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The Georgetown Hoyas are off the heels of a backbreaking loss to the superb Monmouth Hawks of the MAAC. The Hawks added another notch in their belt in the form of the Hoyas this past Tuesday night in D.C., winning by double digits over D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera and the Hoyas, who simply had no answer for the boys from New Jersey at any point of the night.
Georgetown will have to have a short-term memory Saturday when they welcome upset-minded UNC Asheville to town. The Bulldogs and Hoyas have identical records - 6-4 - through the first 10 games of the season and the 'Dawgs are on a four-game winning streak, have won five of six, and six of eight after going in an 0-2 hole.
Whether or not John Thompson III's bunch can move past the loss to the Hawks will prove critical as this encounter with UNC Asheville is their second-to-last nonconference game of the year. Walking into league play with five losses would undoubtedly put this team on high DEFCON levels in an increasingly toughening BIG EAST Conference.
How to watch, listen or stream
Game Time: Noon ET
TV: FSN, MSG+
Radio: WJFK 106.7 FM (Georgetown)
Online Streaming: Streaming may be available via FOX Sports GO where available for this telecast.
Three things to watch
1. Springing off a loss: One thing Georgetown has excelled at this season is bouncing back after defeats. The Hoyas have only once lost back-to-back games in the first 10 games of this season, rebounding with victories after losses to Maryland and Duke thus far. In fact, the Hoyas strung together a five-game winning streak after their loss to the Blue Devils before the loss to Monmouth on Tuesday. If we are to believe that trends continue, Georgetown should see themselves rebounding on Saturday afternoon.
2. Derrickson is due: I spent some time talking about Marcus Derrickson's inconsistencies last time around. Well... Derrickson scored only three points against Monmouth, which is right in line with the pace that the Bowie, Maryland native has played with this season. The good news for the Hoyas is that the 6-foot-7 freshman is in line to get into double digits if his trend of play continues Saturday afternoon.
3. Feasting inside: One matchup to watch for Saturday afternoon is how the Bulldogs handle Georgetown from inside the 3-point arc. Georgetown is one of the best teams in the country in 2-point field goal percentages and the UNC Asheville defense has been positively porous defensively from that area of the court. The Hoyas have a myriad of scorers that can attack the rim and shoot well on 2-point jumpers, so needless to say it will be intriguing to see how the Bulldog defenders can matchup well with the Hoya scorers.