Game preview from Rumble in the Garden (which is chock-full of links and information on the Hoyas, including scouting from Hoya bloggers, Hoya Prospectus). The keys to the game:
Cold Clark/ Wright Case. St. John's needs to stifle the Hoyas on the perimeter. They will defend Austin Freeman as a first option, but he will get his shots. If they can keep Freeman relatively in check, and really give Jason Clark and Chris Wright fits (and Markel Starks, if he plays), the Hoyas will struggle to score. D.J. Kennedy and Paris Horne need to be tough defensively tonight.
No Unforced Errors. In the last game, the Red Storm found themselves with 4 turnovers at the end of the game, a season-low. Can they play mistake-free basketball again? Can they hit their free throws again?
Inside Out Scoring. Justin Brownlee, Justin Burrell, and Dwight Hardy need to be on track in this game. Georgetown will give a better defensive effort; the Red Storm have to match it by attacking and finding themselves with 3 scorers. We will assume Brownlee. Will Hardy rise to the challenge? Horne, Kennedy, Malik Boothe?
Rebound When Available. The game needs to be an ugly battle on the glass. Justin Burrell (and Sean Evans, if he plays) can compete with the Hoya bigs for rebounds on both ends.
The Hoyas are favored by 8 points at home; the Johnnies beat them last time, the feel-good win of the winter. While the District of Columbia tries to stay safe during the THUNDERSNOW! (did that happen, DC'ers?), I'll be watching at home, and sad that I won't be able to pregame at the nearby Passenger bar, across from the convention center and near the Verizon Center. C'est la vie.
Predictions? Thoughts?