Bearcats Stun Hoyas...again

CINCINNATI -- No. 17 Georgetown isn't getting anywhere with its one-man offense.

Yancy Gates scored 10 of his 13 points from the free-throw line, where Cincinnati was nearly flawless, and the Bearcats completed a sweep of the injury-sapped Hoyas with a 69-47 victory on Saturday that left Georgetown with big worries at tournament time.

The fading Hoyas (21-9, 10-8 Big East) take a three-game losing streak into the conference tournament. Senior point guard Chris Wright has missed the last two with a broken left (non-shooting) hand that required surgery.

Georgetown hopes to get him back before the NCAA tournament. On Saturday, he sat on the bench in a suit and watched helplessly as an offense that now revolves around guard Austin Freeman struggled to find open shots.

"Is it hard to deal with?" coach John Thompson III said. "I can't sit here and say everything is peachy. But that's what athletics are about. There are injuries. You have to play the hand you're dealt."

The Bearcats (24-7, 11-7) took full advantage of Wright's absence and completed a breakthrough regular season, putting themselves in position for their first NCAA tournament appearance since Bob Huggins was coach. They won five of their last six, including a pair over the Hoyas.

"It shows progression from last year to this year," Gates said. "This is the perfect time to find what you do best to help you win. For us, it's defense."

And free throws. Cincinnati made 20 of them in a row while pulling away, finishing 24 of 30 from the line.

Cincinnati knew Georgetown would have to rely on Freeman, who missed eight of his first 10 shots. He finished 7 of 23 for the field for 21 points -- not nearly enough to keep up.

"We just tried to make it as hard as possible for them," said Rashad Bishop, who covered Freeman most of the time. "He was really the only person who could create shots for himself. If we eliminate him, it was going to be tough to beat us."

Freeman played 37 minutes and seemed to wear down. Georgetown leads the conference with a 48.5 percent field-goal percentage, but made only 32 percent against Cincinnati's full-court pressure.

"Knowing that Chris is out of the lineup, I have to be aggressive on both ends of the floor," Freeman said. "I tried to get some baskets, get fouls. I just tried to be aggressive and help as much as possible."

Sean Kilpatrick hit a pair of 3s during a 16-3 run that blew the game open midway through the second half. Kilpatrick finished with 13 points. Dion Dixonhad 14.

The Bearcats got a breakthrough win at Georgetown on Feb. 23, holding the Hoyas to four field goals in the second half of a 58-46 victory that snapped a streak of 20 straight road losses against ranked teams. Wright broke his hand during that game.

Cincinnati's strong finish put it in line for its first NCAA appearance since 2005, Huggins' last season as coach. The Bearcats hadn't even managed a winning conference record in their first five seasons as part of the Big East.

The Hoyas came out pushing the pace and got fast-break baskets during a 12-4 run. Cincinnati used its defensive pressure to get back into it. There were four lead changes and three ties in the first half, which ended with Cincinnati getting a technical foul and a bank shot to go in its favor.

After Freeman made a driving bank shot with 44 seconds to go, he got a technical for something he said. The Bearcats made both free throws, and Gates took an inbound pass and banked in a long 3 from the top of the key as the buzzer sounded for a 30-24 halftime lead.

Hoyas reserve center Henry Sims limped off the court with 5:50 left in the first half. A trainer checked his left knee, which already was covered in a brace. Two minutes later, forward Julian Vaughn picked up his third foul, leaving the Hoyas' front line temporarily short-handed. Sims returned for the second half and finished with three points and four rebounds in 16 minutes.

Neither team could put together much of a run because of poor shooting through the first 30 minutes. Both were shooting 33 percent from the field with 10:04 left and Cincinnati up 41-36.

A pair of free throws by Gates and Kilpatrick's 3 started the clinching run.

For highlights, click HERE

Bearcats Pull Upset vs. Hoyas

Yancy Gates (34) had
17 points and 11 rebounds
in Cincinnati's win over
Georgetown, Wednesday.

WASHINGTON (AP) - Cincinnati's NCAA hopes look quite secure after the school's first road win over a Top 25 team in seven years, while Georgetown's immediate future is suddenly very cloudy because of Chris Wright's broken hand.
Yancy Gates had 17 points and 11 rebounds Wednesday night, and the Bearcats held Georgetown to four field goals in the second half in a 58-46 win over the No. 11 Hoyas.
The win ended Cincinnati's 20-game road losing streak against ranked teams, their last win coming against then-No. 21 Marquette on Jan. 14, 2004.
It also moved the Bearcats (22-6, 9-6) into a tie for seventh in the Big East standings, which would be good enough for a first-round bye in the conference tournament, and gives another boost to the school's hopes to make the NCAA tournament for the first time in Mick Cronin's five seasons as coach. A loss would have dropped them to 11th in the conference.
"This win really helps our cause," Gates said.
Dion Dixon also scored 17 points, Rashad Bishop had 12, and the Bearcats played more zone than usual to stifle the Hoyas. Georgetown shot 25 percent from the field, its worst shooting game since at least the 1996-97 season.
But the scoresheet wasn't the biggest concern for the Hoyas (21-7, 10-6) - it was the condition of Wright's left, non-shooting hand. The senior point guard was hurt with 15:54 remaining when he lost possession in the paint and committed a foul as he reached for the ball. He had his hand wrapped and stayed in the game for another 30 seconds, then left and returned briefly before grabbing his hand in pain, forcing a stoppage in play and sending him to the bench for good with about 11 minutes to go.
Coach John Thompson III said he did not know which bone was broken or have an estimate for how long Wright might be sidelined.
"I think we have to see how he feels," Thompson said. "I don't know what it means."
The injury is potentially a serious blow to the Hoyas' hopes for a deep postseason run. Wright is averaging 13.1 points, second on the team behind Austin Freeman. He had been playing especially well for the No. 11 Hoyas recently, averaging 21.7 points and shooting 50 percent from the field over his previous three games. He struggled against Cincinnati even before he broke his hand, going 0 for 6 from the field and scoring just two points.
After he left the game for good, the Hoyas were unable to mount any sort of serious comeback threat.
"I just thought we were out of sync," Thompson said. "I thought we went through a phase where we started feeling sorry for ourselves, which we don't need to do."
The Hoyas have lost two of three. Instead of moving into third place in the Big East, which would be worth a double-bye in the conference tournament, they dropped into a tie for fifth.
Freeman broke out of his latest mini-slump to score 19 points for the Hoyas, but he was the only player with any degree of success against a Bearcats team that entered the game leading the Big East in scoring defense, allowing 58.7 points per game.
Overall, Georgetown shot 12 for 48, including 5 for 23 from 3-point range, a stunning display from a team that began the day shooting 49.7 from the field - second in the nation. The Hoyas were 4 for 23 in the second half.
The teams were tied at 26 at halftime, but the Hoyas missed their first eight shots of the second half and committed seven turnovers before finally making a field goal - Hollis Thompson's 3-pointer with 9:31 remaining. By then, the Bearcats had opened the half with a 17-3 run to take a 43-28 lead. Gates scored seven points during the run and was an offensive rebounding force who kept possessions alive.
Georgetown stayed as close as it did because of the game's free-throw discrepancy. The Hoyas made 17 of 20 from the line; the Bearcats took only two free throws in the first 35 minutes and finished 9 for 13 because Georgetown was forced to foul late.
Gates' three-point play put the Bearcats ahead 48-35 with 4:43 to play. Freeman's fast-break layup and Vee Sanford's 3-pointer got the Hoyas within eight, but Bishop banked in a 3-pointer as the shot clock was about to expire to restore a double-digit lead with 3:13 to play. Freeman looked exasperated, slumping his shoulders and rolling his eyes as the shot went in.
"I was surprised it went in, too," Bishop said. "When it went in, I was just happy. It gave us some breathing room after they made a couple of shots, got the crowd back into it, so that was a big play."