Georgetown : Pre-Game Report

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Preview

Saturday's home finale marks an opportunity to congratulate the seniors on their careers at Georgetown, and history suggests it's a good day for the Hoyas. In the Big East era (1979-present, Georgetown is a combined 28-7 on Senior Day. John Thompson III-led teams are 9-1 in regular season home finales and will be attempting to lock up a Thursday evening seed in next week's Big East Tournament with a win over Seton Hall.

The regular season finale was not what the Pirates envisioned in January, then riding a #19 ranking in the AP poll. The Hall has dropped seven of its last eight and 10 of its last 13, with an Wednesday night opener at Madison Square Garden in the Big East tournament against either Creighton or Marquette. Barring an unlikely run to the title, the Pirates will be awaiting a call from the NIT, having not made the NCAA tournament in the past nine seasons.

Injuries and stories of team dissension have scuttled the Pirates' NCAA hopes, but the starting lineup is more than capable of putting some pain on Georgetown's seeding, if the will is there.

It was last season where Pirate guards Sterling Gibbs and Jaren Sina combined for 47 points and 21 assists in two wins over the Hoyas. A year later, Gibbs is coming off the bench and Sina quit the team following the Hall's loss to Georgetown at Prudential Center earlier this season. Talented but still inexperienced Isaiah Whitehead has assumed control of the Pirates' offense, but has struggled of late from three (5 for 22 over the past three games). Coach Ralph Willard has moved senior Haralds Karlis into the lineup following a season high 14 points against Creighton, but he remains a limited offensive option.

Georgetown should see plenty of Gibbs off the bench, however. While his scoring numbers are flagging towards the end of the season, Gibbs represents the best pure shooter on his team, and his 40 percent mark from three point range is a legitimate concern for the Georgetown defenses. Third in the Big east in shooting and fifth in assists, Gibbs joins Whitehead as one of the more talented backcourts in the league, but struggle on and off the court. The two guards reportedly scuffled in a time out during the earlier Georgetown loss.

Up front, the Pirates remain lean with the exception of freshman Angel Delgado, whose 10.5 rebounds per game leads the league. Delgado had 12 points and 15 rebounds in last month's game. Willard's remaining options inside, including center Brandon Mobley and reserves Desi Rodriguez and Rashad Anthony, may struggle against a taller and more experienced Georgetown lineup.

Absent a big game from the backcourt and another record-setting run from Delgado, the Hall may struggle in this game. The Pirates rank last in field goal shooting and ninth in field goal defense. It's not a comeback team (2-11 when trailing at the half) but can keep games close in many situations.

Saturday's game is well suited for Georgetown to build some momentum from the big win at Butler. The Hoyas are getting consistent play from Josh Smith and Mikael Hopkins and needs a good effort from both without lapsing into foul trouble. Seniors Aaron Bowen and Jabril Trawick may be saving some of their best work for the final game at Verizon, while D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera concludes one of the best seasons, start to finish, for any guard in the JT III era.

Some keys to the game:

Contain Turnovers: Georgetown is just about unbeatable this season if it can stay under 12 turnovers.
Revived Confidence: L.J. Peak and Paul White have stalled as the season draws to a close. Saturday is a time to recharge the batteries, and the confidence.
More For Tre: Without the fanfare of his fellow classmates, freshman Tre Campbell is coming on at the right time this season. Campbell's outside shooting may be an opportunity in this game.
Three simple goals in this one: congratulate the seniors, get the win, and move on to the Garden. Much like one's years in college, it'll all be done before you know it.

 

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Tyler Adams To Start Saturday 3/7/15
Following an NCAA waiver quietly pursued by Georgetown officials but unknown to the team until Thursday, senior center Tyler Adams (C'15) will be allowed to play in the Hoyas' final regular season game. Adams, who has been medically ineligible since the fourth game of his freshman season following a diagnosis of a heart condition which ended his career.

Adams will not only play, but start at center, according to GU officials.

"[Coach Thompson] told me with the team yesterday," Adams said in this link to GUHoyas.com. "He called us together in a group and mentioned how he doesn't do what other coaches do with starting seniors, that it wasn't that big of a deal to him, but at the end of the conversation he said, `But we're going to make an exception and start you.' "I thought it was a joke. Everyone started laughing and it kind of shocked me, but everyone was excited when they heard the news."

"When my situation came about I didn't want to mourn or be sad and be a burden on the team, my main focus was just keeping a positive energy and helping the guys out. Whether that was wiping the floor or helping Josh (Smith) or Mikael (Hopkins) with their next post moves, the main focus was just helping the team as much as I could. I'm not the type of person who gets down on things because I know in life people have it worse than I do so that was the approach I took with it and that's what helped get through the emotions I may have had. Coach Thompson has made me feel like I'm part of the team, I dress for practice, attend every work out and I probably watch more film than the guys who play so I definitely feel like I've been involved and that definitely helped me out emotionally."

Given the unusual situation, Adams is expected only to play "briefly" and could be substituted in the first of second minutes of the game.

Fellow senior Josh Smith, who was penciled in to start as a senior, was asked whether he would sit to allow Adams to get the start. "I was honored," Smith said. "Ty has invested as much as anybody else has in our program with helping us and caring, being there even if he can?t physically participate."

Adams was sidelined on Dec. 14, 2011. While he had offers to play at smaller schools despite the diagnosis, head coach John Thompson III promised Adams could remain on scholarship, and he stayed.

"You can?t trade a Georgetown degree for nothing," Adams told the Washington Post.

Adams wore #0 as a freshman but that number is now in use by L.J. Peak. Adams will instead wear #10 for his final game in a Georgetown uniform Saturday, and Hoya fans everywhere should give Adams and the Hoyas an ovation for making this all possible.