Hoyas handle challenges in win

March 8, 2015 - Much was made of Georgetown's Senior Day prior to its Noon tilt with Seton Hall yesterday, with a player making his first start since 2011, five seniors being honored, and a dangerous Pirate crew looking to spoil the festivities. Add preparation for the upcoming BIG EAST Tournament and there was no wonder G'Town head coach John Thompson III noted afterward "I was nervous because I was worried we were going to be focused to do what we had to do".

The Hoyas did focus, eventually prevailing 73-67 before 14,392 Verizon Center attendees. It wasn't without a few challenges.

First, they prevailed without leading scorer D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera . His absence wasn't expected.

"He went out for warm ups today and just said 'I feel weak'. And so, after meeting with our medical staff they just decided" revealed Thompson, who continued, saying "This was not a coach's decision. He couldn't play".

Answering the challenge were backcourt guys Jabril Trawick and Tre Campbell.

Trawick, a senior wingman scored a career high 19 points, also adding four assists and three rebounds. Twelve of those points, including both his three pointers came in the second half.

"I definitely knew I would have to set the tone, which I try and do every game" he said, as "I'm all about the team. So today I was able to come out and get my teammates open shots and get to the rim".

A guard, Campbell (13 points, two rebounds, two assists, two steals) was pressed - into action and literally on the floor - acquitting himself well in both regards according to Thompson.

Said man-to-man pressure was a key factor in the Pirates whittling an 18 point with 7:12 to play to just five at the 44 second mark. The freshman Campbell then accepted another challenge, hitting four of six free throws, sealing the deal.

"It was maybe 12 minutes on the clock when we realized, 17 minutes, when we realized D'Vauntes wasn't playing" recalled the coach of pre-game deliberations, who was not surprised by Campbell's production as "I thought he did what he was brought here to do".

After a long hiatus senior forward Tyler Adams was able to do the same: In 2011 Adams was diagnosed with heart arrhythmia, precluding his play at Georgetown. He's stayed connected to the program, becoming what Thompson dubbed a "junior coach", advising and supporting his teammates.

Adams was given a ceremonial start to begin the game. A compliant Seton Hall head coach Kevin Willard instructed his charges to allow Adams to score, which ended up being a dunk. The sequence produced thunderous applause, after which Adams exited the game.

"It felt good, especially with it being the last home game, an opportunity to do warm ups and see how it really feels to be a player" shared Adams afterward.

His coach, clearly appreciative of Adams and proud the opportunity was provided, nevertheless had a coach's reservations.

"As much as I decided we were going to honor, or whatever word you want to use Tyler, you worry about what message does that send the guys" he shared. "Do they say 'Okay, it's fun and games this game'? Sometimes no matter how much you tell 18-22 year old boys something, they hear something different".

His guys obviously responded positively, shooting 48.9% from the field and 35.7% on three pointers, though their foul shooting was overall spotty (64.9%). The rest of the senior class also showed well, with center Joshua Smith finishing with nine points and a team high eight rebounds, Mikael Hopkins totaling eight points, four rebounds, and Aaron Bowen accounting for eight points and seven boards.

Seton Hall (16-14, 6-12 in the BIG EAST) shot over 46% from the field and beyond the arc, while being paced in scoring by junior guard Sterling Gibbs' 22 points. Freshman forward Angel Delgado pulled down a team high 13 rebounds. Brandon Mobley (15 points) and Khadeen Carrington (10 points), a senior forward and freshman guard respectively, joined them as double figure scorers.

The Hoyas (20-9, 12-6), finishing second in the league next compete Thursday, where they face either Creighton or DePaul in NYC's Madison Square Garden for BIG EAST Tournament play. Tip-off is 7p EST.

The Hall will also battle at MSG, though they suit up Wednesday when the eighth seeded Pirates battle Marquette at 7p EST.