Georgetown looks for turnaround against Mount St. Mary's

Field Level Media|published: Tue 19th November, 13:12 2024

Nov 9, 2024; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Georgetown Hoyas guard Jayden Epps (10) takes a shot during the first half against the Fairfield Stags at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images

Georgetown coach Ed Cooley did not approve of his team's defensive effort in Saturday's loss to Notre Dame.

"F-minus. Terrible. Absolutely horrendous," he said following the 84-63 defeat.

The Hoyas (2-1) hope to tighten the screws when they host improved Mount St. Mary's on Wednesday night in Washington, D.C.

Georgetown allowed the Fighting Irish to shoot 59.3 percent overall and surrendered its most points in three games so far. The Hoyas fell behind 19-7 less than eight minutes into the contest and trailed by as many as 25.

"We didn't guard a soul," Cooley said. "... It was a bad collective of energy, focus and determination."

Saturday's setback was the first real growing pain for Georgetown, which has just two upperclassmen on its roster.

"I personally thought we were more prepared," junior guard Jayden Epps said. "Coach thought we were more prepared. We all did. I feel like now we see what it takes."

Malik Mack led the Hoyas against Notre Dame with 19 points and Epps had 13. The latter averages 14 points per game, second on the team. Forward Thomas Sorber leads the Hoyas in scoring (19.0 points) and rebounding (8.7).

The Mountaineers (3-1) used another balanced scoring effort to beat visiting St. Francis 66-58 on Saturday.

Terrell Ard Jr. and Dallas Hobbs tallied 12 points each as Mount St. Mary's had five double-digit scorers for a second straight game. Hobbs leads the team with 17.3 points per game, while Ard and Dola Adebayo each supply 10.8 points.

The win was the Mountaineers' second straight under first-year coach Donny Lind and propelled the program to its best four-game start since 1996-97.

"Every day, we're just trying to go 1-0," Lind said. "We've talked to these guys since June ... about just trying to win that day one possession at a time."

Valuing those possessions a little better would help.

Mount St. Mary's has 81 turnovers through its first four games, but Lind doesn't want to change much about his team's up-tempo offense.

"We'll slow it down a little bit, but I really want them to figure out how fast we can play without turning it over," he said.

--Field Level Media

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