NEW YORK - Perhaps it was fitting that the most tumultuous season in Georgetown's recent basketball history possibly ended yesterday in agonizing fashion. That's the way this whole year has gone for the Hoyas.
Rutgers guard Geoff Billet launched a running one-hander from the foul line as the final horn sounded, giving the Scarlet Knights an improbable 61-60 victory over Georgetown yesterday in the quarterfinals of the Big East tournament before 15,377 at Madison Square Garden.
Immediately following the loss, coach John Thompson kept the Hoyas' postseason door slightly ajar. When asked if Georgetown would accept an NIT bid, Thompson replied, 'I haven't really thought about it, to tell you the truth. I was trying to play this tournament.'
But Georgetown's big boss didn't rule out the NIT. With an injury-depleted squad and following off-court incidents that constantly kept the Hoyas in the news, Georgetown insiders felt Thompson would turn down a NIT bid and put this season to rest. Now it becomes
a wait-and-see situation.
Under Thompson, the Hoyas have been to the postseason 23 consecutive years. It remains to be seen whether the coach considers this luckless gang worthy of continuing to play. Its 15-14 record was Georgetown's worst since a 13-13 mark in 1973-74, Thompson's second season on the Hilltop. The circumstances, however, were most extenuating.
The Hoyas were left cruelly shorthanded after blue chip freshman guard Anthony Perry was ruled academically ineligible, point guard Kenny Brunner was suspended and then transferred, guard Ed Sheffey was suspended after being charged during an auto accident and also transferred, and centers Ruben Boumtje Boumtje (wrist) and Jahidi White suffered season-ending injuries/
'You know, I made a lifetime out of not responding to what some people say,' Thompson said when asked about the NIT. However, he responded to Billet's last-second runner.
'There was no [defensive] breakdown at all,' Thompson said. 'He penetrated. He is not the only one on that team that can shoot. . . . They have got a fairly good perimeter shooting team. He made a good play.'
With 2.9 seconds on the game clock, the 6-foot junior guard, drove right at the foul line around Georgetown's defensive stopper, point guard Joe Touomou. Forward Boubacar Aw didn't slide over to help Touomou, and Billet launched his game-winner.
'When he got the ball, I didn't want to foul him,' Touomou said. 'I tried to stay in front of him, and he made a tough shot.'
But the game shouldn't have come down to the final shot for Georgetown. For nearly 35 minutes, the Hoyas controlled the Scarlet Knights by playing aggressive defense. Georgetown rebounded well (19 offensive rebounds) and scooped up loose balls.
In the final five minutes, however, it was Georgetown's half-court offense that stagnated. Shots didn't drop.
'Down the last three minutes of the game, we were changing defenses, and you can't dictate what the shot selection is going to be,' Thompson said. 'Yes, I was happy with [the shot selection].'
Georgetown's inability to hit free throws down the stretch also hurt. The Hoyas, who wasted a 41-31 second-half lead, made only one of four in the final 3:01. For the game, the Hoyas were just 9-for-18.
Georgetown sophomore guard Shernard Long put the Hoyas in position to salvage a victory near the finish. Despite going 8-for-26 from the floor, Long hit the big shot when Georgetown needed it the most. With the Hoyas trailing 59-58, Long curled up to the foul line off a screen and nailed a jumper over a double-team with 13.9 seconds left.
****BOX
HOYAS REPORT
Seen and heard yesterday at Madison Square Garden in New York:
SELF PASS - It was trash collection day on the streets of the Big Apple, and Rutgers senior center Eric Clark should have deposited one of his jump shots curbside.
With the Hoyas firmly in control of the game 41-31 with 15:34 left, Clark decided to take the Scarlet Knights' offense into his own hands. From the foul line, Clark took a jumper falling away to the left side. The shot was so bad, it ricocheted off the backboard and back into Clark's hands. Instinctively, Clark went back up with his own rebound for an easy follow.
YOU TALKIN' TO ME? - The Big East tournament is one of New York's annual sporting spectacles. There has been talk of moving the tournament to alternate Big East sites each year, but so far it's just been talk.
For thousands of fans who go to the Garden for four days in early March, one of the preferred ways to get there is the always reliable New York cab. Thousands of taxi cabs ply the financial district's streets 24 hours a day. And when one sets foot inside a New York cab, a taped message of a famous celebrity telling riders to buckle up is pumped out of the taxi's speakers. Tony La Russa, Jackie Mason, Joan Rivers and Luciano Pavarotti are some of the celebs offering taped advice. And sound advice it is. New York's cabs have a reputation for unsavory driving practices.
