After Beating Syracuse, Georgetown Hoyas Are Legit NCAA Contenders Again

The Georgetown Hoyas just played their most complete game in over a month under the lights of Madison Square Garden today.

In a 91-84 upset over No. 1 seeded Syracuse, the Hoyas managed to exorcise their Orange demons (and torture Syracuse fans ) by shredding Syracuse's vaunted 2-3 zone like Swiss cheese.  

Chris Wright's 27 point, six rebound, six assist day was the best performance of any Hoya all season, even trumping Austin Freeman's 28-point second half in the comeback win against UConn.  Wright kept the Hoyas alive in the first half, only turned the ball over three times all game, and repeatedly found the holes in the Syracuse zone that allowed for easy points.

Most of the talk after the game has seemed centered largely on Syracuse, and whether or not this loss cost them the chance at a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament (it likely didn't).  

But here's what Georgetown fans are suddenly wondering again: Are the "Good Hoyas" back and here to stay for March?

Georgetown has posted the most impressive wins of any team in the country not named Kansas this season.  They beat Temple back in November, before anyone realized that Temple was a legitimate mid-major team.  They KO'ed Butler at Madison Square Garden, beat Pitt on the road, and thrashed Duke and Villanova by double-digits at home.

They also entered the Big East Tournament on a 2-4 slide; after having dreams of a top-four seed and a BET double bye, they suddenly had to fight for the right for a single bye in their season finale against Cincinnati.

Much of that late season slide came as a result of an ill-timed flu virus, and Austin Freeman's sudden diabetes diagnosis.  Freeman could barely stand when the Hoyas lost at home against Notre Dame (and nothing against Free, but the Hoyas would have been better served by Vee Sanford taking those minutes that day), and missed the Hoyas' road loss against West Virginia.

He announced that he was back by scoring 24 points against Cincy in 30 minutes, and with a quiet 18 points against 'Cuse today, he's back up and running.

That makes the Hoyas a legitimate threat for a deep NCAA Tournament run.

Georgetown's shown an ability to ring up bundles of points on any team in the country (see: 89 against Duke, 91 against 'Cuse, 103 against 'Nova ), but they've also shown that they can lose to the Rutgers, South Floridas, and Old Dominions of the world.

Luckily, as Notre Dame seems intent on proving, a team gaining some confidence and swagger late in the season certainly never hurt come NCAA tourney time.  

Notre Dame has adapted to the loss of former Big East Player of the Year Luke Harangody by focusing on defense and halfcourt sets; they've won six straight games and counting after upsetting Pittsburgh tonight in the Big East Tournament.

Not to completely jinx Georgetown, but they've tied their longest in-conference winning streak (three games) with the win over Syracuse.  While the length of that "longest" streak might suggest a team that'll struggle getting past the Sweet 16 given their consistency, it also may reflect a Georgetown team that's mirroring Notre Dame's development.

When Freeman initially got sick (before the diabetes diagnosis), a number of his teammates reportedly came down with whatever flu virus he had.  Julian Vaughn still appears to be slightly slowed from that flu bug. (Either that, or he's fatigued, but it's no bueno either way.)

What is bueno, on the other hand, is the way that Hollis Thompson has stepped up into a larger role as of late.  Georgetown's been long afflicted with one of the least productive benches out of 300-plus Division I schools, but the freshman Thompson has been receiving more minutes and responding lately.

His 3-of-7 from the free throw line needs some serious work, especially considering that three of those misses came in the final five minutes of a nail-bitingly close game.  But Thompson's also one of the purest shooters Georgetown has on the team, and they'll need him to stretch defenses and knock down an occasional three-pointer going forward.

Basically, if he's going to have a 3-of-7 night, it's better to come now, when they're guaranteed to have another game to come regardless of the Big East Tourney outcome.

Seldom-used backup point guard Vee Sanford also earned some extra burn with Freeman sick and the Hoyas slumping these past few weeks, and that extra confidence paid off against 'Cuse.  Wright dumped off to Sanford in transition with the Hoyas down one in the second half, and Sanford knocked down a beautiful baseline jumper to give the Hoyas their first lead since 14-11 in the first half.

Does Sanford knock that shot down two months ago, in Madison Square Garden, against a team like Syracuse?  Doubtful.

Does Georgetown need its role players to be able to knock down key shots if they've got any chance of moving deep into the NCAAs?  Absolutely.

Freeman (18 points), Wright (27/6/6), and Monroe (15/10/7) have shown the ability to all blow up and have incredible games in tandem.  For the Hoyas to go far, they'll need smart, clean basketball from the rest of their players.

The Hoyas also managed to win the turnover battle against 'Cuse in a major way; 'Cuse led in turnovers, 17-11, and Georgetown turned those 17 Orange turnovers into 25 quick points.

If the Hoyas continue to play the fundamental, high IQ basketball they played against Syracuse, there's no reason to think that they can't compete with any team in the country.

And in the one-and-done NCAA Tournament, that makes the Georgetown Hoyas a very dangerous opponent.