Big first half helps No.7 Georgetown overpower DePaul
Roy Hibbert asserted himself early and often, and showed why he’s considered one of the most dominant forces in the Big East, something DePaul found that out the hard way.
Hibbert led the Hoyas with 17 points, 11 rebounds to go along with five assists, as No.7 Georgetown routed DePaul 76-60 on Tuesday night. Georgetown (12-1, 2-0) won their fourth straight game rather easily, leaving little doubt early that DePaul would win their fifth in a row and third straight in the Big East.
The Hoyas started fast and put DePaul behind the eight ball early, scoring the game’s first 11 points. DePaul didn’t help their cause much, missing 18 of their first 22 shots including their first seven attempts from the field. It was a succession of easy, uncontested baskets during the first 20 minutes and Georgetown held a monster lead at the break, 46-25. The Blue Demons couldn’t mount any sort of surge and at one point, Georgetown led by as many as 28 in the second half.
Aside from Hibbert, the Hoyas had three other players in double figures. Austin Freeman added 13 points and Jonathan Wallace and Jessie Sapp each finished with 12. Georgetown shot an impressive 54 percent from the field, while holding DePaul to 32 percent shooting.
DePaul (6-8, 2-1), Mac Koshwal and Dar Tucker each had 14 points, with Koshwal grabbing 13 rebounds. Will Walker added 13 points, and leading scorer Draeolon Burns finished with only six points on 2-of-9 shooting. DePaul’s bench outscored the starters 31-29 on the night.
Georgetown’s stalwart style of defense has largely been the main reason why the Hoyas are 12-1 out of the gate this season. The 60 points scored by DePaul marks only the third time this year the Hoyas have given up 60 points or more, and the first time since surrendering 85 points in the loss against Memphis on Dec. 22nd an opponent scored more than 55 points.
Georgetown returns home this Saturday when they host Connecticut at 2 p.m., while DePaul travels to St. John’s on Saturday at noon.
Tags: Big East Basketball, DePaul Blue Demons, Georgetown Hoyas, NCAA Men's basketball