As Georgetown practiced this week for its showdown with Villanova, running through offensive sets and defensive rotations, Scottie Reynolds was all over the court at McDonough Arena. He was running off of screens and slicing into the lane to create shots, challenging the Hoyas’ defenders at every turn.

However, it won’t be Reynolds that America will see on national television when the No. 2 Wildcats hit Verizon Center Saturday afternoon. No, this was junior guard Ryan Dougherty, doing his best Reynolds impression to prepare his teammates for the next all-star guard on their schedule.

The average fan may not know his name, but Dougherty plays an important role behind the scenes.

“I’m just a practice player, so I watch other teams’ films and try to act like the other teams’ players in practice,” Dougherty explained. “I just try to help out the guards, get them prepared for whoever we’re playing next.”

For the Hoyas’ defensive stoppers, Jason Clark and Chris Wright, Dougherty’s work in practice makes their job easier in games.

“Ryan can play all different types of guys. He’ll be a slasher, he’ll be a shooter,” Clark said. “I know what to look for more [in games] because of what he does in practice.”

Watching so much film gives Dougherty a wealth of knowledge on the game, and that translates to trust among his teammates.

“Ryan has been an integral asset of this team,” Wright said. “When Ryan speaks, everybody listens.”

Playing on the scout team is a tall order in the Big East, where 15 other teams play 15 different styles.

“Every team has different players and different styles,” Dougherty said. “One week you’re playing a team that likes to run and gun and get up and down the court, and then the next week you’re playing a team like West Virginia, who is more of a slow-it-down, half-court, defensive team. That’s what is so tough about our league.”

Dougherty, a three-sport standout from St. Albans just up Wisconsin Avenue, transferred from Division III Rochester after his freshman season because Georgetown is closer to home and has strong academics.

After playing in the Kenner League at McDonough Arena over the summer, he decided to try out, and had said that a few good days in practice earned him a spot on last year’s team. Now eligible for game action, the junior has yet to score in seven appearances, but he is still enjoying his role in practice.

“It’s a lot of fun for me,” he said. “I can have a lot of freedom and just go out there and play basketball, not worry about the consequences sometimes. When we play Syracuse, I can pretend like I’m Andy Rautins. I can jack up threes from near halfcourt and all of this stuff.”

During games, Dougherty is all business even if his warm-ups stay on, trying to help his teammates anticipate what the opponent will do next.

“In a game, I’m looking at the other team’s plays, seeing what they’re calling, and trying to see where I can help out Jason, Chris and Hollis and those guys, where they can pick their spots, try to score and get baskets,” Dougherty said.

This weekend, Dougherty and the Hoyas will have one of their toughest challenges of the year in Reynolds and the Wildcats.

“Scottie is tough. He can do everything,” said Dougherty, who is studying the ‘Nova guard for the second time this year. “Villanova as a team just likes to drive to the basket and get to the line. A lot of this week for me is taking the ball to the basket, taking fouls or kicking out for threes.”

Three weeks ago, Reynolds scored 27 as the Wildcats beat the Hoyas 82-77 at Wachovia Center.

Georgetown fell into a 15-point halftime hole, and Wright and junior forward Julian Vaughn spent most of the game in foul trouble. Despite sophomore center Greg Monroe’s career-high 29 points, the Hoyas could not overcome Reynolds, who has earned a reputation as the league’s most clutch player.

Reynolds hit a running layup in traffic to give the Wildcats the lead for good with 3:14 on the clock to play and later grabbed an offensive rebound among the trees and called a timeout before being tied up to retain possession.

“Scottie is always in attack mode,” junior guard Austin Freeman said. “I’ve been playing against him since high school. He’s always trying to get to the basket and make a winning play for his team.”

This time around, the Hoyas are on a two-game Big East losing streak, and the Wildcats are the league’s top dog with a perfect 9-0 record.

“We’re playing pretty good basketball and finding ways to win,” Villanova Head Coach Jay Wright said yesterday on a Big East conference call before addressing Georgetown. “We’ve got to do a better job of guarding [Monroe].”

Georgetown Head Coach John Thompson III said the Hoyas simply need to focus on the details they are capable of affecting.

“There are certain factors and facets of the game that you can’t control,” Thompson said, noting that his team can control “good offensive possessions, lack of turnovers, attentiveness, timely rebounds, timely turnovers [and] the foul shots.”

One factor the Hoyas cannot control is the weather, as the district prepares for one of the worst snowstorms in years. School officials and Thompson are confident that the game will be played, but snow accumulation may prevent fans from packing Verizon Center like they did a week ago when the Hoyas trounced Duke.

“Would you want to walk into your home court against the team that is in the top of your league and have a packed, noisy, rowdy crowd? Absolutely,” Thompson said. “If Mother Nature dictates that that doesn’t happen, we’re still going to show up and play like there is a packed, noisy, rowdy crowd there cheering for us.”

Tip-off is set for noon tomorrow, and the game will be broadcast on ESPN.”