The JTIII Region — First Round Matchups

(3) Georgetown 70, Ohio State 52 - March 19, 2006: Buckeye beatdown. In this NCAA second round matchup, the #7 Hoyas smoked the #2 Buckeyes behind Roy Hibbert’s 20 points and 14 rebounds. Notably, only four Georgetown players scored in this game. Brandon Bowman missed all six of his shots.

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(14) Georgetown 85, Butler 81 – January 28, 2017: Georgetown used one of the most efficient offensive performances in school history to stun #11 Butler at Hinkle Fieldhouse and leave the Hoyas with two wins against ranked opponents in four days. This might be remembered as the game when Jessie Govan hit a gigantic three from the top of the key (just before the shot clock expired) with a minute to go. Incredibly, the Hoyas shot 72.7% from the field in the second half (and 63.8% for the game). Peak and Pryor combined for 42 points, with one of the more memorable sequences coming when Pryor scored 11 straight points (including three contested three-pointers) after picking up his fourth foul.

(6) Georgetown 70, Marquette 68 - March 1, 2008: The “Wallace gets fouled while shooting a three” game. In what proved to be a nail biter, the #11 Hoyas edged the #21 Golden Eagles after Jonathan Wallace, who was fouled while shooting a three with 2.8 seconds left in regulation, hit all three of his free throws to send the game into overtime. Hibbert and Wallace led Georgetown with 20 points apiece, while DaJuan Summers pulled down an impressive 14 rebounds. A balanced attack from the Hoyas was just enough to defeat Marquette’s three-headed monster: Wesley Matthews (22 points), Jerel McNeal (17 points) and Dominic James (15 points). The win set the stage for an epic showdown with Louisville the following week to determine which team would win the Big East regular season.

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(11) Georgetown 75, Creighton 63 – March 4, 2014: On senior night at the Verizon Center, Markel Starks and DSR combined for 35 points and did just enough to preserve a 14-point halftime lead against Doug McDermott (22 points) and a very solid Blue Jays team. This was one of the lone bright spots in a season filled with distress, as Markel Starks received the hero’s send-off that he so rightfully deserved.

The Otto Porter Region — First Round Matchups

(1) Georgetown 61, Syracuse 39 - March 9, 2013: The rivalry is officially over. We clinched first place in the Big East regular season, dominated Syracuse in our final regular season conference match-up, and held ‘Cuse to its lowest point total in the Boeheim era.

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(16) Georgetown 55, Villanova 53 – February 11, 2008: The “Jonathan Wallace gets fouled with under a second to go” game. With the score tied and less than a second to play, Wallace was dribbling 70 feet from the basket and about to heave a last-second shot. But then the refs did us a solid by calling a cheap foul, sending Wallace to the line to finish off the ‘Cats. This game was ugly and the victory was a cheap one, but it sure was memorable. (Come to think of it, in the grand scheme of things, our 2020 loss to ‘Nova on the foul and goaltend call seems to be karmic payback for the result of this one.) The Hoyas won this game despite scoring only two field goals in the final eight minutes and squandering a 12-point second half lead. There were 48 fouls in this game. Interestingly, this was Georgetown’s first home win over ‘Nova since 1997, as the ‘Cats had won all six previous contests at the Verizon Center.

(8) Georgetown 75, Maryland 48 – November 30, 2008: The Hoyas absolutely put on a clinic against the Terps in the Old Spice Classic. Everything was clicking as Georgetown led by as many as 38 points, while holding Greivis Vasquez to a mere two points. The Beltway rivalry was officially renewed.

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(9) Georgetown 61, Butler 59 – January 17, 2015: A majestic win on MLK Day and Isaac Copeland’s coming-out party. Copeland hit a game-winning three from the corner to help the Hoyas overcome a career-high 28 points from Roosevelt Jones. The Hoyas avenged their earlier loss to the Bulldogs and Jabril Trawick was instrumental in facilitating Georgetown’s run in the second half. DSR blocked a Rosie Jones shot as time expired. Rich Chvotkin’s radio call was epic.

The Otto Porter Region — First Round Matchups

(4) Georgetown 103, Villanova 90 - February 6, 2010: The infamous snow game. With a blizzard outside, the Hoyas put on a torrid shooting display inside. Behind Austin Freeman’s 25 points, Jason Clark’s 24 points (including six threes), and Greg Monroe’s 19 points, eight rebounds and six assists, the #7 Hoyas raced out to a 19-point halftime lead and held on late to edge the #2 ‘Cats. Scotty Reynolds and Corey Fisher led Villanova with 23 points apiece. The lone weak spot for the Hoyas was the 59 points they allowed Villanova to score in the second half; this would later haunt the Hoyas in March when they allowed a hot-shooting Ohio team to do the same for two halves.

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(13) Georgetown 78, Syracuse 71 – December 17, 2016: Peak and Pryor spoil the Pearl party. In what would eventually be JTIII’s final game against ‘Cuse, the Hoyas pulled off a huge win. On the day Syracuse celebrated Pearl Washington, L.J. Peak and Rodney Pryor spoiled the party and combined to score 43 points, Jonathan Mulmore hit a massive three with just over two minutes to go, and Georgetown held on for the win, going 22 of 25 from the free throw line.

(5) Georgetown 63, Notre Dame 47 – January 21, 2013: In their final Big East game against Notre Dame, the Hoyas went into Purcell Pavilion and completely dominated the Irish. Celebrating the sixth-year anniversary of “The Duke Game,” Georgetown held Notre Dame to season lows in points, field goal percentage and assists. Otto Porter led the way with 19 points, as the Hoyas thoroughly embarrassed Jack Cooley and his friends. Mike Brey said it was like watching men against boys.

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(12) Georgetown 61, Pittsburgh 53 – February 24, 2007: Jonathan Wallace led Georgetown with 17 points and the Hoyas used stifling pressure to beat Pittsburgh, claim their eleventh straight win and move into sole possession of first place in the Big East. This game featured the top two teams in the conference, with only a week to go before the regular season ended. A first-place finish was finally within sight.

The Otto Porter Region — First Round Matchups

(2) Georgetown 84, Notre Dame 82 - March 9, 2007: This was a mammoth win against a hated rival in the semifinals of the BET. Jeff Green had 30 points, including the game-winner with 13 seconds left, to give the Hoyas the gutsy win, after having trailed the Irish by 14 in the first half.

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(15) Georgetown 91, SMU 74 – December 7, 2019: Just three days after winning at Oklahoma State (behind McClung’s 33 points), the Hoyas absolutely smashed SMU in Dallas. This was easily the most complete performance by a Georgetown team during Ewing’s three-year tenure. From start to finish, this game was a joy to watch. Allen and Mosely directed the offense brilliantly, the ball never stopped moving, our guys had open looks, and everything was clicking. Mac and Yurt had 19 apiece, but what everyone will remember is the performance of Jahvon Blair, who came off the bench to hit seven three-pointers in the most electric shooting night of his career. Seemingly forgotten, Mac had seven assists, which demonstrated what might happen when Mac plays unselfishly and spreads it around. This victory – the Hoyas’ second consecutive win following the departures of Akinjo and LeBlanc – offered a new sense of hope for the remainder of the season, at a time when the team (and fanbase) had experienced a lot of turmoil in the previous week.

(7) Georgetown 54, Northern Iowa 49 – March 17, 2006: JTIII’s first Tournament win. Despite trailing by four points at the half, Georgetown clamped down on defense and Roy Hibbert played well (17 points, nine rebounds), as the #7 seeded Hoyas edged the #10 seeded Panthers to earn a first round victory and a trip to play Ohio State.

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(10) Georgetown 56, Villanova 54 – February 28, 2009: Georgetown kept its slim NCAA Tourney hopes alive by prevailing in a slugfest in Philly. At the time of the win, #12 Villanova was 23-5 and cruising in the Big East. Not many expected Georgetown to stick around, but the Hoyas kept it close and prevailed in a rock fight by two points. This unexpected victory raised hopes, until Georgetown lost twice in two weeks to St. John’s (remember Nikita Mescheriakov?).

The Otto Porter Region — First Round Matchups

(3) Georgetown 72, Connecticut 69 - January 12, 2008: The Roy Hibbert three-pointer that made the arena shake. Big Roy sank a three-point game-winner to cap a lovely Georgetown comeback and give the Hoyas a huge win. Hibbert’s 20 points and eight rebounds were impressive enough, but his earth-shattering three capped Georgetown’s 11-2 run in the final three minutes to propel Georgetown into first place in the early part of the Big East schedule. The Hoyas overcame tremendous shooting by A.J. Price (17 points, nine assists) and Doug Wiggins (15 points).

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(14) Georgetown 96, Providence 90 – January 12, 2019: This double overtime thriller is best remembered for two insane game-tying threes by McClung (at the end of regulation) and Akinjo (at the end of the first overtime) to prolong the contest and ultimately give the Hoyas enough time to squeak by the Friars. This game was exciting as hell to watch, but significantly, it was Georgetown’s first win against the Friars in three years. At the time, it looked like a turning point: maybe we were finally tough enough to defeat physical teams like Providence and Xavier?

(6) Georgetown 58, West Virginia 57 - January 26, 2008: The Patrick Ewing Jr. game. This is the game that ended with a thunderous Patrick Ewing Jr. block to seal #9 Georgetown’s comeback victory. After the Hoyas overcame a ten point deficit in the second half and held West Virginia without a field goal over an eight minute span, Jessie Sapp hit a big-time three-pointer from the top of the key with only six seconds to go to seal the win and keep the Hoyas in a tie for first place in the conference. WVU fans proceeded to scream and shout and lob objects onto the court after Ewing blocked Da’Sean Butler’s shot along the baseline. Although Butler would eventually get his revenge against the Hoyas two years later, on this day, no one in Morgantown was dancing to “Country Roads”.

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(11) Georgetown 95, Marquette 85 – January 24, 2015: The Matt Carlino game. After surrendering a late lead, Georgetown allowed Carlino to hit what appeared to be a game-winning three, but alas, the refs confirmed it was only a two and the game went to overtime. DSR, Isaac Copeland and Joshua Smith all had big games for the Hoyas, and Lil’ Tre Campbell hit a massive corner three to preserve Georgetown’s narrow win on the road.

The Jeff Green Region — First Round Matchups

(1) Georgetown 66, Vanderbilt 65 - March 23, 2007: The Jeff Green game-winner created a frenzy at the Meadowlands and sent Georgetown to the Elite 8. He didn’t walk, haters.

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(16) Georgetown 89, Syracuse 79 – December 14, 2019: Sorry, Buddy Boeheim. In Ewing’s first victory against Syracuse as a head coach, the Hoyas basically led this one from start to finish. Impressively, they did it without much of a bench, as this was the first game following the transfers of Galen Alexander and Myron Gardner. In the previous two years, Georgetown had lost two narrow, gut-wrenching games to the Orange, so this victory was a welcome one. The Hoyas dominated the first half and then held on in the second, despite a ridiculous shooting performance by Buddy Boeheim. McClung had 26 points, while Mosely contributed a well-rounded 16 points, seven rebounds and five dimes.

(8) Georgetown 73, Seton Hall 67 – March 7, 2015: The Tyler Adams game. On a senior day celebrating Tyler, Jabril, Hopkins and Bowen, it was Tyler who had the most memorable moment, as JTIII allowed him to join the starting lineup. Tyler scored the first basket, JTIII never reciprocated, and Seton Hall has dominated Georgetown ever since. Still, this game was an outpouring of emotion for a solid senior class, at a time when the Hoyas were wrapping up the 2 seed in the BET and expecting good things in the postseason.

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(9) Georgetown 69, Villanova 66 – January 29, 2011: This was a massive win at the Wachovia Center against the #8 ranked team in the country. Austin Freeman scored a game-high 30 points and dished out six assists to keep the two Coreys at bay. Henry Sims played a pivotal role off the bench, as he collected five big rebounds and did an effective job against ‘Nova’s bigs.

The Jeff Green Region — First Round Matchups

(4) Georgetown 64, Syracuse 56 – February 9, 2011: JTIII’s first win at the Carrier Dome and a special victory for seniors Chris Wright, Austin Freeman and Julian Vaughn. In a back-and-forth contest, Wright worked his way into the middle of Syracuse’s zone to dish out a team-high nine assists. The win was Georgetown’s seventh in a row and ended a nine-year string of losses at the Dome.

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(13) Georgetown 73, Butler 66 – February 15, 2020: The Junk Yard Dog game. Despite playing without leading scorers McClung and Yurtseven (along with the four other guys who transferred earlier in the season), the Hoyas put together the grittiest performance of the season and stunned Butler on the road in a commanding performance. This was Terrell Allen’s best game as a Hoya. He tied a career-high with 22 points, hit all four of his three-point attempts, and hit a last-second clutch baseline three with under a minute to go to give the Hoyas a six-point lead and put the game out of reach. Allen, Mosely and Blair each played the full 40 minutes. And little-used freshman Timothy Ighoefe showed signs of promise as he scored two big baskets and pulled down five boards. At the time, this victory re-energized the team and offered hope to legions of Hoyas fans. Alas, it also turned out to be our last win of the season, as the Hoyas proceeded to drop their next seven games.

(5) Georgetown 53, Louisville 51 - January 26, 2013: The Aaron Bowen tip-in. After an acrobatic lay-in by Aaron Bowen proved to be the winning field goal with over three minutes to go, the Hoyas notched a key home win against the #5 team in the country, a win that would prove to be gigantic in Georgetown’s march to the top of the conference. Markel Starks and Otto Porter scored 17 apiece for the Hoyas.

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(12) Georgetown 79, Syracuse 72 – December 5, 2015: The Mike Hopkins / Home Alone game. The first meeting between these long-time rivals since the breakup of the Big East provided an interesting wrinkle, as Jimmy Boeheim began the first game of his nine-game suspension following the NCAA’s correct decision to treat him as the cheating cheater that he is. Bradley Hayes scored a career-high 21 points, Georgetown led by as many as 21, and this game was an absolute joy to watch. Mike Hopkins’ first game as head coach resulted in a big fat L.

The Jeff Green Region — First Round Matchups

(2) Georgetown 57, Syracuse 46 - February 23, 2013: The Carrier Dome is officially closed. Otto Porter’s 33 points allowed the Hoyas to close down the Dome in style, in front of the largest crowd to ever attend a college basketball game, and on the same day that Carmelo’s jersey was retired.

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(15) Georgetown 85, Villanova 73 – February 20, 2019: Georgetown beat Villanova? Yes, Georgetown beat Villanova for the first time since 2015. Govan and McClung paced the Hoyas with 21 apiece, Akinjo dished out nine assists, and a topsy-turvy season took a positive spin as Georgetown kept its slim Tourney hopes alive with this refreshing victory. This was Ewing’s first-ever win against a ranked opponent.

(7) Georgetown 85, Notre Dame 82 – January 24, 2006: The “Colin Falls’ kick-out” game. This was a big-time double overtime win in South Bend, just three days after that mammoth program-defining win against Duke. The Hoyas squandered a 15-point first half lead and survived Colin Falls’ four-point play with 1.8 seconds left in regulation to win a thriller. Darrel Owens and Roy Hibbert had 18 points apiece.

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(10) Georgetown 59, Notre Dame 41 – February 27, 2012: Not today, Brey. In a key game late in the season, the Hoyas absolutely smothered the Irish at the Verizon Center, holding Notre Dame to their lowest point total ever during Mike Brey’s tenure. Not a single Irish player scored in double figures, as the #11 Hoyas kept pace near the top of the conference standings.

The Jeff Green Region — First Round Matchups

(3) Georgetown 89, Duke 77 - January 30, 2010: The Obama game. In this rare mid-season battle between two top ten teams, the Hoyas smothered Duke in front of President Obama to defeat a team that would eventually go on to win the national championship. Monroe, Wright and Freeman each scored over 20 points. It was a beautiful thing.

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(14) Georgetown 74, Creighton 73 – January 26, 2016: The Comeback. Trailing by 11 with less than five minutes to go and desperate for a victory, the Hoyas used a full court press to storm back and improbably win this game in front of a surprisingly boisterous crowd. Key defensive plays from guys like Kaleb Johnson and Riyan Williams propelled the Hoyas and kept their up-and-down season alive.

(6) Georgetown 74, Connecticut 63 - December 29, 2008: In our final game of 2008, on the road against the #2 ranked team in the country, the #11 Hoyas surprised the Huskies in the first game of conference play. DaJuan Summers led four Hoyas in double figures and Greg Monroe poured in an impressive 16 points, including two huge three-pointers, and four assists. Shockingly, this team didn’t even qualify for the Tourney. But at the time, this win felt incredible.

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(11) Georgetown 71, Louisville 68 – December 28, 2011: Markel Starks scored 16 of his career-high 20 points in the second half and Otto Porter made a few clutch plays down the stretch as the #12 Hoyas completed a hard-fought victory at the #4 Cardinals. In what was the Big East opener for both teams, Georgetown snapped Louisville’s 20-game home winning streak and handed the Cards their first loss of the season.

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