College Basketball - West Virgina Mountaineers at Georgetown Hoyas (-9½, 125) 8:00 PM
The Hoyas, ranked 22nd in the nation and 9.5 point favorites tonight, celebrated their 100th anniversary in style on Saturday with a 76-58 defeat of 11th ranked Marquette.
And the Mountaineers also had a day to remember on Saturday, coming up with their best win of the season by downing number two ranked UCLA, 70-65.
With the two sides riding a wave of success, both have excellent credentials going into tonight’s game.
The Mountaineers have won 14 of their past 18 games, and in Frank Young, have one of the most consistent scorers in the conference.
Georgetown, who had former stars including Patrick Ewing in town for their Centenary celebrations, is on a roll of their own, winning their last seven straight contests.
Center Roy Hibbert, and forward Jeff Green shape up as the Hoyas’ go-to guys tonight. Hibbert, fresh from a 23 point, 11 rebound haul against Marquette, is currently playing the best basketball of his career.
In his junior season, the 7’2” Maryland product is leading the team in both points and rebounds, although he still does not rebound that great for someone his size.
Green has proved his able assistant at both ends of the court, scoring a career-high 24 points in their win over Marquette. The Golden Eagles were on an eight-game winning streak themselves before coming unglued.
The Mountaineers have a young squad, losing many of their senior players last year, but they have come up with an exciting new crop. One such player is sophomore guard Alex Ruoff, who scored a game-high 18 points in their big win over UCLA.
Young, the only returning starter from the team that also beat UCLA last year, is a key figure for the Mountaineers this campaign. He has scored in double digits in 21 out of their last 22 games.
But West Virginia coach, John Beilein is certain to warn his players about keeping up their concentration against the Hoyas.
After charging to a comfortable lead against UCLA, the Mountaineers lost focus in the second half, conceding 15 straight points to allow the Bruins back into the contest. Ruoff got West Virginia back on track with a timely three-pointer, but they can not allow a run like that on the road.
Summing Up: Georgetown has a superior Big East record, including a 4-1 mark at home. West Virginia is 2-3 on the road in-conference, but they have won two straight against Rutgers and Seton Hall.
However, Georgetown is far better than either Rutgers or Seton Hall, and it will take the Mountaineers “A+" game to come out victorious.
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