Men

UNC-Asheville, Saturday 11/27, 12 p.m.

The Bulldogs (2-1) have a tough Turkey Week ahead of them. Tonight they will tip off against the reeling No. 25 North Carolina Tar Heels before facing the No. 16 Hoyas on Saturday. The Tar Heels are looking to bounce back from consecutive losses to Minnesota and Vanderbilt, dropping the team from eighth to 25th in the national rankings.

The University of North Carolina-Asheville – members of the Big South Conference, which includes Winthrop and recent Georgetown opponent Coastal Carolina – is coming off a 116-58 thrashing of Virginia Intermont. The Bulldogs are led by guard Matt Dickey (20 points per game, three steals per game) and center D.J. Cunningham (9.7 rebounds per game, 2.7 blocks per game).

Before their thumping of Virginia Intermont, the Bulldogs split a pair of close games against Auburn (winning 70-69 in overtime) and Furman (losing 67-69), with the box scores nearly identical. A consistent rebounding team (40 boards on average) and shooting team (43.4 percent), the Bulldogs will put up a fight against the Hoyas.

No. 11 Missouri, Tuesday 11/30, 9 p.m.

The Tigers (2-0) mark the beginning of a post-Thanksgiving gauntlet for the Hoyas, who will play No. 20 Temple and No. 15 Memphis in December. Meanwhile, the Blue and Gray will present the first real test for a Missouri team that has posted wins against Western Illinois (66-61) and North Florida (96-58).

In their opening contest, the Tigers struggled against the Western Illinois Leathernecks, shooting just 52 percent from the free throw line (14-of-27). The Tigers failed to put a single scorer in double-digits, marking the first time Mizzou has managed a win under such circumstances since 1951.

The Tigers lived up to their preseason No. 14 ranking with a 96-58 slaughtering of the North Florida Ospreys, outscoring the visitors 55-25 in the second half. The Missouri defense forced a school-record 34 turnovers, including 18 steals, while blocking eight shots. But Mizzou struggled itself committing 18 turnovers and 22 fouls. The Tigers, however, had five double-figure scorers, led by guard Marcus Denmon (18 points).

Forward Laurence Bowers is Mizzou’s top big man (10 rebounds per game, four blocks per game) while guard Phil Pressey (8.5 points per game, 4.5 assists per game, three steals per game) is the backcourt force.

The Tigers and Hoyas were in the middle of a recruiting battle earlier in the summer when forward Tony Mitchell was deciding between Columbia, Mo., and the Hilltop. Mitchell wound up with the Tigers – before being dismissed for academic reasons.

Georgetown will play Missouri for the first time in Kansas City since 1982 when the Hoyas defeated the then-No. 4 Tigers at McDonough Arena.

Women

Georgia Tech, Thursday 11/25, 8 p.m.

On Nov. 25 the Georgetown women’s basketball team (3-0) heads to the U.S. Virgin Islands to participate in the Paradise Jam, where the Hoyas will open up their schedule against ACC foe Georgia Tech (3-2). The Yellow Jackets come into the tournament following a tough opening stretch that included losses to Old Dominion, and most recently, the No. 1 Connecticut Huskies.

Georgia Tech is led this season by senior guard Alex Montgomery, who leads the team in rebounds and steals and is second in points and assists. Also helping pace the Yellow Jackets is freshman guard Tyaunna Marshall, the team’s leading scorer at 14.8 points per game.

The Yellow Jackets are a strong rebounding team – they outrebounded the Huskies 40-38 – and average over 40 boards per game while holding their opponents to 34 per game. This will be a test for the undersized Hoyas, who have struggled this season in the rebounding department.

If the Blue and Gray can control the boards, they will likely control the pace of the game, playing to their strengths of strong shooting and active defense.

Missouri, Friday 11/26, 5:45 p.m.

The Hoyas’ second opponent at the Paradise Jam will be Missouri, whose record stands at 1-1.

The Tigers are led by junior forward Christine Flores and senior guard RaeShara Brown, who average 20.5 and 16.5 points per game, respectively. Against Eastern Illinois, Brown recorded her first double-double with 14 points and a team-best 11 rebounds, and Flores led the team in scoring with a career-high 28 points.

The Hoyas should expect strong play from Missouri on both ends; they have not only recorded more blocks and rebounds than Georgetown’s previous two opponents, but higher field goal and three-point field goal percentages as well.

Tennessee, Saturday 11/27, 8 p.m.

On Saturday night, the Blue and Gray will face off against Tennessee in their third game in the U.S. Virgin Islands. The Lady Volunteers (4-0) have started their season strong with victories over Louisville, Chattanooga, Virginia and Arizona State coming by an average margin of more than 25 points. They have outscored their opponents 331 to 230 on the season.

Tennessee is led by upstart freshman Meighan Simmons, who is averaging 17.5 points per game on 48 percent shooting. Senior wing Angie Bjorklund is also contributing significantly, averaging 33 minutes, 14 points and four rebounds per game.

Likely one of the toughest teams that Georgetown will have to face this year, Tennessee is statistically better than Georgetown in several categories; they outscore the Hoyas 82.8 to 60.7 points per game and outrebound them 45.5 to 42 boards per game. However, the Blue and Gray have played better than the Lady Vols defensively, giving up only 44 points per game to Tennessee’s 57.5.