NEWARK, N.J.  – The Georgetown University men's basketball team battled back late in the second half and cut what was once a 15-point deficit down to four with 34 seconds to play, but it was not enough as the Hoyas dropped a midweek matchup at Seton Hall 76-68. Primo Spears and Jay Heath combined for 28 points at Prudential Center with 22 coming in the second half.
 
ON THE RECORD
"I think that defense is all about the players that you have. They have guys who can take the challenge and play very good defense. But I thought that for the most part we got good shots, they just didn't drop. " - Head Coach Patrick Ewing on Seton Hall's defense
 
HOYA HIGHLIGHTS

• Spears tallied 18 points on six made field goals and a perfect 4-for-4 effort from the free throw line while dishing out a game-best five assists.
• Heath added 12 points, 10 in the second half, fueled by a pair of 3-pointers and another perfect 4-for-4 performance from the charity stripe.
• Bradley Ezewiro rounded out those in double figures with 10 points on 4-of-5 shooting from the floor and adding a pair from the free throw line. He added five rebounds and two blocks.
• Akok Akok and Brandon Murray each grabbed eight rebounds to lead the Hoyas. Akok added nine points on 4-for-5 shooting while tallying a trio of rejections.
• A tough shooting night for both squads, Georgetown (6-21, 1-15 BIG EAST) shot 36.5% (23-63) for the game while allowing Seton Hall to shoot 41.5% (22-53).
• The Hoyas narrowly outrebounded the Pirates 40-39.  

 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Seton Hall (16-11, 9-7 BE) jumped out to a quick 6-0 lead but three-straight buckets, one each from Heath, Akok and Ezewiro knotted the game at six before the first media timeout.
• After trading buckets, it was the Pirates who came up with back-to-back triples to build up another six-point lead (16-10) but a 6-1 mini run from the Blue & Gray made it a one-possession game.
• SHU retorted with eight unanswered before a pair of free throws from Ryan Mutombo followed by a Spears jumper cut the deficit to five (25-20) with 2:53 remaining in the frame. Seton Hall would take a 27-20 lead into the locker room.
• Out of the break, the Pirates were able to get on the board first before Ezewiro put together four straight in less than a minute of play. Fouls plagued the Hoyas early in the second frame and Seton Hall took advantage of it, leading 50-35 with 8:36 remaining.
• The Hoyas hung around attempting to cut the lead but the Pirates kept them at arm's length until Bryson Mozone knocked down his third triple of the night, all in the second half, to cut the deficit to seven (57-50) and give GU some hope.
• With 3:33 on the clock, Akok drained a triple to make it a two-possession game (61-55) but the Pirates continued to collect points at the charity stripe and build the lead back up to 10.
• Heath's 3-pointer with 34 ticks on the clock was all net and the Blue & Gray was in striking distance but four was as close as GU would get as free throws sealed the 76-68 victory for Seton Hall. 

 
UP NEXT
Georgetown will return home for a few days before heading back out on the road to face the Butler University Bulldogs on Sunday, February 19. Tipoff at Hinkle Fieldhouse is scheduled for 3 p.m. ET and the game will be broadcast on FS1 with Jason Ross Jr. calling the play-by-play and Dickey Simpkins providing analysis. Fans can hear the radio call of Rich Chvotkin, in his 49th season as the Voice of the Hoyas, locally on 106.7 The Fan and nationally on Sirius XM 391.