Georgetown 70, DePaul 53: Tempo-Free Analysis

From left to right: D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera, John Thompson III, and Bradley Hayes meet the media following Georgetown's win over DePaul. (Photo courtesy of Ray Floriani)

BY RAY FLORIANI

New York City -­ Big East Tournament play tipped off with an 8 vs. 9 matchup at Madison Square Garden. Both teams have had long seasons. Eighth-seeded Georgetown is a surprise in that regard, entering this affair with an un­-Hoya-like 14­-17 mark. Despite what transpired in recent weeks, the Hoyas took care of business, defeating DePaul 70-­53. They are set to meet top seed Villanova at noon in the quarterfinals.
First Half: Over the first four minutes, Georgetown gets out to a 10-­4 lead. The Hoyas are looking inside to the likes of seven-foot Bradley Hayes. Georgetown is also full court pressing. Midway through the first half, the Hoyas have a ten-point lead. For DePaul, the deficit could be worse, as the Blue Demons have struggled to get things going. Hayes gets his third foul and at the four-minute break, DePaul trails by only three. The Blue Demons are getting penetration opportunities out of their four-out offense. From the eight to one-minute mark, the Hoyas scored two field goals. They score just as many in the final minute to rebuild their lead.

Halftime: Georgetown 35, DePaul 24
Possessions: DePaul 37, Georgetown 36

Offensive efficiency: Georgetown 97, DePaul 65

Second Half: The first five possessions take us to 16:51 mark. DePaul scores on their first three possessions and gets it to a two-possession contest. The ebb and flow of the game sees DePaul make a run, then Georgetown responds, increasing their lead. D’Vauntes Smith-­Rivera, quiet early, is heating up. His three-pointer gives the Hoyas a twelve-point lead at the twelve-minute mark. Rashaun Stimage, DePaul’s inside threat, picks up his fourth personal foul with just over eleven minutes left. That ten-point deficit suddenly feels a lot worse. At the eight-minute mark, Georgetown is in command, ahead by sixteen. Billy Garrett Jr., a 12.9 point per game scorer for DePaul, has scored just four points as the game is winding down. Garrett finishes with four as DePaul exits.

Final: Georgetown 70 DePaul 53
Possessions: DePaul 69, Georgetown 66

Offensive efficiency: Georgetown 106, DePaul 77

FOUR FACTORS:
eFG%: Georgetown 57, DePaul 41
Free Throw Rate: Georgetown 59, DePaul 29
Offensive Rebound%: Georgetown 29, DePaul 32

Turnover Rate: Georgetown 24, DePaul 25

What Georgetown did well: Answer DePaul runs. “When you have the year we had, you, as a coach, expect them to make a run. They did, but each time, we were able to respond,” said coach John Thompson III.

What DePaul did well: Win the offensive rebounding percentage battle. The Blue Demons led Georgetown 14-­9 in ‘raw’ offensive rebound numbers.

NOTES: Both teams had their turnover moments, but DePaul paid dearly. Georgetown enjoyed a 19-­8 edge in points off turnovers. Bradley Hayes was back after missing six games due to a broken hand. The seven-foot senior scored 10 points, adding a game-high seven rebounds. Georgetown had three double digit scorers, DePaul one (Eli Cain with 14). DePaul got to the line a fair number of times, but didn’t help themselves, shooting 6-of-17 from the charity stripe. Georgetown is now 15­-17. DePaul ends their campaign at 9-­22.

Final thoughts:
“A huge difference with Bradley back in the lineup. His teammates feel ‘safer’ with him. Glad to have him back. It feels better to get a win after the stretch we’ve been through. We weren’t winning, but every single game, the guys fought. To win in this building, it feels good. After shootaround this morning, Bradley felt comfortable out there. He was okay and could go. It's been a difficult year after what was thrown at us. Even in the midst of the six-game losing streak, our guys never stopped fighting and leading.” -­ Georgetown coach John Thompson III

“We didn’t have a good season, but we can turn it around. One game at a time.” - Georgetown’s Bradley Hayes

“A lot of bad possessions where we didn’t do what we wanted to do. Some explainable, some unexplainable. Lose this time of season and you realize you aren’t playing anymore. In a few days, we will look over what we can do. We want to look at how to put a new program together, not just getting talent, but personality. A concern was creating a culture. We were able to win a few games we shouldn’t have. After that, we lost that part of the culture. I have to evaluate more than the score, how we play and what kind of culture we have. I've been coaching a while, and each year, you go in and can impact people’s lives. At times, we saw remnants of what a program is about, but we have to build on that.” - DePaul coach Dave Leitao

“This was an up-and-down season. A lot of inconsistency, but the season was a learning process. As a team and myself, we have to look on what we can improve on.” -­ DePaul’s Billy Garrett