Post game thoughts on the Hoyas GRAY OUT 71-63 win over Butler

Move On Up Hoyas! 

The Hoyas were just too hot too handle today as they ran down Butler in great Hoyas guard play. Every game is on full throttle. The games are played with great sense of urgency. Hoyanation, it's great to see our team develop as the season goes on. It seems the Hoyas have many leaders not just one or two. All are leaders in their own way. Senior leadership is leading the way for Gtown. Markel Starks poured in (19 pts, 7 assts) play as true as a point guard could play. No turnovers! Awesome Markel! With the Hoyas struggling midway through the first half Starks realized something. "The Hoyas said, ''Enough is enough,'' according to Markel Starks. ''It was like, we do have a game today. It's a

`Gray Out.' We've gotta come ready to play. ''And then coach kind of looked at me like, `C'mon, man, let's go.'' The senior played 40 minutes today, but seems to be handling his minutes in dramatic fashion. When asked the question about Starks being tired, "Markel Starks doesn't get tired,'' Thompson said.

Super sophomore guard D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera was right behind in scoring (18 pts, 5 rebs) and dazzling the crowd and finding his way into the paint. He was very effective in doing this.''I think the guys, they understand what we're looking for, they're not forcing anything,'' Georgetown coach John Thompson III said. ''We understand, this group - we can't turn the ball over, we have to get to the foul line.''

Despite missing all six of their shots from 3-point range in the second half, the Hoyas managed to extend their advantage on the scoreboard by converting 14-of-17 attempts at the charity stripe. The Hoyas scored 12 points off of the Bulldogs' 11 turnovers.

Read more here: http://www.centredaily.com/2014/02/08/4025338/recap-georgetown-vs-butler.html#storylink=cpy

Read more here: http://www.centredaily.com/2014/02/08/4025338/recap-georgetown-vs-butler.html#storylink=cpy

Butler coach Brandon Miller has this to say about his team and the Hoyas. ''It was our defense, we couldn't get a stop,'' Butler coach Brandon Miller said. ''In the second half they got the ball to the paint and stepped up and made shots.

''Georgetown has one of the best backcourts in the Big East.'' Thanks coach Miller. 

Junior guard lockdown specialist Jabril Trawick (8 pts, 6 rebs, and 2 assts)came off of the bench and had an immediate impact on defense causing a quick turnover for his team. Senior redshirt Aaron Bowen (8 pts, 1 reb, 2 stls) continues be a factor and leader off of the bench always on the prowl on defense. One three pointer Bowen shot was so graceful, the shot just hung in the air and everything went silent then BOOM! 

The Hoyas guards dazzled the crowd playing in attack mode and finding ways to get inside the paint at will. This is becoming second nature at the right time. One would have to salute this stellar tough and smart guard play. Totally amazing to see. Junior starting center/forward Mikael Hopkins (4 pts, 6 rebs) got in early foul trouble and had to sit, (only played 13 minutes),but his teammates had has back and wouldn't let Butler take advantage of his non presence in the game. Senior forward leader Nate Lubick's (10 pts, 9 rebs, 2 assts, 2 stls, 1 blk) determination was stellar once again. 

Great effort today by the Hoyas as they shot 13-29, 44%, and Butler shot 10-30, 33% at the half. The Hoyas had only 7 turnovers for today. Both teams had 28 rebounds.Key stat, Hoyas had 14 assists, Bulter only 8. For the game the Hoyas shot 27-55, 49%, Butler shot 21-50, 42%. Most of the Hoyas points were inside the perimeter. GREAT DEFENSE! GREAT COMMUNICATION!  I love this!    

Hoyas defensive photo's below courtesy USA Today:

I'm seeing a great team play great team basketball. This is an amazing sight to see. Know my history of the game of basketball this team reminds of a team that won the first World Professional Basketball Champion in 1939, and this team was the named the click here>>The New York Rens  The legendary coach John Wooden once said, , “To this day, I have never seen a team play better team basketball,” said legendary coach and Hall of Fame member John Wooden – who faced the barnstorming Rens often during the mid-1930s while a player with the Indianapolis Kautskys and other all-white pro basketball teams in Indiana – in a USA Today interview in 2000. “They had great athletes, but they weren’t as impressive as their team play. The way they handled and passed the ball was just amazing to me then, and I believe it would be today.”

A Black History Month Salute to the Original Pioneers of basketball

Renaissance Rens

During black history month I'd like to give Claude Johnson, CEO of The Blackfives.com and Fox Sports Network a salute on their contribution on letting the world know about the original pioneers during the black fives basketball era. This is also a great educational tool for all coaches to teach their players about the original pioneers of this era of who they were and their struggles and sacrifice during these hard times in America. Their  contributions to the game of a basketball were were unbelievable and forgotten, but it's now being brought to light. For this, I am grateful to know and keep learning about the Blackfives.

There's one team of this ear that I truly admire. The New York Rens. Legendary UCLA coach John Wooden once mentioned, “To this day, I have never seen a team play better team basketball,” said legendary coach and Hall of Fame member John Wooden – who faced the barnstorming Rens often during the mid-1930s while a player with the Indianapolis Kautskys and other all-white pro basketball teams in Indiana – in a USA Today interview in 2000. “They had great athletes, but they weren’t as impressive as their team play. The way they handled and passed the ball was just amazing to me then, and I believe it would be today.”

 In 1939, the New York Rens won the inaugural World Championship of Professional Basketball, an invitation-only tourney with a field made up of America’s twelve best pro hoops teams. The title game saw the Rens defeating the Oshkosh All Stars. Oshkosh had been the champion of the National Basketball League, a whites-only league.

That quote from legendary Coach John Wooden reminded me of how my team, the Georgetown Hoyas play. The Georgetown offense that is! I found a Washington Post article Mike Wise had written about the Princeton offense on March 23, 2006, Princeton Offense Keeps Hoyas On The Move. "Many kids still don't understand how the gray jersey they had locked down on the wing changed direction in a blink and caught a threaded bounce pass for a layup. They all must wonder, deep down: "How come Backdoor U. is still playing and we're out?"

That's easy. The Hoyas are a smarter, more cohesive and patient basketball team. In an increasingly I-gotta-get-mine, sneaker-deal world, they bought into a system of five teammates playing as one. They long ago tuned out the "Georgetown-plays-boring" lament and kept learning and winning."

Post game thoughts on Hoyas 71-59 road win over DePaul

The Hoyas continue to overcome adversity one game at a time in a well needed tough road win. Early and midway throught the first half the Hoyas had struggled to score but still managed to be in the game with 9:00 in the first half.. Depaul's four turnovers at this period were enough to keep the Hoyas hanging around in the first half..

Tough rebounding and smart defensive plays by senior Nate Lubick with 8:15 to go. Depaul was tough on the boards early leading the Hoyas 16-13 in rebounds with 7:20 to go in the first half. Despite the lull's in the first the Hoyas managed to stay within striking range handling Depaul's rage with poise 3:45 to go in the first half 24-20 Blue Demons up!  Good to see the Hoyas score transitional baskets off of Depaul's turnovers (7).

The two senior leaders showed great leadership in the first half keeping the team in withing striking distance by the half 30-27. By the half he Hoyas were only shooting 30% 9-30, 20% 2-10 in three pointers, 53.8% 7-13 from the free throw line.

Something may have been brewing for the Hoyas with the scored tied at 32 for 3:59 on a D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera (16 pts, 5 rebs, 2 blks, 1 stl) (11-11 from the free throw line) jump shot to pull him out his shooting slump the Hoyas finally take their first lead at 14:43 on a three pointer from Hoya reserve forward Aaron Bowen. Big shot! The Hoyas never looked back afterwards. Free throws seem to matter for the Hoyas midway through second half. The Hoyas managed to keep a two point lead 39-37 with 11:51 to go in the game. “The last couple of games — including tonight — he makes his fouls shots which is big coming down at the end,” Georgetown coach John Thompson III said. “It’s good to see him put the ball in the basket and we needed him to put the ball in the basket.” 

Both Starks and Smith-Rivera got the free throw line a combined 25 times! The guards were attack mode, something we've all been praying for instead of relying on the three point shot. Hoyas were 5-17, 29.4% in 3's.

"The road not taken was not taken for a reason. Trust that you are right where you need to be."

Junior Jabril Trawick's made his presence know tonight on the defensive end. He also knocked down a pair of three pointers and ended the game with 15 points off of the bench. He was truly an Hoya X factor last night. Scrappy the Hoyas were. As both teams lost the ball they were scrapping to get the ball. 

Typical Big East game! I love it! For a moment there I think both teams were playing "hot potato" with the basketball. The Hoyas seem to not look back so far in the second half with 7:58 to go in the game 51-44. Players on both teams diving all over court trying to get possession of the ball. The Hoyas took over in the second half, sinking 45 percent from the field and 23-of-28 at the free-throw line. Big shout out to senior forward Nate Lubick on his great ten rebounding effort and his leadership. Way to step it up Nate! 

Read more here: http://www.bradenton.com/2014/02/03/4971386_recap-depaul-vs-georgetown.html#storylink=cpy

It was great to see the Hoyas backcourt go 3-13 from the free throw line with 4:27 to go in the game. The stayed strong with the score at 60-47 at this time.  With 2:17 to go in the game the Hoyas were up 63-55. Starks made nine free throws and ended up with 24 points to lead his team in scoring tonight.

Game photo's from last night Hoyas victory they fought hard, were poised filled with determination. The sense of urgency has not left the Hoyas it's still there, they just had to figure out a few things, they've made the adjustments, now it's about moving on one game at a time. "Faith through adversity." - John Thompson Jr. 

You keep plugging away in life and geez does it ever get so hard to get back up but someway somehow you have to get back up. I think it's incredible to watch these student athletes learn and live their dreams and have faith in the midst of a storm and also like learning how to dance in the rain...Simply Amazing! What Rocks! 

Markel Starks led the way with 26 points

Super thoughts on Super Saturday at The Mecca

 

Never give up, never give up

"You're not going to beat Michigan State or any team in the Big East if you aren't physically tough," Thompson said. "You need to be tough enough to make the hustle plays, run down the loose balls, run down the long rebounds and have communication on defense."

 “Use what you've been through as fuel, believe in yourself and be unstoppable!”

Hoyas WIN 64-60! Amazing, simply amazning! That's what this life is all about, not giving up. The Hoiyas have been through the storms, the season, you can either feel sorry for yourself or you can have "faith through adversity." The Hoyas took things one day and one game at a time. The hurt was there but not for long. They didn't worry about the past, they didn't look back because they knew something would be gaining on them. What an excellent stage to beat a tough Big Ten foe like Michigan State in The World Most Famous Arena.

The Hoyas' defense was at it's best. The will to want to play defense was at it's best. Most of the Spartans shots were well earned. Communication was at it's best today for the Hoyas. Senior leadership was at it's best. Starks and Lubick good job! Hoyaball, inside, outside the whole game. Great decision making. I knew the is game would be a battle of the guards. It wasn't about who was better, it was about who was tougher and smarter, The Hoyas proved this yesterday. 


"Everybody contributed in the frontcourt," Lubick said. "Coach told us this is a team notorious for rebounding and we beat them up pretty good on the boards and that was a point of emphasis for us."

Our fearless senior leader Markel Starks (16 pts, 4 asts, 2 rebs.), and super sophomore D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera (12 pts, 8 rebs, 1 ast, 3 stls.) went toe to toe with Michigan State Spartain's guard's Gary Harris (20 pts.) and Keith Appling (7 pts.), and won the duel. For a very short moment a shoot out occurred between Stark vs. Harris. At 4:23 Starks knocked down a three point shot to take a 50-45 lead, but in the next twenty-three seconds Gary Harris knocked down a three point shot to make it a three point game 50-48. The duel was on! Starks gave Harris a head fake dribble drive to the basket and made nice floater take his team back up by four points 52-45 with 3:43 to go in the game.

Leaders are made, and they are made by effort and hard work. - Vince Lombardi

The Hoyas shot about 44% for most of the game. the inside/outside basketball was great. The Hoyas got to the line 24 times, Michigan State 16. Really?  Normally, it's the other way around as far as foul disparity's in our Big East games. This is a way to get those referee's off your back but playing smart. Just keep driving, keep getting the ball inside. Hoyas had 6 blocks. The bench played well scoring 13 pts. Shout to to Moses Ayegba, Aaron Bowen and Jabril Trawick.

Who said the Hoyas are limited to only two players scoring the basketball? "Jabril and Nate (Lubick) were very, very good today," Thompson said. "Their presence out there was unbelievable down the end and Markel made plays. Big, big plays."

A three point was not shot for the whole first half. Great! Most of the pointers 2-12 16.7% came in the second half. As both teams struggled to score 6:42 the scored remained 48-45 for over two minutes, sgame still  in favor of the the Hoyas. Starks managed to take over with a big basket 3:43 to go in the game to boost the score 52-48. Spartans Harris was fouled and went to the firee throw line for two shots. He made one of two free throws.

The score was 52-49. Good play here, senior leadership, with 2:56 to go Starks grabs a key rebound and gives it to forward Mickael Hopkings for the dunk! Score 54-49 Hoyas! At 2:09 Spartan guard Gary Harris comes down and makes a layup, score 54-51 still in favor of the Hoyas. As the Hoyas hold steady and poised. Hopkins knocks down two key free throws with 1:48 to go in the game (free throws wins championships) 56-51 Hoyas. Harris knocks down a three pointer at 1:36.

One team going inside another team relying on jumpers. Wow, what a a game, but hold on. it's 1:32 left on the clock the Spartans called a timeout. Out of that time out the Philly Patrol was out, as the tough junior leader Jabril Trawick made a tip shot. 58-54 still 1:14 to go in the game. So far so good Hoyas were keeping it inside and making good decision down the stretch. At 4:29 Starks took Appling off the dribble and was fouled he knocked down one free throw to make the score 59-54. 

Smith-Rivera's smart inside play put him on the line with 0.37, soon afterwards there was Trawick's seal the deal thunderous dunk to end the game. What a performance on the big stage at Madison Squared Garden on Super Bowl weekend for the Georgetown Hoyas.
 
As Villanova Jay Wright said, "they're in every game, I mean it's amazing."  It was good to see the old blue and gray stay poised, determined and never give up. Not for one second! This day was truly amazing Hoyanation. A BIG SHOUTOUT TO THE STUDENT SECOND AND FANS! I could hear you well in the world's most famous arena. 

Games photo's: 

 

 

 

The Hoyas left the Spartans confused and scratching their heads

My day in the Big Apple!

My Hoyas brother's! Salute! Bryan Burkhold and Joe Gettle

WHAT ROCKS!

My thoughts on the Hoyas hard fought 65-60 loss versus #9 ranked Villanova

The Hoyas came to play tonight, they fought and they scrapped. But in the end it was all about decision making down by three points 1:28 on the clock. Official Timeout. What should we do? Coming out of the official timeout the Hoyas got a KEY TURNOVER with 1:56 left in the game, but didn't take advantage of that critical possession that could've put the score at 61-60 with over a minute left in the game. 

The decision at 1:28 to shoot a three pointer was not a good decision be honest with you. First of all, if I'm a point guard, I have to make a decision to get to basket to get a quick two points. Hey, who knows, you just might get a gift for making a great decision to get to the basket, a free throw, knock the free throw down and you tie the game with plenty of time to win the game.

With .55 left to go, senior Nate Lubick got a rebound and Georgetown had another chance to make a good decision. Gtown timeout. What would you do? Score still 61-58. This is Gtown's second chance to either tie the game or get a quick two pointer with .34 to go in the game. 

This didn't happen, a turnover did, at a crucial moment. The rest of the way all jumpers were shot. Guard decision making near games is very critical as you can see. It's about making that decision in a split second, a smart decision.

Despite it all, I really thought the Hoyas won this game. The bench came up with ten big points. Seven of those points from senior forward Aaron Bowen, he also had four key rebounds, one assist and two steals. It was great to finally see junior guard Jabril Trawick enter the game after sitting out a few games due to a broken jaw. 

Senior Markel Starks led the way with (20 pts., 5 assist, 3 rebounds, but also had 5 turnovers). Sophomore D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera (9) pts. went 0-6 from the three ponit range. He shot 2-11, but got to the free throw line 4 times. 

The rebounding was just about the same for both teams Gtown 20, Villanova 21. Both teams were tied with twelve assists. Turnovers Gtown 18, Nova 16. Steals Gtown 8, Nova 9. Both teams shot 30% in 3's. Both teams shot in the 40% range. Gtown 44.2%, Nova 40%. The only odd stat was free throws. One can only say the Wildcats had some help from the referee's tonight. 

It was a good ole scrappy Big East rivalry game.  The early foul calls were suspect. I don't know what referee Karl Hess has against the Hoyas, but his continuance of bias foul calling against the Hoyas is killing them and has to stop. When will it stop? Hess makes these bogus calls on the regular here in D.C. so one would only assume he makes these calls in our road games as well.

The Hoyas only went to the free throw line nine times and went 8-9 @ 88.9%. Villanova went the free throw line twenty-nine times and went 22-28 @ 78.6%. I also though the Hoyas guards could've done a better job of attacking the basket to get to the free throw line a lot more. Some of the foul calls on the Hoyas were bogus and unreal.  "Every game seems to be called differently" and added: "One could say that opposite ends of court are called differently." - John Thompson III 

"We're getting the ball into the paint, we're getting penetration, we're getting drives, we're getting the ball down low. Fouls aren't being called," Thompson said. "I'm not saying we're being fouled and they're not called. I don't know, but you look at that stat right away and you see we shot nine foul shots they shoot 28, so we've got to figure out how to get fouled." I agree, but as we noticed when our point guard started taking charge and getting the basket he was getting the free throw. Our point guard just had to keep leading and keep doing this especially in the beginning of games, it's all on him. His job description is loaded. He's our coach on the court. Starks that is. Recognize who's in foul trouble and go at them especially their bigs and key players. 

I really like how Coach Thompson is using all his personnel. He and his staff have figured out how to get the most out of every player, but now, it's all up to the guards to make those good decisions at the end of games to start winning again for the Hoyas. "they're in every game, they're right there, there's such a fine line between winning and losing and not having two starts to be in every game like this, I mean this is amazing." - Jay Wright

This is where it mostly matters, near game's end.. Point guard play/guard play is so crucial at these moments in any game you play. No matter what you do all game, it's always about decision making. It's also what life is all about. Decision making. These are the answers. 

You're just about there Hoyas, just keep attacking the basket and make better decision's in crucial moments of a game. "I do know how good the Hoyas are and can be. because you always measure yourself up against the best!" - GH

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