The inaugural Gavitt Tipoff Games reunites two rivals close in proximity but who seldom have faced off the past 35 years when Georgetown travels to third-ranked Maryland on Tuesday. This is a game we will be talking about for a while. “I don’t think we’ll be nervous”.
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“It all started with Melo (Trimble)”, Sulaimon said.
Georgetown center Bradley Hayes had 16 points and eight rebounds.
The two schools used to play on a regular basis from 1947 to 1976. However, perhaps due to a few hard feelings between former coaches Lefty Driesell of Maryland and John Thompson Jr. of Georgetown, the series has been dormant for decades. Smith-Rivera sat out almost 9 minutes in a row in the second half with four fouls.
“I guess that is what a rivalry game is”, Maryland coach Mark Turgeon said. “The atmosphere out there was insane”. “He had the ball in his hands and made a great play driving down the lane”. We knew he would be fine in these big games. “Of course he hit the big three”.
The defeat was especially distasteful for the Hoyas because it came against Maryland. Georgetown was whistled for 25 fouls, while Maryland committed 15. The Terps seemed intent on getting the Hoyas into foul trouble, and Trimble drew a fourth foul on the Georgetown center with 7:45 left.
“That’s a big rivalry”, said Georgetown sophomore Tre Campbell, who grew up in Washington.
“It’s a good thing”, Thompson III said of the renewal of the rivalry.
It was a back-and-forth affair for the majority of the first half with each team leading at times.
“On defense, we have to figure out how to stop people and basically finish the game”, said Georgetown forward Isaac Copeland, had 13 points and five assists.
Layman finally got his game together, scoring twice inside to pull Maryland to within two, 48-46, before Hayes scored again on a baby hook. “Obviously, I had an OK game on offense”.
The Hoyas, despite winning the battle of the boards, 36-28, fell to 0-2 for the first time since 1998-99.
“Wow. What a game”, Turgeon said. “This was great. It was exactly what we needed”.
“In the end, we did what we had to do”, Turgeon said. Jake is a great shooter, but that speaks volumes to our team and the trust that we have in each other.
But the timing for Vasquez certainly was.
The Terps play their first three games of the season at home. He finished with 10 for the game…. The former Bishop O’Connell (Va.) star missed his first three shots and didn’t score his first points until he hit a three-pointer with 4:14 to go in the opening half.
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The Terrapins welcomed back Joe Smith, who starred in Maryland’s overtime win over Georgetown in 1993.
