The 1985 Georgetown Hoyas were coming off a national championship and with future #1 NBA draft pick Patrick Ewing back for his senior season, a repeat title looked like destiny. Ewing’s shotblocking skills were without peer in college basketball, his offensive game was solid, and head coach John Thompson had the big man surrounded with a deep team that attacked defensively and could score enough to win.
The 1984 Georgetown Hoyas were an intimidating force and physically manhandled opponents en route to a national title. Patrick Ewing, the 7’0” center, whose defense defined every game, was in his junior year, and the team looked like it had in 1982, with a very deep team surrounding him. They played defense, hit the boards and were the #1 seed in the West by NCAA Tournament time.
The 1982 Georgetown Hoyas were a program steadily on the rise in a Big East Conference that was much the same. With big John Thompson, the 6’10” head coach, patrolling the sidelines, the Hoyas made a regional final in the 1980 NCAA Tournament before losing by one point to Iowa. Then Thompson made a huge splash when he signed stud freshman center, 7’0” Patrick Ewing, the nation’s most coveted recruit. The stage was set for great things.
The Georgetown Hoyas are coming on strong and after Friday night’s win in Cincinnati, the Hoyas have won seven straight and sit in a three-way tie with Syracuse and Marquette atop the Big East conference. Curiously, their rise to prominence has coincided with the suspension of a key player and a fairly tough schedule stretch. Clearly, this is team that needs to on our radar of potential Final Four picks, so with that in mind let’s do a deeper evaluation of the Georgetown basketball team.