Hoyas try to put a big blemish on Xavier’s NCAA Tournament resume
Game 18: Georgetown Hoyas (8-9, 1-5 BE) at Xavier Musketeers (9-8, 3-3 BE)
When: Friday 6:30 PM
Where: Cintas Center (Cincinnati, Ohio)
TV: FS1 (Lisa Byington and Nick Bahe)
Radio: The Team 980, Sirius XM 380 (Rich Chvotkin, 50th season!)
A snowy and slushy GAMEDAY in Cincy!
Xavier
⏰ 6:30 p.m. ET
Cintas Center (Cincinnati, Ohio)
FS1
The Team 980 w/ @HoyasWin
https://t.co/TkeqKxrofp #HoyaSaxa pic.twitter.com/PFjiTfxNBO— Georgetown Hoops (@GeorgetownHoops) January 19, 2024
Series: Xavier leads 19-6, 10-1 at home
Last Meeting: Xavier beat Georgetown 95-82 at home on Jan. 21, 2023
KenPom rankings: Xavier 26, Georgetown 177
KenPom Projection: Xavier wins 83-66 with a 93% win probability.
Net Rankings: Xavier 36, Georgetown 189
DraftKings Line: Hoyas +12.5, o/u 147.5, Georgetown ML +625
Flicks from shootaround #HoyaSaxa pic.twitter.com/yuhVcgVaU9
— Georgetown Hoops (@GeorgetownHoops) January 19, 2024
WHAT’S AT STAKE
Xavier – The Musketeers are trying to win their third straight game and move above .500 in the Big East for the first time this season. The computers love Sean Miller’s squad so winning this rare Quad 4 league game by double figures is an absolute must to keep the momentum going in Cincinnati.
Georgetown – The Hoyas are trying to win just their second ever road game at Xavier.
BET SEEDING
I guess it’s never too early to think about Big East Tournament seedings. Luckily there’s a place to see the math. As expected, Georgetown is sorta penciled into the 10 spot. Meanwhile Xavier has a wide range of possibilities in a very competitive league for teams 1 through 9.
Big East Tournament Seeding Probabilities – January 19 Update: pic.twitter.com/udTjlzsmN6
— Matt Hackman (@mjhackman) January 19, 2024
TOTAL DOMINATION
Before joining the Big East, Xavier held a 4-2 lead in the all-time series with the Hoyas. The schools split a pair of NCAA Tournament games in the 90s when the late coach John Thompson Jr was still patrolling the sidelines for the Hoyas.
The Musketeers have won 15 of 19 meetings since 2014.
KENTE KORNER
Hey, we posted a pod yesterday. So check it out in case you missed it.
Latest Kente Korner is up!@NationWideNolan was back and we talked about the Hoyas season to date, what to look for in the 2nd half of the season, what’s Georgetown’s best shot at a non-DePaul win & other stuff for @CasualHoya
Subscribe & listen todayhttps://t.co/xi9uuxWFzM
— Bobby Bancroft (@BobbyBancroft) January 18, 2024
REASON FOR HOYAS HOPE
OK time for something new. In this section we will give a reason or two as to why this could be Georgetown’s first non-DePaul Big East win of the season.
**Despite their strong metrics, Xavier has already dropped home games this season to both Oakland (KenPom 144) and Delaware (135). Why not Georgetown?
WHAT THEY ARE SAYING
Just like I said a few weeks ago when Georgetown hosted DePaul, Xavier people are calling tonight a must-not-lose game. They aren’t wrong. Losing this Quad 4 game would be devastating to their resume. As it stands now Xavier has only played two Quad 4 games.
Is there a difference between a must-win game and just a must-not-lose one? Anyway, here’s our preview of Xavier v. Georgetown.https://t.co/zemJrPRkvY
— Banners on the Parkway (@BannersParkway) January 19, 2024
OK, please post your delusional comments below!