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 A few minutes later, as the final buzzer sounded, Georgetown
students rushed the court to celebrate the Hoyas' convincing 78-58
victory over No. 4 Villanova in a Big East Conference game late
Monday night.
"The students watch a lot of TV," said Georgetown coach John
Thompson III, who added he wished the students wouldn't have rushed
the court.
Freshman forward Isaac Copeland came off the bench to score a
career-high 17 points just two days after he made a last-second shot
to beat Butler.
Copeland made five of six shots from the field and seven of eight
from the foul line. He has a total of 27 points the past two games
after scoring just 12 points in the six games prior to that.
"It is two outstanding games in a row. He is doing his job,"
Thompson said of Copeland, who helped the Georgetown bench outscore
the Villanova subs 31-15.
 So did he gain confidence after the game-winner against Butler?
"It had something to do with it," Copeland said. "It was a team
effort."
The Hoyas (13-5, 5-2) took over first place in the Big East. Senior
guard D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera also had 17 points for Georgetown, and
guard Jabril Trawick added 10 points despite leaving the game for a
few minutes in the second half after he was hit in the head.
It was not just the Georgetown students who showed emotion.
Smith-Rivera pumped his fists toward the ground after he made two
free throws and was taken out of the contest in the closing seconds.
"We got contributions across the board," Thompson said. "We played
well in the first half. We executed our game plan. Out defensive
effort ... was outstanding. I thought our guys did a very good job
of being defensive without overextending.
"(Villanova) did not have their best night. They had an off night.
We had a lot to do with them having an off night."
Villanova, which began the day leading the Big East, took its first
loss in five games. The Wildcats (17-2, 4-2) won each of their
previous three games matchups with Georgetown, but they committed 17
turnovers and made just 34 percent of their shots Monday.
The visitors got a team-high 16 points from guard Ryan Arcidiacono.
Local product Josh Hart, a reserve guard, had 10 points for the
Wildcats, while standout forward Daniel Ochefu was held to four
points on 2-of-5 shooting from the field.
"They just played harder than us," Arcidiacono said. "They were
definitely the better team."
The Wildcats trailed by 22 points at halftime after giving the ball
away 10 times, but they cut the margin to 62-50 midway through the
second half.
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Georgetown center Joshua Smith, who finished with nine points and
eight rebounds despite being plagued by foul trouble most of the
night, scored inside to make it 65-50. After a block by Trawick,
Copeland made a free throw, and his 3-pointer on the next possession
pushed the lead to 68-50 and helped seal the victory.
The Hoyas built a 42-20 halftime lead thanks to a tenacious defense
and strong outside shooting. On the night, Georgetown was 6-for-12
from 3-point range and made 51 percent of its field-goal tries.
Georgetown made it 42-19 on a 3-pointer by Trawick with 1:02 left in
the half. Trawick and Copeland each had eight points before the
break.
"We just wanted to come out and play Georgetown basketball," Trawick
said.
The first half included a 17-0 run by the Hoyas.
"That was maybe as good of a defensive stretch we have had in a long
time," Thompson said. "We did a good job of sharing the ball most of
the game. Our depth helped us. We have bodies. We have guys that can
come in with no drop-off. We can sustain that and we did today."
Georgetown freshman reserve forward Paul White also had a good
night, producing nine points on 3-of-3 shooting, including 2-of-2
from 3-point range.
"I think they are a very good team," Villanova coach Jay Wright said
of Georgetown. "They never got tentative with the lead. Their
defense created a lot of turnovers. They kicked us pretty good."
NOTES: It was nearly 30 years ago that Villanova beat Georgetown for
the NCAA title 66-64 in Lexington, Ky., on April 1, 1985. ... The
Hoyas return to action Saturday at Marquette. Villanova hosts
Creighton on Sunday. ... Villanova has several players from the
Washington-Baltimore corridor: sophomore F Kris Jenkins (Upper
Marlboro, Md.), sophomore F Josh Hart (Silver Spring, Md.), freshman
G Phil Booth (Baltimore) and junior F Daniel Ochefu (Baltimore).
Jenkins (Gonzaga) and Hart (Sidwell Friends) both played prep ball
in the nation's capital. ... The teams meet again Feb. 7 at
Villanova. ... The Wildcats are 13-0 in nonconference games.
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