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Game Recap: Georgetown 80, High Point 45

The Hoyas demolish the Panthers to improve to 5-2.

Mary Langenfeld-USA TODAY Sports

The Georgetown Hoyas made quick work of the High Point Panthers and dominated from opening tip to final buzzer as they won their fourth straight game. The win also marked the second straight game that the Hoyas held opponents under 50 points as their defense continues to improve. G'Town was led by the usual suspects as Markel Starks (18 points, five dimes) , D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera (17 points), and Joshua Smith (11 points) all finished in double-digits.

The Hoyas led 28-16 at the half before exploding for 52 points in the second half as they handed the Panthers their fourth loss of the season. Georgetown shot a ridiculous 74.1 percent in the second half, finished with 23 assists on 32 made field goals, shot 10-of-24 from three and outrebounded their opponent 40-34.

The Panthers only shot at competing in this a game was to get their talented big man combo of Allan Chaney and John Brown going early and not have to rely on the three-ball to stay in the game. Thanks to the Hoyas' defense; the exact opposite happened. Chaney didn't play due to a heart condition and Brown was limited to eight points on 4-of-11 shooting and seven boards. With no production in the paint, the Panthers had to extend their offense which played right into the Hoyas' gameplan. High Point shot a woeful 3-of-21 from beyond the arc and hit just 16 field goals on the night.

Georgetown has struggled with zone defense so far this season but had no such issues against its Big South opponent. The Hoyas scored the first 10 points of the second half and it was a rout from there on as Georgetown built their lead to as many as 40 and the game was never in question.

The Hoyas have one day of rest before playing a sneaky good Colgate team that currently leads the nation in 3-pointers made per game and 3-point field goal percentage.

Player Grades

Player Grade Comments
Markel Starks A

Starks played his best game of the season and completely took advantage of the overmatched Panthers backcourt. Starks finished with 18 points on 8-11 shooting, 5 assists, and 3 turnovers. He also did a much better job of getting to the rim instead of relying on long-range shooting.

D'VAuntes Smith-Rivera A DSR continues to play great basketball. Last night he played 27 minutes and finished with 17 points on 6-12 shooting, 5 boards, 4 assists and 1 steal. The talented guard is on a tear.
Joshua Smith C Granted, the game was a blowout but Smith only played 18 minutes. In those 18 minutes, though, Smith did a nice job of stuffing the stat sheet and finished with 11 points on 5-7 shooting, 3 boards, and 2 steals. He also picked up 4 fouls.
Jabril Twarick B Trawick is emerging as the Hoyas' top utility player and once again did the dirty work last night. Aside from playing great defense, the guard had 6 points, 4 assists, and 1 steal in 24 minutes.
Nate Lubick B- Lubick only took one shot in 22 minutes but contributed else where with 6 boards and 5 assists. Lubick is never going to be a big presence in the post and against stronger competition, he could be a liability.
Mikael Hopkins B+ The Hoyas desperately need another option in the front court and Hopkins is beginning to emerge as a real threat. In 17 minutes last night, he scored 9 points, grabbed 6 boards, dropped 2 dimes, had 1 steal and 1 block. This is consecutive games where Hopkins has made a big impact and while both performances have been against lesser competition, the Hoya coaching staff has to be excited.
Moses Ayegba B+ The big man only took one shot and finished with zero points, but he played his role perfectly. Coming off the bench, the big man did a good job of protecting the rim and snatched 8 boards in 18 minutes while staying out of foul trouble.
Reggie Cameron B- The freshman took six 3-pointers and hit three to finish with 9 points. The Hoyas would love for Cameron to come off the bench and be a threat from deep and with more experience, he will continue to find his path to that role.
Aaron Bowen C Bowen didn't do much in ten minutes. Just 3 points on 1-4 shooting.



Team A Comments


Not much to nitpick here as the Hoyas led by as many as 40 points and cruised to an easy victory.
Coach Grade Comments
JTIII A See above.