BIG EAST GAME PREVIEW: West Virginia @ Georgetown

February 12, 2007



Georgetown and West Virginia both scored big wins on Saturday, now they must put those games behind them in a hury and concentrate on the task at hand, beating the other at their own game!

On Saturday, Georgetown took sole possession of 2nd place and remained right on the heels of the Pittsburgh Panthers with a 76-58 win at home against Marquette. On the afternoon that Georgetown celebrated 100 years of intercollegient college basketball, Roy Hibbert and Jeff Green made their cases to be included in their next celebration by combining for 47 points to outshine the Golden Eagles backcourt.

West Virginia earned a huge out of conference victory as they upset 2nd-ranked UCLA in Morgantown. The Mountaineers are locked in a tight battle for the 4th and final Big East Tournament bye with Louisville and others, so getting their attention back to their conference situation is imperative quickly.

Here are the pregame stories and previews found on the internet this morning:

Mountaineers Visit Red-Hot Hoyas Tonight (Charleston Gazette)
Hibbert, Green Key to Hoyas Revival (Washington Times)
Hoyas Combination is Finally Revealed (Washington Post)
Celbration Time is Over for Mountaineer Men (Register-Herald)


To read our brief preview of the game and to see the NBE Blogger's prediction on the outcome, click 'Read More' below.

Also, we'd love to see the reader's thoughts and predictions on the game in the comments, so feel free to add your toughts!




Preparing for Georgetown and West Virginia usually takes several days, however, both Georgetown and West Virginia will have slightly more than a day to prepare for each other as they both need to put the good feelings of Saturday behind them and get back to the task at hand.

West Virginia is well known for their 1-3-1 trapping zone defense. They also spread the floor on offense and work for the open 3-pter or backdoor cut. They just about ignore any type of post offense or attempt to rebound and concentrates on creating turnovers and scoring from beyond the arc.

Georgetown uses a Princeton-style offense that shortens the game, usually limiting each contest to 55 possessions, or in the neighborhood thereof. With Roy Hibbert and Jeff Green towering over the West Virginia frontline, how the backcourt duo of Jesse Sapp and Jonathan Wallace nadle the 1-3-1 traps will determine how effecient the Hoya offensive attack is. If they can get the ball to Hibbert or Green inside, it will likely result in a basket nearly everytime. Even if they are forced to settle for the perimeter shot, the Hoyas have a major advantage on the glass to clean up the miss and score on the putbacks.

West Virginia's reliance on the 3-pt shot makes this game very interesting. With Georgetown looking to shorten the game, just a few 3's here and there can turn this game quickly. At times, WVU will have all five players on the floor behind the 3-pt arc and all very capable of making the shot. Frank Young and Alex Ruoff are the most dangerous shooters, but Darris Nichols, Dasean Butler and Jamie Smalligan are also dangerous shooters. With the threats on the perimeter, they can pull the Georgetown defense away from the basket and try to run Butler and others of screens for backdoor baskets. If Georgetown goes to zone, it could help the WVU shooters get more comfortable on the perimeter. The 3-pt shot is the great equalizer in college basketball and WVU uses it fully to their advantage.

Georgetown is a 9.5-pt favorite at home and they have the size and the experience to get this win. West Virginia will likely bang home some 3's and keep this game interesting with some well-timed long range shots, but Georgetown has Hibbert and Green to turn to when they need a basket, and when they turn to them, it should be nearly automatic against the WVU zone.

NBE Blogger Prediction: Georgetown 73 West Virginia 64