Second-half burst sends Georgetown past Butler

Thomas Sorber and Micah Peavy each scored 19 points as Georgetown used a big run in the second half to defeat Butler 73-70 on Friday night in the Big East matchup in Washington.

Georgetown (14-8, 5-6 Big East) turned defense into offense during a 15-0 run that saw the Hoyas take a 55-44 lead on a layup by Caleb Williams with 13:21 left.

Sorber and Peavy each finished with three steals as Georgetown forced Butler into 13 turnovers -- nine in the second half -- and outscored the Bulldogs 17-3 in points off turnovers.

The Hoyas earned their first win over Butler on their downtown court since 2015. Georgetown scored more than 70 points in a conference game for the first time since an 81-57 victory over Creighton on Dec. 18.

Malik Mack added 14 points for Georgetown.

Butler (9-13, 2-9) pulled back to within 66-63 on a 3-pointer by Patrick McCaffery with in the last two minutes, but the Bulldogs could get no closer. Finley Bizjack scored 17 points while Andre Screen added 16 off the bench as Butler remains winless in true road games this season.

Butler's leading scorer, Jahmyl Telfort (16.2 ppg), was held to nine points on 2 of 7 shooting. Telfort had averaged 22.3 points over the previous three games.

Georgetown starting guard Jayden Epps was out with an illness. Epps, who averages 12.3 points and shoots a team-best 37.4 percent on 3-pointers, missed three games earlier in the season with a hamstring injury.

Butler took its first lead at 14-13 on a basket from Andre Screen with 12:39 left in the first half. Georgetown regained the lead after Peavy turned a steal into a layup to push the Hoyas ahead 22-20 with 6:28 left in the half. Neither team led by more than three the rest of the half, with Butler ahead 37-36 at the break.

Screen, who began the night averaging 7.9 points per game, scored 10 in the first half, and the Bulldogs' bench outscored the Hoyas' 19-5 for the game.

--Field Level Media