When Georgetown beat Head Coach Milan Brown’s Mount St. Mary’s team last season, the Hoyas were ranked 15th in the nation. This time around, however, Brown said the No. 16 Georgetown squad looks like it’s having more fun.
The Hoyas (5-0) dominated all facets of the game and cruised to an 83-62 win over the Mount (3-3). Georgetown Head Coach John Thompson III was quick to say that his team still has a long road ahead.
“We’re not ready to have fun yet. We have a long way to go, but I think at some point this year we’re going to have fun,” Thompson said.
Greg Monroe led all players with 19 points and 11 rebounds, both season highs for the sophomore center. Junior guard Chris Wright added 18 points on 4-of-5 shooting from behind the arc.
The Hoyas controlled the paint on both ends of the floor and outshot the Mount from the field.
Georgetown jumped out to an early eight-point advantage, but Mount St. Mary’s cut the lead to three with just under 10 minutes to go in the first half. A Monroe three-pointer – his first of the season – put the Hoyas up six, and Georgetown closed out the half on a 16-3 run to go up 40-29.
The Hoyas did not cool off at halftime, opening the second half with an 11-2 run that stretched the lead to 20 points. Georgetown’s offensive outbursts started on the defensive end, where the Hoyas began forcing turnovers that turned into points.
Georgetown had 14 points off of turnovers and 16 points in transition. Sophomore guard Jason Clark, who had four steals on the day, used his length to intercept several passes on the perimeter, including one that he turned into a slam dunk to give the Hoyas a 49-31 lead four minutes into the second half.
Thompson credited his entire team with a strong defensive effort, and said that they are a cohesive unit.
“I think that this group cares about each other, and they care about us getting better,” Thompson said. “We’re making every effort to help each other and cover each other.”
Georgetown scored 48 points in the paint as Monroe and sophomore Julian Vaughn (14 points, eight rebounds and three blocks) dominated the lane.
“Their size was able to bother us sometimes on the open looks that we had inside, and they were still able to contest some of the shots that we had from the perimeter,” Brown said.
The Hoyas’ starters combined for 72 points, and junior guard Austin Freeman (nine points) was the only starter to miss double figures. Each starter also had three assists, except Freeman, who had two.
Coming off a 97-64 win over Lafayette, Georgetown notched back-to-back 20-point blowouts in its first Saturday-Monday set of games this season. The Hoyas will play on two days’ rest or less 12 more times during the regular season.
“That was by design,” Thompson said of the quick turnaround. “I scheduled this on purpose so they can fall into the routine of what they’re going to see down the road.”
Next up for Georgetown is cross-town foe American on Saturday. The Eagles will be the Hoyas’ last tune-up before taking on nationally ranked Butler and Washington next week.
Hoya Notes:
– Freshman forward Jerrelle Benimon played his first game since suffering an ankle injury in the season opener.
– The Hoyas are averaging five blocks per game after posting seven tonight. Seven players have rejections on the season, and Julian Vaughn leads the way with eight blocks.
– Georgetown has not recorded back-to-back wins with more than a 20-point margin of victory since it beat American and Savannah State in early December of last year. Thompson said he was not trying to push the tempo, but added that his offense has progressed.
“We can play fast, we can play slow, as long as we’re executing,” Thompson said. “I think we need a little better execution at our defensive end. Our offense is a lot farther along than we were last year. I think we’ll be able to play fast, slow – any way we need to.”
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