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Hoyas\u2019 competitiveness reveals improvement, despite outcomes<\/p>\n
Your Georgetown Hoyas<\/a> jump three spots on the KenPom rankings to a season-high 61! I assume we\u2019re all feeling great, right? RIGHT?? <\/p>\n Once again there are no moral victories. But despite two disappointing losses this past week, the Hoyas continue to surpass expectations. That isn\u2019t just worth some good feelings. It does mean something in the end\u2026but only if they put some wins together. In their toughest two-game stretch so far, the Hoyas were soundly handled by a UConn<\/a> team that was fresh off a bad loss and focused all of their powers on a young Hoya squad. While it was disappointing that the team couldn\u2019t land a more competitive result in front of the biggest crowd to watch a game in years, extra credit should be awarded for effort. Georgetown then came up short on the road against St. John\u2019s after again putting the screws to an opponent in the first half only to see them roar back in the second. <\/p>\n These games were a bit of a Rorschach test – you\u2019ll see what you want to see, and while we all saw different things, they are all correct. <\/p>\n I saw a young team trying to learn how to win on the biggest stage with a tiny margin for error. This team is still playing well above my expectations. For those who are really frustrated by a three-game losing streak, I get it. But on the other hand, I really don\u2019t get it. This team is absolutely moving in the right direction and is ahead of schedule. They also have an elite unit (defense), which is truly remarkable, given how bad they\u2019ve been over the past few years. Wins will come because this is a good basketball team, albeit flawed. Enjoy the ride, not only the results. <\/p>\n Let\u2019s dive in. <\/p>\n Malik Mack – C+<\/strong> Malik has been asked to do a lot this year, and the ask has only gotten larger without Jayden. He is expected to run the offense, serve as the primary ball-handler, and be a scorer, all while being an excellent perimeter defender. So far, I think he\u2019s been fantastic, but I think the ask caught up to him this week against two of the bigger and more athletic teams in the conference. His scoring took a hit as he just struggled to get to his spots around the basket and in the mid-range against the size of UConn and St. John\u2019s. He also struggled from three despite hitting a couple of big shots, including a late one against St. John\u2019s that got the Hoyas to within one. After a stop, they came back down, and he had another open three that he missed. Consistency is often a victim of fatigue, and I think that\u2019s ultimately what got him. I\u2019d like to see them try and run some more high pick and roll to give him space and to help them get the ball to Sorber (see more below). I also think when you need him to be a scorer, having him take a few possessions off-ball would help. They just don\u2019t have the luxury of doing that consistently without Epps. Defensively, he was great again this past week. The strides he\u2019s made defensively from early in the season are kind of remarkable. I give him a ton of extra credit for that.<\/p>\n Micah Peavy – B-<\/strong> As with Malik, you saw the challenges of asking guys to play above their roles in these two games. Micah is not a 20-shot-per-game guy, but the team has needed him to be. Again, I think the workload caught up to him against St. John\u2019s, where he was inefficient and missed several layups. None of them were easy, but they all should have been made. Micah is excellent as a third or even second option offensively. The lack of ball movement against St. John\u2019s – a direct result of St. Johns\u2019 pressure – hurt the Hoyas, particularly Peavy, who is best off of ball reversals. His defense remains elite, and he manages to make a ton of impact plays, including turning defense into offense. He was the catalyst (along with Curtis) in Georgetown\u2019s first-half run to go up by 15 against St. John\u2019s, capping it off with an absolutely monster dunk: https:\/\/x.com\/GeorgetownHoops\/status\/1879336940346224774<\/a> <\/p>\n I mean, good lord, Micah. That poor guy has a family. Side note: it is genuinely insane and probably worth discussing how that was not called a foul. This angle gives a better look: https:\/\/x.com\/HilltopHoops_\/status\/1879337311001039054<\/a>. I mean, just because Peavy murdered the guy doesn\u2019t negate the full-body contact. <\/p>\n Drew Fielder – C<\/strong> I imagine this will be controversial because if you just look at the box scores, Drew didn\u2019t have a great week. But I continue to think Drew\u2019s contributions are harder to track than most. He plays a key role as a connector and rebounder on the offensive end. Ultimately, you\u2019d like to see him be more involved offensively, but he continues to make shots from inside the arc. He just doesn\u2019t take many. I don\u2019t think that will change much, but they can use him a bit in the dunker spot (along the baseline) in pick and roll (with Sorber). He\u2019s been good there this year. Defensively, he\u2019s been solid, though he has a little bit of a tendency to rotate slowly to shooters. That got him a seat on the bench against UConn and seems to be a source of frustration for Ed. I think he\u2019s being asked to do a lot defensively, and that\u2019s just an area for improvement. But he gets extra points for the intensity and toughness he shows in rebounding. He looked positively ferocious on a couple of grabs in between 2 and 3 St. John\u2019s bigs. <\/p>\n Thomas Sorber – B<\/strong> Sorber was outstanding defensively in both games. His defensive growth has been extremely impressive. He is a big part of their top-20 defense. His rim protection is special. He\u2019s 34th in the nation in block percentage and second in the Big East. Oh, and here\u2019s a fun stat I found: he is the best defender in the league. No biggie. That\u2019s right, he is first in the Big East in Defensive Rating ahead of Deivon Smith and his teammate, Micah Peavy. So that whole \u201cOh, he\u2019s just good on the offensive end\u201d argument is completely bonkers. Offensively, he struggled a bit against the physicality of UConn and St. John\u2019s.<\/p>\n Georgetown needs to get him more shots. Some of that is on Cooley to get them into different looks, some on the guards to throw entry passes, and some on Sorber to establish position. Sorber has been in some absolute wars to get position in the post. He has done well, but he\u2019s still lacking some lower-half strength. Against St. John\u2019s in particular, he would get position and then be knocked off the spot, causing the guards to hesitate to throw the entry pass to him. The solution to that is part, just get stronger, part, please call some blatant fouls, and part, throw good entry passes, but he is so good with the ball (at any spot on the floor) that I honestly don\u2019t think he needs to work as hard to get so deep on post-ups. If they are pushing you up the floor, let them, then turn and hit the mid-range or attack the basket. He picked up what looked like a painful knock to his elbow late in the St. John\u2019s game, and like other knocks he\u2019s taken, he came back in late. I am not sure he\u2019s 100% healthy, but I hope he\u2019s OK. He\u2019s the most important player on this team. <\/p>\n Caleb Williams – C<\/strong> Caleb had a more typical week for a Freshman playing against two of the best teams in the conference. He started against UConn and was good. He lacked some of the activity he\u2019d shown in previous games but remained solid defensively. With Epps back in the starting lineup against St. John\u2019s, he came off the bench and was largely a non-factor. He\u2019s in a tough spot as a spot starter, as his minutes and role are going to change depending on whether he\u2019s starting or not. I expect him to bounce back next week.<\/p>\n Jordan Burks – C-<\/strong> Jordan struggled to find his role this past week. He was mostly a non-factor in the St. John\u2019s game and was not as effective against UConn as he has been. He needs to focus on bringing defensive intensity and going to the rim offensively. <\/p>\n Curtis Williams – A-<\/strong> Curtis may have been the Hoyas\u2019 best player this past week. He is shooting the absolute lights out right now and may be the best shooter on the team. He\u2019s 41% from three on the season. The team desperately needs that, and he showed off his ability to just go get and make tough jumpers in both games. He was the choice to start for Epps in the second half of the St. John\u2019s game. He tried to do a little too much midway through the second half and gave up a bad turnover. After that, Cooley went to Caleb. I thought both were probably the right calls. However, his shooting is a lifeline for the Hoyas, and he is still a plus defender. If he continues to play like he did these past two games, he changes the upside for this team.<\/p>\n Jayden Epps<\/strong> He tried to go against St. John\u2019s and reportedly tweaked the lower body injury. Even at 80% and bad efficiency in the first 10 minutes of the game, you can see how much his presence helps the Hoyas\u2019 offense. They just need a guy for whom the defense has to account on that end. They need him to get healthy. <\/p>\n Offense – D <\/strong>Currently ranked 153rd in Off. efficiency per KenPom (previously 119th)<\/em> Once again, I think the offensive system and sets are actually quite good. They struggle to make shots consistently and don\u2019t have the personnel, particularly without Jayden. Ed\u2019s comments post-game on getting Sorber more shots are encouraging: <\/p>\n Cooley: \u201cFor Thomas Sorber to get four shots and play 32 minutes, that\u2019s on all of us. That dude is one of the elite big men in college basketball, and that\u2019ll 100 percent be addressed.\u201d #Hoyas<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Jaden Daly (@DalyDoseOfHoops) January 15, 2025<\/a>\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
UConn: <\/strong>9pts, 3-12 25% FG, 1-5 20% 3PT, 5 REB, 3 AST, 2 STL, 3 TOV, 37 MIN <\/strong>
St. John\u2019s: <\/strong>13pts, 5-17 29% FG, 1-5 20% 3PT, 2-3, 4 REB, 6 AST, 2 STL, 5 TO, 37 MIN<\/p>\n
UConn: <\/strong>14pts, 5-12 41% FG, 0-1 3PT, 4-8 FT, 5 REB, 1 AST, 1 STL, 5 TO, 35 MIN
St. John\u2019s: <\/strong>21pts, 9-20 45% FG, 1-2 50% 3PT, 2-4 FT, 7 REB, 1 AST, 3 STL, 4 TO, 40 MIN<\/p>\n
UConn: <\/strong>3pts, 1-2 50% FG, 1-1 3PT, 2 REB, 0 AST, 0 TO, 20 MIN
St. John\u2019s:<\/strong> 4pts, 2-3 66% FG, 0-1 3PT, 12 REB, 0 AST, 1 STL, 1 TO, 36 MIN<\/p>\n
UConn: <\/strong>9pts, 3-9 33% FG, 0-1 3PT, 3-6 FT, 10 REB, 4 AST, 2 STL, 4 BLK, 2 TO, 34 MIN
St. John\u2019s: <\/strong>5pts, 2-4 50% FG, 0-1 3PT, 1-1 FT, 10 REB, 1 AST, 1 STL, 3 BLK, 4 TO, 32 MIN<\/p>\n
UConn: <\/strong>3pts, 1-4 25% FG, 1-2 3PT, 1 REB, 1 AST, 1 STL, 1 BLK, 0 TO, 20 MIN
St. John\u2019s: <\/strong>0pts, 2 REB, 0 AST, 1 BLK, 1 TO, 15 MIN<\/p>\n
UConn: <\/strong>4pts, 1-1 FG, 2-2 FT, 1 REB, 1 AST, 1 BLK, 0 TO, 14 MIN
St. John\u2019s: <\/strong>0pts, 1 STL, 6 MIN<\/p>\n
UConn: <\/strong>15pts, 4-6 66% FG, 3-4 75% 3PT, 4-4 FT, 2 REB, 1 AST, 1 STL, 2 TO, 22 MIN
St. John\u2019s: <\/strong>11pts, 5-8 62% FG, 1-4 25% 3PT, 1 REB, 1 AST, 1 TO, 24 MIN<\/p>\n
UConn: DNP<\/strong>
St. John\u2019s: <\/strong>4pts, 1-6 16% FG, 0-1 3PT, 2-2 FT, 3 REB, 0 AST, 1 STL, 1 TO, 10 MIN<\/p>\n
UConn: <\/strong>92.5 Off. Rating, 45% eFG, 46% 3PT (15 att.), 68.4 AST. Rate
St. John\u2019s: <\/strong>88.5 Off. Rating, 40% eFG%, 21% 3PT (14 att.), 37.5 AST. Rate<\/p>\n\n