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DePaul put forth a valiant effort defensively to stay with Georgetown throughout, but their struggles on offense continued as the Blue Demons dropped their Big East opener to the Hoyas, 61-54. Georgetown (9-3), after failing to get going in the post early in the game thanks to suffocating defense from DePaul (8-6), turned to their stellar backcourt to lead them back. Guard Markel Starks led Georgetown with 21 points while his partner in the backcourt D`Vauntes Smith-Rivera contributed 11 points and seven rebounds.
DePaul led near the end of the first half after a 15-2 run, highlighted by a great inbounds play by Brandon Young, who passed the ball off of a turned-around Joshua Smith for an easy lay-up to give DePaul their only lead of the game. Georgetown did not shoot a free throw until 3:08 left in the first half to begin a 14-2 Hoyas run, capped off by a desperation three by forward Aaron Bowen to end the half on top 29-25. The second half was all Georgetown, as DePaul struggled to score in the half-court and missed 10 free throws down the stretch.
DePaul Notes
- Cleveland Melvin went 2-for-12 from the field, scoring six and turning the ball over a game-high five times. The DePaul forwards had a tough time against Georgetown's bigs, but Melvin by far had the most disappointing performance of the game.
- Brandon Young scored 13 points and grabbed seven rebounds, but came up gimpy shortly past the midway point of the second half after landing on the foot of Georgetown guard Jabril Trawick on an attempted three. He would leave the floor but did return to the game not long after.
- Billy Garrett Jr. continues to find a consistent shot, scoring 17 points on 5-for-11 shooting. Melvin is the star right now, but the ESPN Top 100 recruit Garrett may find himself as the leader of this DePaul team next season
- The Blue Demons wrap up their four-game road trip on Saturday as they travel to Milwaukee to take on their biggest Big East rival, Marquette, at 1 P.M. CST. That game can be seen on the CBS Sports Network.
Georgetown Notes
- The Hoyas could not get it going down low, as Josh Smith and Nate Lubick combined for eight points and eight rebounds (all form Lubick).
- Despite turning the ball over ten times early from the Hoyas, they committed just four turnovers the rest of the way while forcing 16 turnovers from DePaul.
- It took a while for Georgetown's guards to turn up the intensity, but they were able to pull away once they did. Markel Starks shot 50% from the field, and despite a 33% showing from D`Vauntes Smith-Rivera, he made good on a few keys plays that helped Georgetown pull away.
- Georgetown will stay at home Saturday to host St. John's at 1 P.M. EST on FOX Sports 1.
