Can Georgetown Turn Their Season Around After 0-2 Start in Big East?

John Thompson III and the Georgetown Hoyas need to find some answers and need to find them fast. Following an embarrassing home loss to the Pittsburgh Panthers on Tuesday night, the Hoyas find themselves in an 0-2 hole in Big East Conference play.

In the wake of their worst home loss in nearly 40 years, the Hoyas are in need of an answer. Looking solely at their play in the Big East, Georgetown appears to be headed for disaster. Their offense has been atrocious–they have yet to score more than 48 points in either Big East game. They’re getting outworked on the boards, being out-rebounded 61-45. They’re not making shots, shooting 31-83 (37%) from the field and they’re certainly not distributing the ball well enough (19 assists).

The Hoyas need to do a little soul-searching. They don’t seem to be playing with much emotion, much intensity, which is atypical of a Georgetown team.

One glaring weakness is the lack of that one true stud they’ve had in the past–Jeff Green, Greg Monroe, Roy Hibbert. Otto Porter Jr. hasn’t exactly fit the bill as a go-go scorer for the Hoyas, averaging 12.8 points and ten shots a game. Maybe they need to pound the rock to the big fellow a little more–he is shooting nearly 50% from the floor. He isn’t a guy a defense will double team though, so the opportunity for an open shot for someone else just isn’t there.

Another thing–they really have no creator for the offense. They have a few guys averaging two or three assists a game but no one designated as the guy to facilitate and run the offense. This isn’t the fault of any one player but rather a coaching staff and their recruiting philosophy.

Lastly, but not really lastly, maybe they just need to play a more up-tempo game with a smaller lineup. Pushing the pace, creating spacing on the floor, get open shots–these are three things Georgetown doesn’t do. Too many big bodies on the floor at once slows down the offense.

Again, I’m just playing devil’s advocate here, but something needs to change in D.C. This latest loss wasn’t just a “shake it off” kind of loss–it seems a little more severe than that. They need UCLA transfer Josh Smith, now.

So can the Hoyas turn it around? It’ll be tough with a grueling Big East schedule in full swing but it’s still early. Chances are they’ll be mired in the middle of the pack all year due to their lack of a true scorer. Defense wins championships but you need to score the ball too.