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The Georgetown Hoyas have another name on their 2018-19 AND 2019-20 schedules.
Per Jon Rothstein, the Hoyas will face the SMU Mustangs twice over the next two seasons. Georgetown will welcome the Mustangs to Capital One Arena in Washington D.C. this coming season, and then travel to Moody Arena in the greater Dallas area in 2019.
Over the last five seasons, SMU has been a very strong program. Although they went 17-16 last year, it was the first time they didn’t attain at least 25 wins since 2012-13. They averaged 27.25 wins from 2013-2017, with a 30-5 season in the 2016-17 campaign. They won the AAC in the 2015 and 2017 seasons, and the 2015 regular season title was the program’s first since they won the old Southwest Conference in 1993.
SMU will be without their two leading scorers from a season ago in the upcoming matchup in 2018. Those being Shake Milton and Ben Emelogu. Milton, who averaged an even 18 points per game, declared for the NBA Draft and was picked up by the Philadelphia 76ers. Emelogu, who averaged 10.7 points, graduated after his senior season. Jimmy Whitt is the team’s leading scorer going into next season, as the now junior guard from Columbia, Missouri averaged 10.5 points in the 2017-18 season. They will also have the services of grad transfer Nat Dixon, who comes from the Chattanooga Mocs.
This will be a change of pace for both programs. The Hoyas and the Mustangs have only met once in their respective histories, dating back to at least 1949-50 (h/t Sports-Reference). The two sides met in the 1984 NCAA Tournament, an event that Georgetown won, of course. That day, in a Second Round matchup held all the way out at Friel Court in Pullman, Washington, Georgetown edged SMU 37-36. Hoya legend and current head coach Patrick Ewing scored 10 points, which led the way.
Let’s, uh, hope for more activity this go-around. And to put in perspective just how long it’s been since these two teams met, the DePaul Blue Demons were a 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament that year. No, really. Not joking. Go look it up.