Going into the BIG EAST Tournament, HC Ed Cooley and crew knew they had to win the event to have a chance at extending it’s season beyond that event. Such is the path for team’s slotted 10th in an 11 team conference.
Apparently Jayden Epps got the memo, doing his most to propel the Hoyas out of first round action. it wasn’t enough, as Georgetown fell 74-56 to new rival Providence, ending their season. But boy did Epps try.
A sophomore transfer guard, Epps dropped 30 points on 12-23 overall shooting, 3-8 beyond the arc, while adding three bounds, four assists and just two turnovers. For comparison, only freshman forward Drew Fieder manged eight points for Georgetown, while junior transfer forward Dontrez Styles chipped in seven, while pacing the game via nine rebounds.
“On today, Coach was drawing up sets and my teammates were finding me”, said Epps, afterward. “Obviously it wasn’t enough to get the win. He was dialing me up, and whenever I get the call, i try and deliver”.
Epps also made heads turn, being the first Hoys since Jeff Green in 2007 to garner 30 points, a 30 point output in this event, work that is second to Allen Iverson’s top BET, Georgetown mark.
If Epps was a positive, free throw shooting was not – Cooley’s guys went an atrocious 4-19 from the charity stripe, or 21.1%. Even the normally 75%-plus free throw shooting Epps was stricken with a bad case of missing, like the 52 second, back half period of time in which he missed four consecutive charity stripers. For the game Epps logged 3-11, while the team sans him attempted just eight, making one. As Cooley said, “We didn’t execute from the free throw line”.
Team shooting numbers: G’Town managed 40.7% overall, 33.3% on long balls, while Kim English, Providence’s HC, enjoyed 42.9%/37.5% and 77.8% from the free throw line.
Two seniors and a junior paced PC, statistically: Near-grads and George Mason transfers, center Josh Oduro (20 points) and forward Devonte ‘Ticket” Gaines (15 points) were first and third for the Friars, sandwiching newly minted BIG EAST Player of the Year, junior guard Devin Carter’s 19 points. The latter and Oduro equaled G’Town’s Styles’ rebounding (nine), joining him posting game tops honors.
Up next for Providence, 20-12 overall, 10-10 in league play, is a tilt with Creighton, one that would ensure English and guys a NCAA Tournament bid. For the record, the teams carry a BET seed of seven and two, respectively. Tip-off is 7p EST.
The Hoyas’ nightmare of a season is over at 9-23/2-18. The pivot forward is in effect, now.
“First, i want to thank my team. It’s been a very challenging year, a very emotional year” summed Cooley of 2024-24. “i wish I could have done a better job with them over the course of the 32 games we’ve played. It didn’t turn out like we wanted, but it’s an opportunity to get better…just wasn’t our type of year”
In his estimation “We have a long way to go, a long way to build. But I’m proud of our guys’ effort, thought we laid it on the line right to the very end. It gives us the opportunity to, build Georgetown once again”.
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