Many basketball pundits like Eastern Washington’s chances against Georgetown
You wouldn’t know it by the bracket-busting experts, but Georgetown is supposed to beat Eastern Washington in their second-round South Region NCAA tournament game on Thursday.
The 13th-seeded Eagles may be an eight-point underdog in Las Vegas, but they’re one of the nation’s favorite Cinderella picks.
Here’s what they’re saying:
From CBS Sports: “Reasons to pick the upset: (EWU guard) Tyler Harvey. Period. Harvey is the nation’s leading scorer at 23.1 points per game, and when his shot is falling the Eagles can beat all but the elite teams in the country. … (Forward) Venky Jois is one of the most efficient big men in the country and he has stepped up in big moments.”
From The Sports Xchange: “EWU can shoot, and if the 3s are falling, there is a strong chance a young, fourth-seeded Georgetown team is sent home before the weekend. The name to know for EWU is Tyler Harvey.”
From NBC Sports: “In each of the Hoyas’ last five NCAA tournament appearances they’ve been eliminated by a double-digit seed, beginning with 10-seed Davidson in 2008. That’s one reason why this will be a popular pick. The other: Eastern Washington ranks among the best offensive teams in the country. … This game will be played in Portland, so the Hoyas will travel much farther than their opposition.”
From Bleacher Report: “Georgetown was seeded awfully low for a team with a 21-10 record, with its win over Villanova as a big boost.
The Hoyas have been susceptible to upsets in John Thompson III’s tenure, and Eastern Washington has the prime recipe for an upset. The Eagles shoot the lights out of the ball, ranking third in the NCAA in points per game, and hitting a gaudy 40 percent of their 3-pointers as a team.
From ESPN: “The Hoyas are an NCAA tournament regular but have been hard-pressed to make it past the first weekend – they have failed to do so in their last five trips. Unlike the options that the Eagles’ (Tyler) Harvey has, the Hoyas’ backcourt is run exclusively through D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera, and EWU will make it a point to lock him down.
So, now that everyone’s picking Eastern, perhaps Georgetown is the real underdog.
Special moment for Georgetown senior
On March 7, Georgetown basketball made news for all the right reasons:
Senior center Tyler Adams, who hadn’t played since being diagnosed with arrythmia in December of 2011.
“The doctor told me I could play 20 years, and nothing happens,” Adams told the Washington Post. “Or I could play two minutes, and something happens.”
Adams decided not to risk it, but coach John Thompson III guaranteed that Adams could keep his scholarship.
On March 7, Thompson did even more, starting Adams on Senior Day in the Hoyas’ Big East Conference regular-season finale against Seton Hall.
“I thought it was a joke. Everyone started laughing and it kind of shocked me, but everyone was excited when they heard the news,” said Adams, who not only started, but got an uncontested slam-dunk after a gracious Seton Hall team learned the news.
Elder Thompson will miss EWU game
Former Georgetown men’s basketball coach John Thompson Jr. is recovering after corrective surgery for a benign twisted intestine, the university said.
Thompson did not attend the Big East tournament for his usual duties as a color commentator for Westwood One radio and is expected to miss at least part of the NCAA tournament, including Thursday’s second-round game against Eastern Washington.
Thompson, 73, led the Hoyas to the NCAA championship in 1984, becoming the first African American head coach to win a major college national title.
Thompson’s son, John Thompson III, has coached the Hoyas since 2004-05.