Georgetown has won two games against ranked opponents this season, but Tuesday’s matchup against No. 2 Villanova was probably the team’s biggest test yet. The Hoyas were down by as many as 17 points until a strong run in the second half abled them to cut the deficit down to two.
Villanova’s (23-2, 10-2) Josh Hart did what he does best, and made a few clutch shots down the stretch to guide his team to a 76-64 victory over Georgetown (13-12, 4-8 Big East).
Graduate transfer Rodney Pryor finished with 20 points and nine rebounds. Junior L.J. Peak tallied a team-high 21 points, while dishing out six assists. There wasn’t a lot of scoring by the rest of the team as they managed to register six or fewer points.
Peak and Pryor led Georgetown’s second half surge that had Villanova on the edge.
Hart, who is national player of the year candidate, had 25 points, seven rebounds, two steals and went 4-9 from behind the arc. Hart made a big time three-pointer to put the Wildcats up 66-59 with 1:26 left in the game.
Donte DiVincenzo scored 15 points off the bench, while Mikal Bridges chipped in 11 points and three steals. Kris Jenkins had nine points and four rebounds. The Wildcats outrebounded Georgetown 34-30.
What’s Next
-The Hoyas will travel back home with the hope of the bus not getting into another accident . They will play will play Marquette, who beat them earlier this season, at the Verizon Center on Saturday. The game is scheduled to have a 12 p.m. tip-off.
-Villanova will have to deal with No. 24 Xavier on Saturday. The Wildcats knocked off the Muskeeters 79-54 the first time the two teams went at each other.
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