BIG EAST GAME PREVIEW: HOYAS HOST WVU AT VERIZON CENTER

January 22, 2009

A key Big East match-up takes place tonight in the Nation’s capital when West Virginia travels to take on the Georgetown Hoyas. Game time is 7 PM at the Verizon center.

The Mountaineers evened their conference mark at 2-2 with a 62-59 win over South Florida in Morgantown last Saturday. WVU has an overall record of 13-4 and tonight begins a run of nine games with seven against ranked conference opponents in what could define their season.

Georgetown is 3-2 in the Big East and 12-4 overall on the season. All four losses have come against ranked foes (Tennessee, Pittsburgh, Notre Dame and Duke), but the Hoyas have also shown the ability to beat ranked teams with a win at Connecticut as well as a home victory over Syracuse and a non-league win over Memphis.

Here are some pregame stories and previews found on the internet today:

Huggins, Thompson cut from Same Cloth (Times West Virginian)
Monroe a Big Plus for Georgetown (Washington Times)
Backcourt Depth Helps Keep Hoyas Afloat (Washington Post)
No Looking Ahead for WVU (Charleston Gazette)
Tall Task Awaits Mountaineers (Register Herald)
WVU’s Flowers Beginning to Bloom (Daily Mail)
Hoya Freshman Making Big Mark in the Middle (Charleston Gazette)
Georgetown Looms Again for WVU’s Butler (Daily Mail)

West Virginia has struggled scoring point of late, averaging just 56.7 points in their last three Big East contests, losing two. There will be a lot of pressure on Da’Sean Butler and Alex Ruoff to finding scoring opportunities and be efficient with those opportunities against a stingy Hoya attack. Neither Butler nor Ruoff have a favorable match-up to indicate they will be able to exploit Georgetown for points.

The Hoyas got a big bench boost from Jason Clark and others recently, which was an area of much concern as Big East play began. Just keeping their starting five, which is among the best on the conference, fresh will go a long way in helping the Hoyas improve.

That starting five of Georgetown is full of all-league potential, but they are still working their way into the roles of the Princeton-style attack. While they definitely have more potential to run than the previous editions, their youthful decision-making can sometimes lead to inconsistency.

West Virginia will defend and hit the boards, albeit with an undersized group, which is needed on the road. However, their offensive struggles are something that they will really have a tough time overcoming against a Georgetown team that will force the opponent to be very efficient. With oddsmakers listing the Hoyas as 5 ½-point favoroites, it seems that early success of WVU is still having some believe they might be a little better than they really are.

NBE Blogger Prediction:

Georgetown 68
West Virginia 61