Jan. 25, 2009
Box Score | Box Score in PDF Format 
NEWARK, N.J. - Freshman center
Greg Monroe (New Orleans, La./Helen Cox) scored 17 points and had seven rebounds to lead three players in double figures, but it wasn't enough as Seton Hall guard Jeremy Hazell scored 23 points, including the clinching free throws with 8.1 seconds left, as the Pirates topped No. 12 Georgetown in front of 9,800 at the Prudential Center on Sunday afternoon.
It was the third-straight loss for the Hoyas, who fall to 12-6 overall and 3-4 in the BIG EAST, while Seton Hall improved to 10-9 overall and 1-6 in conference play.
The game went back-and-forth in the closing minutes. Seton Hall raced back from a six-point deficit (46-40) to take a four-point lead (50-46), but the Hoyas pushed ahead by one, 56-55, on a three-point play from Monroe with 4:20 to play. A jumper from Robert Mitchell gave Seton Hall the lead for good, 57-56, with 3:59 to play.
Junior forward DaJuan Summers (Baltimore, Md./McDonogh) hit a pair of free throws with 1:30 to play to pull the Hoyas to within one point, 61-60, and after Hazell hit one of two shots from the line with 36 seconds left, the Hoyas had a chance to tie or take the lead. Summers missed a three-pointer from the wing with 22 seconds left and after Eugene Harvey hit one of two free throws with 21 seconds left, a three-pointer from senior guard Jessie Sapp (New York, N.Y./National Christian Academy [Md.]) was off the mark. Hazell hit both free throws with eight seconds left, giving the Pirates the 65-60 win.
Georgetown led by one point, 27-26, at the break, but the Pirates tied the game at 30-all on a jumper from Mitchell early in the second. An 8-1 run over 1:45, capped by a three-pointer from Sapp, gave the Hoyas a 38-31 lead with 16:35 to play. A layup from Monroe with 15:55 to play kept the Hoya lead at seven points, 40-33, but Seton Hall pulled back to within three points, 40-37, after a free throw from Hazell with 13:23 left.
Free throws from Summers and two more from Wright with 12:17 to play pushed the lead back to seven points, 44-37, but Seton Hall used a 10-0 run over 3:23 and opened up a 50-46 lead after a three-point play from John Garcia. Free throws from Wright and a jumper from Monroe tied the game at 50-all heading into the waning minutes.
Seton Hall had jumped out to a 7-2 lead early in the first half, but the Hoyas used a 7-0 spurt to take a 9-7 lead on two free throws from Wright, who hit all seven of his attempts. There were five ties and four lead changes in the first half, the last tie coming at 16-all after Seton Hall's Mitchell hit a jumper with 6:22 to play. Georgetown proceeded to go on a 9-2 run over 3:44, taking a seven-point lead, 25-18, on a layup from sophomore guard Omar Wattad (Johnson City, Tenn./Science Hill). The Hoyas maintained that lead, 27-20, on a jumper from sophomore forward Nikita Mescheriakov (Minsk, Belarus/St. John's Prospect Hall [Md.]) with 2:38 to play in the break.
The Pirates scored the final six points of the half and pulled to within one, 27-26, on a layup from Mitchell.
Georgetown shot 32.7 percent from the floor (17-of-52), hit only 13.6 percent from three-point land (3-of-22) and hit 85.2 percent of its free throws (23-of-27). The Hoyas controlled the boards (40-30), but handed out only 10 assists and committed 17 turnovers.
Monroe scored 17 points and grabbed seven rebounds to lead the team, while Summers added 12 points and six rebounds and Wright finished with 11 points and three assists. Sapp scored eight points, grabbed a team-high nine rebounds and a team-best four assists.
Georgetown continues its three-game road trip on Wednesday, Jan. 28, visiting Cincinnati for a BIG EAST game. Tip-off at First Third Arena is slated for 7 p.m. The game can be seen on ESPN360 and heard locally on AM 570.
