The Georgetown men’s and women’s basketball teams kicked off their 2000-2001 campaigns early Saturday morning in the second annual Midnight Madness celebration, held in McDonough Gymnasium in front of a capacity crowd of rowdy students and fans. The highlight of the event was the introduction of this year’s squads, as well as several skills competitions pitting the men and women against each other.

At the stroke of midnight, the women’s team came onto the floor to massive applause, accompanied by pyrotechnics and introduced individually to the crowd. The men took the floor next and were greeted by widespread applause. Both men’s Head Coach Craig Esherick and women’s Head Coach Pat Knapp were on hand, along with their respective coaching staffs. Esherick also announced that following every game this year, there will be a “fan of the game” award, with the fan being rewarded with a ball autographed by the team.

Following their introductions, a three-point shooting competition was held between the teams. In the men’s competition, junior point guard Kevin Braswell bested senior forward Lee Scruggs, while senior forward Dani Ilic prevailed against senior guard Katie Smrcka-Duffy. In the finals, Ilic roused the crowd by beating Braswell to take the overall title.

Closing out the night was a slam-dunk exhibition by the men’s team, during which several of the players showboated, missing many of their attempted dunks.

The event was the first time that Hoya fans got a first-hand look at Georgetown’s newest players decked out in the Blue and Gray. On the men’s side, Omari Faulkner, Ramell Ross, Wesley Wilson, Mike Sweetney and Gerald Riley each made their respective debuts while Rebekkah Brunson and Zsuzsanna Horvath suited up for the first time for the women.

This event marks the second consecutive year in which Georgetown has staged a Midnight Madness event on campus, which is traditionally scheduled for the first day NCAA regulations allow teams to practice with their coaches. Spirited events have been longstanding traditions at other schools with basketball traditions similar to Georgetown’s.

Before the teams arrived, there were several attractions designed to pump up the crowd. The GU Dance Team, GU Step Team and GU Break Team entertained the crowd, as did Superfood. There were also several contests for the fans, including a pizza box stacking contest.

The teams will now begin a regular practice schedule to gear up for their seasons, which kick off on Nov. 11 with the Preseason Women’s NIT for the women and Nov. 17 against Bethune-Cookman for the men. The men’s team has been ranked among the top 25 teams in the nation in several preseason polls. Women’s preseason rankings have not yet been released.