PITTSBURGH – On Sunday, Georgetown junior guard Chris Wright, hampered by foul trouble and poor shooting, struggled against Villanova, managing just six points. Three days later the Hoyas’ captain washed away any memories of that performance, scoring a game-high 27 points to lead No. 12 Georgetown (14-3, 5-2 Big East) to a 74-66 win over No. 9 Pittsburgh (15-2, 5-1) at Petersen Events Center.

“[Wright] didn’t do anything today that we don’t see every day in practice, that you guys haven’t seen in games,” Georgetown Head Coach John Thompson III said. “It was just his night tonight and his teammates kept finding him.”

Playing in front of a sold out crowd of 12,677 fans, the Hoyas got got going early, jumping out to a 19-11 lead following an 11-3 run over 4:21. The Hoyas run was spurred by a strong defensive effort, which constantly harassed Panther shooters with a mix of man-to-man and 2-3 zone, and strong play on the defensive boards, where the Hoyas managed 23 of their 33 rebounds. Pittsburgh had 34 rebounds in the game.

The Hoyas were constantly in the face of Pitt’s leading scorer, sophomore Ashton Gibbs, harassing the guard. Gibbs, who averaged 17.5 points per game coming into the contest, did not get into the scoring column until six minutes to go in the first half when he hit a three that edged the hosts to within three at 27-24.

“It was nothing in particular [on defense]. It was just the energy of our guys and the effort,” Thompson said of his team’s effort on Gibbs, who had eight points.

Tied 31-31 at the break, the early part of the second half became a back-and-forth affair with five ties and 10 lead changes. Both teams were getting baskets inside the paint, where both had 34 points.

The Hoyas, who had six turnovers in the first half, only lost two in the second, while adding eight of its 14 assists in the second stanza.

“Our guys have done a terrific job of sharing the game and finding the open man and throwing it around,” Thompson said.

Early foul trouble on junior guard Austin Freeman, who had 13 points and four rebounds, and personnel decisions allowed freshmen forwards Hollis Thompson and Jerrelle Benimon to see considerable minutes. Benimon had three points on a nice move to the basket from the wing, where he drew the foul while going up in the paint, and hit the free throw. He also added four rebounds while Thompson added two boards of his own.

“Jerrelle [Benimon] has a pretty good feel for the game,” Thompson said. “He’s a tough kid, he’s a natural rebounder. He’s a piece of this team.”

With the score tied at 56 with 6:23 to play, Thompson called his team over for a 30 second timeout. The Hoyas came out of the break and found junior forward Julian Vaughn, who had 11 points, five rebounds and six assists, on the left side of the lane. As the Pitt defenders collapsed on help defense, Vaughn kicked it out to a wide open Wright, who stepped into a three from the left wing and drained it to give the Hoyas a three-point lead and the momentum.

“That was very good execution [on] our guys’ part, coming out of a timeout,” Thompson said. “Getting a shot we wanted for someone we wanted to take it.”

It was one of seven threes for the Hoyas, who shot 7-of-10 from beyond the arc, while Pitt shot just 4-of-18. The Hoyas were 26-of-56 from the floor while the Panthers were 26-of-57.

\”Really we just didn’t defend for the whole part,\” Pittsburgh Head Coach Jamie Dixon said. \”It’s going to catch up to you.\”

Wright’s three was the start of a 7-0 Hoyas’ run capped by a thunderous dunk from Freeman. Moments later, holding a five-point lead, sophomore center Greg Monroe (13 points, 11 rebounds) found the defense crashing on him in the paint, and the adept passer found Vaughn open on the block for an easy jam and the foul to give the Hoyas a 66-58 lead.

The Hoyas would then ice the game from the free-throw line, where they were 15-of-21 and 11-of-17 in the second half. Pittsburgh was 10-of-17 from the line in the game.

The importance of winning the game was not lost on Thompson, but he insisted that it was important to remain focused after such a big win.

“Absolutely,” Thompson said about the importance of not losing two in a row. “Or not turning one loss into two and one victory into a loss.”

Next up for the Hoyas is a home date with Rutgers on Saturday at Verizon Center at noon.

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