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Game 15 - Georgetown (7-7) vs. DePaul (3-10)
Date: January 6, 2024
Time: 12:00 p.m. ET
Venue: Capital One Arena - Washington, DC
How to Watch: FS1
Matchup History: Georgetown leads all-time series 17-8
Last Meeting: Georgetown def. DePaul 81-76 on 1/24/23
Betting Lines: Via DraftKings
Spread: Georgetown -6.5
Over/Under: 143.5
Prediction: Georgetown 73, DePaul 66
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Head Coach: Ed Cooley (1st season, 7-7 record at Georgetown)
Record: 7-7 (0-3, 11th in Big East)
Last Time Out: Lost vs. Creighton 77-60 on 1/2/24
Player to Watch: Rowan Brumbaugh
Some games in sports are considered ‘must wins.’ Rarely do you get a game that is considered more of a ‘can’t lose.’
Georgetown’s game against DePaul on Saturday in DC is most-assuredly a can’t lose game.
The Hoyas are off to an 0-3 start in the conference this year and have lost 42 of their last 44 Big East games, including postseason play.
One of the wins in that span was at home last season against DePaul, widely considered to be the only team that is worse than Georgetown in the Big East.
The Hoyas are off to a 7-7 start this year, while the Blue Demons are an abysmal 3-10.
Georgetown has lost its three conference games by an average of 19 points per game while DePaul has lost its two conference games by an average of 32 points per game.
It’s widely considered that the Big East has nine very competitive teams this season and then Georgetown and DePaul are at the bottom of the pack.
Ed Cooley and the Hoyas would like that to be ten competitive teams plus DePaul at the bottom; if they want that to be reality, this is absolutely a can’t lose game.
On Tuesday, in the 77-60 loss to Creighton in which Georgetown was without its leading scorer, Jayden Epps, the Hoyas played in-front of a sparse crowd which was largely made up of Bluejay faithful. Cooley didn’t like that.
“We need people to come out and help us get through this transition and help us get through this build,” Cooley said following the loss.
The head coach calling on the fanbase for more support has sparked debate this week with a ‘chicken or the egg’ question.
Does fan support come first or do wins have to happen first?
To me, calling on a fanbase to blindly support a program that has won two of its last 44 conference games is not fair.
If Georgetown can close the gap between 10th and 9th in the Big East as the season goes on, I believe that the support will begin to creep back into the fold.
A win on Saturday against DePaul won’t bring anything but a sigh of relief. A loss would be a disaster for Cooley and the Hoyas.
Head Coach: Tony Stubblefield (3rd season, 28-49 record at DePaul)
Record: 3-10 (0-2, 10th in Big East)
Last Time Out: Lost @ #4 UConn 85-56 on 1/2/24
Player to Watch: Chico Carter Jr.
It’s quickly gone from bad to worse for Tony Stubblefield and the DePaul Blue Demons.
Since arriving in 2021, Stubblefield’s teams have gotten progressively worse. In his first season, the Blue Demons finished 15-16, followed up by a 10-23 campaign last year.
Early in 2023-24, DePaul is 3-10 and 0-2 in the Big East, having lost to Villanova by 36 at home and enter Saturday’s game at Georgetown coming off a 29 point loss on the road against #4 UConn.
DePaul’s three wins this year came against South Dakota, Louisville, and Chicago State. At home, the Blue Demons have lost to Purdue Fort Wayne, Long Beach State, and Northern Illinois.
For reference, the 2021-2022 Georgetown Hoyas that did not win a single conference game went 6-5 in non-conference play. This DePaul team went 3-8.
It will likely be a very long season for the Blue Demons with potentially more coaching staff changes awaiting at the end of the line, if not sooner.
For a program that has put together just two winning seasons since entering the Big East in 2005, it’s more likely than not that things will get darker before they’ll have the opportunity to turn things around.
For DePaul, Saturday’s game at Georgetown is likely one of the few opportunities they’ll have left to win a game.
If you’re Georgetown, don’t expect this team to simply roll over. I’d expect DePaul’s best shot in what is a winnable game for the Blue Demons.