Rutgers vs Georgetown Basketball Recap

Rutgers 71, Georgetown 68

You would have thought that the Georgetown Hoyas - coming from an elite academic institution - would have learned a few lessons the first time they looked past a lower-tier opponent.

You would have thought wrong.

History repeated itself in an increasingly crazy Big East season, as coach John Thompson III saw his GU crew spit the bit at the Louis Brown Athletic Center in Piscataway, N.J.

It was just a week and a half ago that Georgetown let down its guard at home against South Florida, a decent team but hardly one of the leading lights in the Big East. The Hoyas - coming off an emotion-filled thumping of Duke and looking ahead to a sexy showdown against Villanova - clearly played with deficient emotion and subpar intensity. The Bulls from Tampa ambushed the Hoyas and effectively put an end to Georgetown's hopes of winning the outright regular season Big East championship. Yes, Thompson's team rebounded to dump Villanova three days later, but the damage - to the Hoyas' seeding in the upcoming NCAA Tournament - had been done.

This past Tuesday, Georgetown managed to win at Providence, digging out a workmanlike road win against an inferior opponent. The 79-70 triumph raised hopes in D.C. that the Hoyas' slip-up against South Florida was just a temporary blip and not an indication of an ingrained habit. However, it needs to be noted that after this rendezvous with Rutgers, the next game on Georgetown's schedule was a five-star throwdown against Syracuse on Feb. 18. Would GU look ahead to a box-office battle and ignore another gameday opponent?

In a word, yes. Georgetown, it can be said, has a chronic case of the look-aheads. The Rutgers Scarlet Knights made sure of it on a shocking Sunday in the Big East.

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Yes, just three hours after Louisville shocked Syracuse in the Carrier Dome, coach Fred Hill's hardwood roster eclipsed its more credentialed adversary. National Rookie of the Year candidate Dane Miller (13 points, 10 rebounds, four assists, two blocks) tipped in a miss by teammate Mike Rosario with 23 seconds left to give Rutgers a 67-66 lead. After Chris Wright - who missed all three free throws earlier in the second half after being fouled on a 3-point attempt - missed a go-ahead jumper, it was Miller who knocked down two more foul shots to give RU a 69-66 cushion with 10 ticks left on the clock. The final few possessions witnessed smart coaching by Hill and the rest of the Rutgers staff, who fouled to prevent Georgetown from getting off a triple with six seconds left. An exchange of free throws on both sides (from purposeful fouls) made the score 71-68 in favor of RU with four seconds left. Georgetown actually was able to get off a three by Austin Freeman just before the final horn, but the heave missed, and the Scarlet Knights won their third conference game of the year.

Georgetown - on the road to Syracuse - got ransacked by Rutgers. The Scarlet Knights have had a tough year, but they were good enough and determined enough to make their opponent pay for going through the motions once again.

By: Matt Zemek
Big East Fans Senior Staff Writer