LINKS: Seton Hall to Visit Hoyas, Ewing Speaks on Thompson

Your fighting Hoyas of Georgetown (6-10, 4-7) will return to action on Saturday, February 20th when they host Seton Hall Pirates (13-8, 10-5) at 5:30 PM at the world famous McDonough Arena and televised on CBS Sports Network.

During this week off for the Hoyas, there has been plenty of Patrick Ewing and John Thompson, Jr. in the media. The late Coach John Thompson has been featured on an NABC towel and honored in dozens of basketball games around the nation.

Here are the links:

Seton Hall seeks to stay hot at Georgetown | SPORTS.YAHOO

The Pirates (13-8, 10-5 Big East) extended their winning streak to four games with Wednesday’s 60-52 victory against DePaul. The triumph also guaranteed the Hall finishing the regular season above .500 in the conference. “Winning is obviously the most important thing, especially this time of year,” head coach Kevin Willard said, per NJ.com. “(But) we have to be a little bit more efficient on the offensive end.” Sandro Mamukelashvili (18.0 ppg., 7.4 rpg.), a 6-foot-11 senior, scored 25 points, including his 1,000th career point, in the victory against the Blue Demons. Junior swingman Jared Rhoden (14.9 ppg., 6.5 reb) is the Pirates’ second-leading scorer. Seniors Myles Cale (12.5 ppg.), a swingman, and guard Shavar Reynolds (7.4 ppg., 4.3 apg.) help form the team’s core.

Seton Hall Takes on Georgetown Saturday | BIGEASTCOASTBIAS

The Pirates enter Saturday’s game on a four-game winning streak and are third place in the Big East. Their most recent win came against DePaul, defeating the Blue Demons 60-52. Sandro Mamukelashvili led Seton Hall with 25 points and 11 rebounds in 38 minutes. The Hoyas currently sit 10th in the conference but are trending upward. Winners of three of their last five, Georgetown defeated Butler 78-63 in their latest game...

Heading into Saturday, Seton Hall possesses an advantage in almost all major categories. They are far more offensively efficient than the Hoyas, recording 105.4 points per 100 possessions. While the Pirates rank third in that category, Georgetown is ninth. They are also better from the field, hitting 51% of all shots compared to Georgetown’s 49.2 eFG%.

The one area the Hoyas have an advantage offensively is from behind the arc. They are the fourth most efficient Big East team from three. Seton Hall, on the other hand, is towards the bottom of the conference regarding three-point success. Defensively, Georgetown tends to give up more points.

Seton Hall Faces Georgetown Saturday on CBS Sports Network - Seton Hall University Athletics | SHUPIRATES

The Seton Hall men’s basketball team has won four in a row to reclaim the momentum it had been building in late December. Getting to five in a row won’t be easy against a resurgent Georgetown team that has won three of its last five games, including a road victory at Creighton.

The Pirates are hoping that they can continue some offensive success against the Hoyas. They’re averaging over 78 points a game against Georgetown over the last seven meetings and have scored exactly 78 points in each of the last three games. But The Hall also hopes that it can continue to play outstanding defense. The numbers are stark: in January, Seton Hall was allowing 76.3 points per game; in February, the team is only allowing 54.8 points per game.

Seton Hall vs. Georgetown Prediction, Preview, and Odds - 2-20-2021 | WINNERSANDWHINERS

They did not have a midweek game. Georgetown’s offense has been below-average, ranking No. 185 in effective field goal percentage and No. 314 in turnover rate. Its strength has been on the offensive glass, where it ranks No. 57 in offensive rebounding percentage. The Hoyas will be facing a Seton Hall defense that is No. 56 in KenPom’s adjusted efficiency ratings.

Senior guard Jahvon Blair leads Georgetown with 17.0 points, 4.4 rebounds and 4.4 assists. He is only shooting 38.6 percent from the floor, though. Senior forward Jamorko Pickett is scoring 12.3 points and is the team’s leading rebounder with 8.5 boards per game. He has scored in double figures in each of his last five games. Sophomore center Qudus Wahab is also in double figures, adding 11.8 points and 7.9 rebounds. Wahab scored 16 points and completed his double-double with 13 rebounds in the first meeting with Seton Hall.

Hoyas Host Seton Hall in Final Meeting of the Season - Thompson’s Towel | THOMPSONSTOWEL

Keys to the Game: Come out strong. This probably isn’t a shocker, but in almost every game where the Hoyas have stayed competitive with better teams, their offense has been hot from the start. In the first Creighton game for example, they started the game strong and shot the ball well, especially from deep, and that gave them an edge for the rest of the game. Since Seton Hall outmatches Georgetown in nearly every way, the only way that the Hoyas can stay competitive is if they start the game with energy and hit their shots early, otherwise we may be in for another long night in Newark.

Keep Mamu quiet. Okay, okay, this one is pretty obvious, too, but we all know the damage that Sandro Mamukelashvili can do to any team on any given day. The Georgian big man and Big East Player of the Year frontrunner has been an absolute beast for the Pirates all season, scoring 18.0 points, pulling in 7.4 rebounds, and dishing 3.2 assists per game, so not letting him breakout may be the most important aspect of the game for the Hoyas. Surprisingly, they were able to keep Mamu quiet in December, only letting him score two points, but chances are that won’t happen again. To be blunt, this game could be another blowout if the Hoyas don’t keep Mamu in check.

Hoyas Host Seton Hall on Saturday - Georgetown University Athletics | GUHOYAS

ABOUT THE MATCHUP Saturday will be the 112th all-time meeting between Georgetown and Seton Hall, with the Hoyas holding a 59-52 series advantage, including a 32-16 record in Washington, D.C. Georgetown has dropped the last four games to the Pirates, including a 78-67 setback earlier this season in Newark. In December’s matchup, Wahab recorded his third double-double of the season with a team-high 16 points and a career-best 13 rebounds to go with a pair of blocks. Blair was also in double figures with 14 points, hitting a trio of 3-pointers.