FRIDAY NIGHT DOG FIGHT: Butler Visits Georgetown

Each team is looking to change their season’s momentum

Your Georgetown Hoyas (13-8, 4-6 BE) are set to host the Butler Bulldogs this Friday at Capital One Arena, in a game that feels like a crucial moment for each program looking to stay out of the conference basement. The Hoyas, fresh off a brutal loss to St. John’s, are desperate to right the ship, while the Bulldogs limp into D.C. looking to avoid a total collapse of what once seemed like a promising season. The tip-off is at 6:30 PM on FS1 – a game that will be critical for both teams as they try to turn things around.

The Butler Bulldogs are a perplexing team. Their overall record is 9-12, and they are just 2-8 in Big East play. They started the season strong at 7-1, showing they have talent, with wins over SMU, Northwestern, and Mississippi State. But then things went sideways.

After Butler’s loss to Marquette in December, they suffered a nine-game losing streak. They’ve had a couple of wins since then, beating Seton Hall and DePaul at home, but their recent performance suggests they’re in a fragile state. They were recently defeated by Marquette 78-69, a game in which they shot a blistering 57% in the first half before collapsing in the second half, shooting just 26%.

Key players for the Bulldogs include Jahmyl Telfort, the fifth-year player, who is their offensive engine, averaging 15.8 points per game, and their primary playmaker with 3.4 assists per game. He’s coming off a 24-point performance against Marquette where he hit all 11 of his free throws.

Andre Screen is their top rebounder, averaging 5.9 boards per game. Pierre Brooks II, Patrick McCaffery, and Finley Bizjack also play important roles. The Bulldogs offense can be very effective, as they demonstrated in the first half against Marquette, but that was quickly undone when their shooting percentage plummeted.

The Hoyas, on the other hand, are reeling from a brutal 66-41 loss to St. John’s. The numbers are stark: they shot an abysmal 24.6% from the field, and they were outscored 47-21 in the first half. Malik Mack was the only player to reach double figures, with 13 points, but his second-half turnovers were disastrous. This game is a crucial test of their resilience and should show that the home loss to DePaul was a fluke.

Georgetown should be able to put Butler away with their usual one half of really solid defense—let’s hope it’s the second period.

Still, the Hoyas cannot afford to let Butler get comfortable. Butler’s offense is capable of catching fire, as seen in the first half against Marquette, where they posted an effective field goal percentage of 66.1%. The Hoyas must play with a high level of intensity and disrupt the Bulldogs’ offensive rhythm from the start. In their loss to St. John’s, the Hoyas allowed the Red Storm to shoot 48.3% from the field.

The Hoyas offense has to be much better. Their 24.6% shooting performance against St. John’s is simply unacceptable. They can’t rely on just one player to carry the scoring load. They need to get more players involved and create higher quality looks at the basket. They need to use the passing game to get open shots, since the Hoyas’ assist rate of 54.4% is just 112th in the nation.

Both teams will need to crash the boards, but Georgetown needs to limit Butler’s second chance opportunities by securing rebounds on the defensive end. While Butler had a 35-30 rebounding advantage against Marquette, Thomas Sorber had 9 rebounds for the Hoyas against St. John’s. Limiting second chance opportunities for Butler will be crucial for Georgetown.

Both teams must protect the ball, since both teams are prone to turnovers. In the game against St. John’s, Georgetown had 16 turnovers. Butler had 12 turnovers in their recent game with Marquette, while Marquette only had five. Georgetown needs to value each possession and minimize unforced errors.

The Georgetown bench has to step up and provide more consistent minutes. They need to contribute on the boards and on the defensive end. In the loss to St. John’s, no bench players reached double figures, and that cannot happen against Butler.

This game isn’t just another mark in the win-loss column for either team. For Georgetown, it’s an opportunity to show they can bounce back from a humiliating dismantling. For Butler, it’s a chance to prove they can recapture their early-season form.

However, the onus is on Georgetown to perform at home and protect their court. The Hoyas are 4-6 in conference play, and they need a win to start turning things around. Beating teams in the bottom half will still require more defensive intensity, improved shot selection, and minimized turnovers.

Here are the links:

Georgetown Hosts Butler in Friday Night Contest | Georgetown University Athletics

In its most recent outing, Butler (9-12, 2-8 BE) fell to No.9 Marquette 78-69 on Tuesday evening at Hinkle Fieldhouse. Jahmyl Telfort led a duo of Bulldogs in double figures with 24 points followed by Patrick McCaffery (12). Andre Screen led the Bulldogs on the glass pulling down nine boards followed by Pierre Brooks II who had eight to his credit. Telfort paced the offense with five assists in the contest.

Butler shot 40.7% (24-59) from the field, while shooting 27.3% (6-22) from behind the arc.

Telfort leads a trio of Bulldogs averaging double figures posting 16.2 ppg, followed by Brooks (14.9 ppg) and McCaffery (12.2 ppg).

Screen leads Butler on the glass grabbing 6.0 rpg, followed by Brooks (5.3 rpg)

Butler and Georgetown Slated for Friday Night Tip in Washington, D.C. | Butler University Athletics

Jahmyl Telfort led the Bulldogs with a game-high 24 points Tuesday night against Marquette. Telfort made all 11 of his free throw attempts in the game.

Telfort is averaging 22.3 points per game over Butler’s three most recent outings.

Telfort has led the Bulldogs in scoring in 10 games this season and has posted 20 or more points eight times.

Butler led Marquette, 42-35, at the half after shooting 57 percent from the field over the first 20 minutes. Marquette’s defense limited Butler to 26-percent shooting in the second half in taking the win. Butler has led at the half in six of the team’s 10 BIG EAST games.

Butler held a 35-30 rebounding edge against Marquette Tuesday; the Bulldogs are now 7-4 when out-rebounding its opponent.

Andre Screen led Butler with nine rebounds Tuesday; it marked his tenth game this season with eight or more rebounds. Screen’s average of 6.0 rebounds per game leads Butler, but his average increases to 8.7 per game over the team’s most recent three games.

Screen is shooting 84 percent from the field over his last four games (21-for-25).

Pierre Brooks II led the Bulldogs with career-highs of both 29 points and 13 rebounds in Saturday’s win over DePaul. It was his second double-double of the season and the third of his career.

Hoyas Host Bulldogs Tonight | georgetown.rivals.com

Over the course of this season, Hoya HC Ed Cooley has seen several of his players lead the squad in scoring. At this juncture, freshman pivot Thomas Sorber has returned to that perch, dropping 14.8 ppg, good for 12th in the league. Sorber also paces GU and the league with 9.1 rebounds secured, each time out.

Three teammates join Sorber on the BIG EAST’s Top 30 scorer listing: Grad wing Micah Peavy’s 14.6 ppg/14th mark, sophomore guard Malik Mack drops 13 ppg placing him 18th in the conference, plus junior guard Jayden Epps trailing ever so slightly at 12.9 ppg/19th.

Butler, coached by Thad Matta, gets 15.8 ppg from grad forward Jahmyl Telfort, landing him ninth in the league. Senior forward Pierre Brooks is next at 15.2 ppg/11th, while senior wing Patrick McCaffery follows with 12.2 ppg/23rd work.

Game Preview – Georgetown vs. Butler | Houseenterprise

Georgetown came out with no energy on Tuesday, and now heads into a Friday night matchup with a desperate Butler team that is much better than its record will show.

While the Hoyas were getting run out of their own gym on Tuesday, Butler was taking #9 Marquette to the brink, leading the Golden Eagles at one point by ten before Shaka Smart’s team came back in the second half to win by nine.

For Georgetown to get back to its winning ways, and maybe crack 70 points for the first time this calendar year, they’ll need to get into a much better offensive rhythm early in the game.

Ed Cooley has one of the younger teams in the country and sometimes they are playing like it; Georgetown ranks 289th in Division I basketball in turnovers, meaning there are 288 teams that are better at taking care of the basketball than them. Given the youth on the roster, maybe we shouldn’t be surprised.

Big East Game Preview: at Butler Bulldogs | Anonymous Eagle

No one particularly ran wild for Butler in the first meeting, as Jahmyl Telfort and Kolby King tied for the scoring high with 16 points on eight and 10 shots respectively. Combined, Butler shot 15-for-25 on two-pointers and generally speaking, allowing someone to hit 60% of their twos against you is a bad time. That gets even worse when a team shoots over 40% from behind the three-point line against you, and that’s what Butler did. Again: No one got crazy hot, but a bunch of guys going 2-for-4 and 2-for-5 adds up pretty quick.

The question then becomes whether or not [an opponent] can do a better job defending Butler to make their life easier on the offensive end. A couple fewer made buckets, and that’s a couple fewer offensive rebounds or steals that [an opponent] needs to stay out in front of the Bulldogs. Yes, I know, [an opponent] wants to get those turnovers, especially the live ball steals that turn into easy buckets on the other end. But sometimes you have to win without them, and the fastest way to do that is to get some old fashioned missed shots and a rebound to end the possession.

Struggling Butler hopes trip to Georgetown sparks turnaround | FLM

“There comes a point where you’re struggling to score and especially when you’re playing a team like Marquette it starts to weigh on your defense,” Matta said.

“It starts to wear you down defensively. As a coach you don’t want that to happen.”

If there’s a team that knows all too well about struggling to score, it’s Georgetown.

The Hoyas (13-8, 4-6) have lost six of seven and scored their fewest points in a game since the 2012-13 season in Tuesday’s 66-41 loss to No. 15 St. John’s.

Georgetown vs. Butler odds, prediction, line: 2025 college basketball picks, Jan. 31 best bets by proven model | CBSSports.com

Georgetown is coming off a rough outing against St. John’s, but its previous five conference losses came by 10 points or fewer. The Hoyas also picked up an upset win over Villanova on Jan. 20, taking down the Wildcats as 7.5-point road underdogs. Senior guard Micah Peavy had 24 points on 9 of 16 shooting, including a 6 of 9 mark from 3-point range.

Standout freshman forward Thomas Sorber had a double-double in that game, finishing with 15 points, 11 rebounds and four assists. Sophomore guard Malik Mack had a team-high 13 points in the loss to St. John’s on Tuesday, knocking down 3 of 5 attempts from the perimeter. Butler is 2-11 in its last 13 games and is riding a five-game road losing streak.