For the first time since 2021, the Georgetown University men’s basketball team won a Big East tournament game.

On a historic day for the tournament in which all three lower-seeded teams won, the No. 11 seed Hoyas (15-17, 7-14 Big East) defeated the No. 6 seed DePaul University Blue Demons (16-16, 8-12 Big East) 63-56 on March 11 in Madison Square Garden.

The victory snapped Georgetown’s four-year Big East tournament losing streak and kept the Hoyas’ season alive.

Georgetown won the tip, but failed to capitalize on their first two possessions, which both ended with shot clock turnovers, and allowed DePaul the first 4 points of the game.

The Hoyas failed to score in the first three minutes until graduate guard Jeremiah Williams put Georgetown on the board with a layup, a sign of the Hoyas’ poor shooting performance to come in the remainder of the first half.

As Georgetown Head Coach Ed Cooley experimented with rotations in an effort to adjust, graduate guard Langston Love entered the game with just under 16 minutes remaining in the first half — his first appearance for the Hoyas since their Jan. 24 victory against Providence College (15-17, 7-13 Big East).

Georgetown’s shooting struggles continued, and with just under ten minutes remaining in the first half, a jumper from DePaul guard CJ Gunn put the Blue Demons up 17-9, which would be DePaul’s largest lead of the game.

The Hoyas began to find some rhythm late in the half. A second-chance dunk from sophomore center Julius Halaifonua cut the Hoyas’ deficit to 6 before Williams drained a 3-pointer to bring Georgetown within 2.

Junior guard Malik Mack tied the game at 19 with just over three minutes remaining in the half, but DePaul responded with a 3-pointer from guard Layden Blocker, followed by a layup from forward NJ Benson to regain control.

With 44 seconds remaining in the half, sophomore guard Kayvaun Mulready infused life into the Georgetown fans with a dunk off a perfectly placed pass from Halaifonua.

At halftime, the Hoyas trailed 24-21. Shooting just 9-for-31 from the field, Georgetown was fortunate to be down just 3 in a half without much offense on either side. (Shockingly, only 2 free throws were attempted between both teams.)

Cooley said the Hoyas were lacking a sense of urgency in the first half.

“I just thought we were a little sluggish,” Cooley said during a postgame press conference. “I thought we were waiting too much to create action versus initiate action, and that was the biggest adjustment. We had to pick up our pace of play, we had to pick up our pace moving the ball, we had to get a little more physical with the entry passes.”

Coming out of the break, Georgetown looked like a different team.

Williams grabbed a steal on DePaul’s first possession of the second half, finishing a fastbreak layup on the other end to bring the deficit to just 1 point.

Mack, who had only 4 points in the first half, followed with a reverse layup on the next possession, giving the Hoyas their first lead of the night.

The next few minutes went back and forth, but Georgetown began to take control. After 2 successful free throws from senior center Vincent Iwuchukwu, followed by another basket inside the paint, the Hoyas went up 35-28.

Georgetown continued to build momentum as the half progressed. Just over 11 minutes into the second half, the Hoyas had already matched their entire first-half scoring total of 21 points while holding the Blue Demons to just 10 points since the break. For a team that has struggled to secure close games throughout the season, Georgetown’s second half was a stark contrast.

However, DePaul wouldn’t let Georgetown run away with it just yet.

An alley-oop from Benson, followed by back-to-back 3-pointers from guard Kruz McClure, brought DePaul back within 2 points.

With four and a half minutes remaining in regulation, Georgetown was up by just 3 points. In a tight moment, Iwuchukwu came up big in his return to Madison Square Garden.

Iwuchukwu drilled the sixth 3-pointer of his career (only the second time he’s made 2 in a game) and then a dunk, pushing the Hoyas’ lead back up to 8 and shifting momentum heavily in Georgetown’s favor.

Iwuchukwu said the turnaround came from encouragement during halftime.

“Just belief, and my teammates believed in me, talked to me during halftime, telling me to

keep my head up,” Iwuchukwu said in a postgame press conference. “Coaches told me to keep my head up. I went out there and just played my heart out.”

Williams, who tied his season high with 17 points on the night, was crucial in helping Georgetown maintain its lead down the stretch.

Iwuchukwu also finished the night with 17 points, adding 14 rebounds for his fifth double-double of the season.

Free throws from Mack, Iwuchukwu and Williams in the final two minutes sealed the victory for the Hoyas.

While the Blue Demons were able to hit a 3-pointer with one second remaining, it was too little too late as Georgetown secured the win and advanced to the quarterfinals of the conference tournament.

Georgetown dominated the glass in the victory, outrebounding DePaul 42-30, while also outscoring the Blue Demons 36-20 in the paint.

Cooley said defensive efforts led the Hoyas to the win.

“Today was about our defense,” Cooley said. “It was about our physicality. We were prepared.”

Georgetown will return to the Garden to play No. 3 seed Villanova University (24-7, 15-5 Big East) in a quarterfinals matchup March 12 at 9:30 p.m. Cooley said he understands the challenge the Wildcats will present.

“We know we’re going to have a hard game tomorrow,” Cooley said. “But it’s an opportunity for us to advance.”