THERE have been times al ready this season when watching the Georgetown Hoyas win has been like watching the birthing video at a Lamaze class. And that’s the way a good portion of the rest of the season will go.
Not until the final push, if you will, is the outcome of a Georgetown game no longer in doubt. Three of the Hoyas’ seven wins were in doubt with 10 minutes left.
Yet whether it was Alabama or William & Mary, the Hoyas seldom blow out the opponent, especially the elite teams. It’s the beauty and agony of the Princeton offense.
“This team is learning that we can slowly, methodically pull away if we stick with our stuff,” Hoya coach John Thompson III said after a 70-60 win at Alabama. “We can wear people down in the last few minutes of the game.”
The Hoyas trailed by one with about four minutes to go. But even the Crimson Tide players couldn’t help but notice how calmly the Hoyas handled those final minutes.
“They had a sense of poise that we have to gain as the season goes on,” said Alabama star Richard Hendrix.
That’s one of the other reasons we picked the Hoyas to win the national championship. By the time late March rolls around, Georgetown will have been in a significant number of games in which every possession over the last four minutes was crucial.
That’s usually what happens in NCAA Tournament games. The final four minutes, when the needle on the intensity starts jumping, is when games are decided.
The Hoyas (7-0) have yet to play the toughest part of their schedule. Their first Big East game is Jan. 5 at Rutgers.
Georgetown could go into that game undefeated if it wins at Memphis on Dec. 22. This is brilliant scheduling on the part of JT III. Memphis is the anti-Georgetown.
The Tigers will look to push the pace and render the game’s final four minutes moot.
“You put your schedule together and think that’s going to be a good test, and as you start to prepare for it, you’re not sure it’s the right thing, but our guys responded,” JT III said after a season-opening win over William & Mary.
“We methodically pulled away from teams, and that’s how we do things.”
Thompson doesn’t care if it’s a girl or a boy. He just wants a healthy win.
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SEEING BLUE: Speaking of good scheduling, kudos to North Carolina coach Roy Williams and his counterpart at Rutgers, Fred Hill. The two have crossed paths many times on the recruiting trails.
Williams brings his undefeated Tar Heels to the RAC on Sunday night. It’s the perfect teaching opportunity for Williams, whose team will be heavily favored. The RAC is one of the loudest arenas in college basketball.
Carolina will get a feel for the environments it will face at Duke, or Wake, although Rutgers doesn’t have ACC talent. But by getting opponents such as Carolina to come to Jersey, Hill gets another opportunity to impress recruits.