Post-Turkey Day hoops Saturday afternoon as the Hoyas collide with the Lafayette Leopards. Tip-off at the Phone Booth is 12 pm EST — the game can be seen on MASN and heard on AM 570.
Lafayette is no slouch, arriving in D.C. with a record of 4-1, including victories over Wagner, St. Francis (Pa.), N.J.I.T., and Hartford and a loss to future Hoya opponent Seton Hall. The Pirates are expected to be decent this year, and Lafayette fell to to them by 11 which, by the transitive property of sports, means exactly nothing. Lafayette has an efficient, balanced attack that should look familiar, or might make you nostalgic. The Leopards’ particular strength is at forward, where we find leading scorer and rebounder and sole Canadian Jared Mintz and sophomore Ryan Willen who can be counted on for double figures and long-range accuracy. Michael Gruner, Jeff Kari, and Jim Mower provide a three-headed guard back court.
The Hoyas should view the game as (yet another) opportunity to work out the kinks. The early-season stats are worrisome, given our concerns coming into the season. The biggest problem areas:
- Scoring: As a team, Georgetown is scoring an anemic 61 ppg. The big four, such as they are, are in double figures scoring per game, but no one else has scored more than 11 points on the season.
- Turnovers: Georgetown has more turnovers than assists thus far, and is turning the ball over roughly one out of every four possessions.
- Free-throw shooting: a bizarre and distressing 50% as a team.
Reading the tea leaves a bit more optimistically, Greg Monroe is typically stellar, leading the team in points and rebounds and tying for the team lead in assists. Jason Clark has made the mini-jump we were all hoping for, scoring an impressive 11.7 per, tying for the team lead in assists, connecting on 50% from deep, and providing some much-needed efficiency. Austin Freeman and Chris Wright are solid if unspectacular, bearing their shares of the scoring load and shooting a high percentage from the field. Still, problem areas abound: for Monroe, turnovers, free-throw accuracy, and forty-minute effort; for Wright, shot selection, particularly from deep; for Freeman, turnovers and focus; and for the rest of the Hoyas save Clark, earning their keep.
Prediction–Georgetown 65, Lafayette 52 with Monroe leading the way.
