Preview No one goes to the Final Four in November, but an opening test with a Top 20 opponent can provide a glimpse into what the future may hold for the 2013-14 Georgetown Hoyas.
It seems that every season, questions are raised about how the Hoyas can adjust to the loss of...well, you name him: Jeff Green, Rob Hibbert, Greg Monroe, Austin Freeman, et al. The constancy of the John Thompson III system is just that--the names change but the constancy endures. So even without Otto Porter, and with Greg Whittington sidelined, the Hoyas still return four starters, but one system that begins its tenth season on the Hilltop.
Constancy is not the issue at #19 Oregon, which returns just five players from a 28-9 team that lost to Louisville in the round of 16 last March, but suspended two of them this week over selling team apparel. Eight newcomers, six of them transfers will compete for a run at the starting lineup, where the Ducks are deep in the backcourt but with questions up front, with just three active players at 6-8 or taller.
For Oregon to take over this game, it has to come from the backcourt. Guard Dameyan Dotson was injured in the pre-season and he practiced with the team this week, but his presence is almost a must if the Ducks expect to win. Dotson averaged 11 points a game on 43 percent shooing last season, but was suspect from three point range (32 percent). Dotson is the only returnee among the top six Oregon scorers last season, but figures to get help from senior guard Jonathan Loyd (5.0 ppg), who was the MVP of the Pac-12 tournament and ranks among the school's career leaders in assists and steals. The first recruit to sign with Altman in 2009, Loyd led the team in assists (107) despite only 22 minutes a game on the floor.
As with Georgetown, Oregon also benefited from a favorable eligibility ruling, addressing needs in the backcourt with redshirt junior guard Joseph Young, formerly of Houston. Young was a force for the Cougars in 2012-13, averaging 18 points a game with a 40 percent mark from three point range and 87 percent from the free throw line. Young ended the regular season with six straight games over 20 points and will be an instant offensive option for Ducks if Dotson or Loyd are not up to speed to begin the season.
The Ducks are suspect up front. Only three active players stand 6-8 or taller, with another forward currently on the football team. Oregon will look to 6-8 Mike Moser to carry the weight up front. Moser graduated from UNLV last season and took advantage of an NCAA rule which allows a fourth season to a student who graduated with remaining eligibility. Moser, a prior transfer from UCLA, now arrives at his third different school in five years, following a 7.1 point per game effort as a UNLV senior, making him of the Mountain West's more consistent rebounders. Up front, Fredericksburg VA native Waverly Austin is expected at center. Austin averaged 18 points and 10 rebounds in junior college but his impact was limited last year at Oregon. Austin must look to be a more aggressive rebounder for the Ducks to reclaim some of the defensive prowess it had in 2012-13.
By contrast, Georgetown's starting lineup appears fairly well settled. A three guard lineup of Markel Starks, D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera, and Jabril Trawick will pair alongside Nate Lubick and Mikael Hopkins early, with fans eager to see the run rate of center Josh Smith. Two others bear a closer look, however.
Sophomore forward Stephen Domingo passed up his senior year at St. Ignatius Prep in San Francisco for a seat on the Georgetown bench, where his debut against Duquesne was unremarkable and he failed to score in any Big East play. A promising start might jump-start his role with the team, while freshman Reggie Cameron will look for the kind of debut which broke favorable for Smith-Rivera last season. Both are important for another reason: depth. The Hoyas have no depth at guard behind Starks, Smith-Rivera and Trawick, and any fouls in the backcourt will drive a swingman like Aaron Bowen or even John Caprio into extended playing time. Domingo and Cameron each need to show they are up to the challenge, or they may join David Allen and Bradley Hayes deep on the bench.
Other keys to the game:
It seems that every season, questions are raised about how the Hoyas can adjust to the loss of...well, you name him: Jeff Green, Rob Hibbert, Greg Monroe, Austin Freeman, et al. The constancy of the John Thompson III system is just that--the names change but the constancy endures. So even without Otto Porter, and with Greg Whittington sidelined, the Hoyas still return four starters, but one system that begins its tenth season on the Hilltop.
Constancy is not the issue at #19 Oregon, which returns just five players from a 28-9 team that lost to Louisville in the round of 16 last March, but suspended two of them this week over selling team apparel. Eight newcomers, six of them transfers will compete for a run at the starting lineup, where the Ducks are deep in the backcourt but with questions up front, with just three active players at 6-8 or taller.
For Oregon to take over this game, it has to come from the backcourt. Guard Dameyan Dotson was injured in the pre-season and he practiced with the team this week, but his presence is almost a must if the Ducks expect to win. Dotson averaged 11 points a game on 43 percent shooing last season, but was suspect from three point range (32 percent). Dotson is the only returnee among the top six Oregon scorers last season, but figures to get help from senior guard Jonathan Loyd (5.0 ppg), who was the MVP of the Pac-12 tournament and ranks among the school's career leaders in assists and steals. The first recruit to sign with Altman in 2009, Loyd led the team in assists (107) despite only 22 minutes a game on the floor.
As with Georgetown, Oregon also benefited from a favorable eligibility ruling, addressing needs in the backcourt with redshirt junior guard Joseph Young, formerly of Houston. Young was a force for the Cougars in 2012-13, averaging 18 points a game with a 40 percent mark from three point range and 87 percent from the free throw line. Young ended the regular season with six straight games over 20 points and will be an instant offensive option for Ducks if Dotson or Loyd are not up to speed to begin the season.
The Ducks are suspect up front. Only three active players stand 6-8 or taller, with another forward currently on the football team. Oregon will look to 6-8 Mike Moser to carry the weight up front. Moser graduated from UNLV last season and took advantage of an NCAA rule which allows a fourth season to a student who graduated with remaining eligibility. Moser, a prior transfer from UCLA, now arrives at his third different school in five years, following a 7.1 point per game effort as a UNLV senior, making him of the Mountain West's more consistent rebounders. Up front, Fredericksburg VA native Waverly Austin is expected at center. Austin averaged 18 points and 10 rebounds in junior college but his impact was limited last year at Oregon. Austin must look to be a more aggressive rebounder for the Ducks to reclaim some of the defensive prowess it had in 2012-13.
By contrast, Georgetown's starting lineup appears fairly well settled. A three guard lineup of Markel Starks, D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera, and Jabril Trawick will pair alongside Nate Lubick and Mikael Hopkins early, with fans eager to see the run rate of center Josh Smith. Two others bear a closer look, however.
Sophomore forward Stephen Domingo passed up his senior year at St. Ignatius Prep in San Francisco for a seat on the Georgetown bench, where his debut against Duquesne was unremarkable and he failed to score in any Big East play. A promising start might jump-start his role with the team, while freshman Reggie Cameron will look for the kind of debut which broke favorable for Smith-Rivera last season. Both are important for another reason: depth. The Hoyas have no depth at guard behind Starks, Smith-Rivera and Trawick, and any fouls in the backcourt will drive a swingman like Aaron Bowen or even John Caprio into extended playing time. Domingo and Cameron each need to show they are up to the challenge, or they may join David Allen and Bradley Hayes deep on the bench.
Other keys to the game:
- Get Ahead Early: What did Florida Gulf Coast understand that many do not? Georgetown is not a comeback team when its possession rate is low. Watch for Oregon to test more up-tempo action.
- The Really Big Man: Josh Smith needs 10 or more minutes in this game to prove effective. In there previous games against the Ducks, Smith averaged 8.6 points and 5.0 rebounds an average of just over 16 minutes per game
- Turnovers: Oregon averaged 15 per game last season, a number to avoid against the Hoyas. Georgetown also needs to keep the number down to avoid second chance opportunities..
