Georgetown continuing to jell ahead of matchup with Merrimack

Field Level Media|published: Tue 28th November, 20:48 2023

Nov 15, 2023; Piscataway, New Jersey, USA; Georgetown Hoyas head coach Ed Cooley reacts during the first half against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at Jersey Mike's Arena. credits: Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

On paper, Georgetown's rebuild is off to a promising start.

The Hoyas host Merrimack on Wednesday in Washington as winners of three straight, Georgetown's longest winning streak since December 2021.

But first-year Hoyas coach Ed Cooley said that Georgetown's revamped roster has yet to fully mesh, a more telling measure of the team's state six games into the season.

"You have so many teams that don't have any synergy and continuity right now," Cooley said, per The Washington Post. "So you have all these ‘Oh, my bad' moments. ... The teams that don't have those are probably some of the better teams in the country because they have carry-over chemistry and they have continuity among the players.

"We've made so many mistakes. ... A block out here, a missed switch here, transition defense here, a missed screen here. That's just going to take some time for us."

Jayden Epps, one of the Hoyas' 11 newcomers this season, has emerged as Cooley's most reliable scorer. The Illinois transfer has set his career high in points in each of Georgetown's past two games.

Epps propelled the Hoyas (4-2) past visiting Jackson State 88-81 on Saturday with 34 points, one game after dropping 31 in Georgetown's overtime win against American on Nov. 19.

The guard leads the Big East with 19.7 points per game entering Tuesday.

Merrimack (3-4) endured less roster turnover this season than the Hoyas did, returning nine letterwinners and two starters from last season's Northeast Conference tournament championship team.

But the Warriors' considerable depth posed its own challenges for coach Joe Gallo before the season.

"We're kind of like Noah's Ark," Gallo said at NEC Media Day on Oct. 24. "We've got, like, two of everything. We just gotta figure it out."

Gallo has so far relied on three players with scoring averages in double figures, including freshman Budd Clark, who led Merrimack with 12 points in the Warriors' 66-60 overtime loss at Alabama State on Saturday.

Clark's 13.6 scoring average is second on the team behind Jordan Derkack's 14.5 clip. Devon Savage, a Washington, D.C., native, chips in 11.6 points per game.

—Field Level Media