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1989–90 Georgetown Hoyas men's basketball team

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1989–90 Georgetown Hoyas men's basketball
NCAA tournament, second round
ConferenceBig East Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 9
APNo. 8
Record24–7 (11–5 Big East)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Captains
  • Dwayne Bryant (1st year)
  • Sam Jefferson (1st year)
  • Mark Tillmon (1st year)
Home arenaCapital Centre
Seasons
1989–90 Big East men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 4 Connecticut 12 4   .750 31 6   .838
No. 6 Syracuse 12 4   .750 26 7   .788
No. 8 Georgetown 11 5   .688 24 7   .774
St. John's 10 6   .625 24 10   .706
Villanova 8 8   .500 18 15   .545
Providence 8 8   .500 17 12   .586
Seton Hall 5 11   .313 12 16   .429
Pittsburgh 5 11   .313 12 17   .414
Boston College 1 15   .063 8 20   .286
1990 Big East tournament winner
As of April 2, 1990[1]
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1989–90 Georgetown Hoyas men's basketball team represented Georgetown University in the 1989–90 NCAA Division I college basketball season. John Thompson, coached them in his 18th season as head coach. They played their home games at the Capital Centre in Landover, Maryland. They were members of the Big East Conference and finished the season with a record of 24–7, 11–5 in Big East play. Their record earned them a bye in the first round of the 1990 Big East men's basketball tournament, and they advanced to the semifinals before losing to Connecticut. They were the No. 3 seed in the Midwest Region of the 1990 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament – the 12th of 14 consecutive Georgetown NCAA tournament appearances – and advanced to the second round before losing to Midwest Region No. 6 seed Xavier. They were ranked No. 8 in the season's final Associated Press Poll and No. 6 in the final Coaches' Poll.

Season recap

[edit]

The team opened the season with 14 straight wins. The loss at Connecticut that broke the streak on January 20, 1990, was only the second Georgetown loss to the Huskies since 1981.[2]

Sophomore center Alonzo Mourning, touted by many observers upon his arrival the previous season as "the next Patrick Ewing," built upon the great success he enjoyed during his freshman year. He started all 31 games this season, scoring in double figures in 30 of them and averaging 16.5 points per game despite an average of only 8.6 shots per game. He also averaged 8.5 rebounds a game for the year. Against Hawaii Pacific in the second game of the season, he shot 13-for-14 (92.9%) from the free-throw line, the beginning of a school-record-setting season in which he scored in double figures in free throws alone in ten different games and made 220 free throws (out of 281 attempts, a 78.3% effort) on the year as opposing defenses fouled him time and again in an attempt to stop him from scoring inside. In his best games of the year, he had 27 points and 11 rebounds against Virginia Tech, 26 points and 14 rebounds against DePaul, and 20 points and 12 rebounds against Connecticut.[3]

Junior center Dikembe Mutombo, a reserve player the previous season while he became accustomed to the American college game, played in all 31 games this season and started alongside Mourning in 24 of them, and his average playing time increased from 11 to 26 minutes per game. He averaged 10.5 points and 10.7 rebounds per game for the year. He scored 10 rebounds and blocked 10 shots in the North Carolina game, scored 17 points and had 15 rebounds against Pittsburgh, and scored 22 points and had 18 rebounds against Villanova. In later games of the season, his scoring and rebounding performance increased as he averaged shot 68% from the field and averaged 15 points and 13 rebounds a game.[4]

Although much national attention focused on Mourning and Mutombo, the star of the team arguably was senior guard Mark Tillmon. A starter in his freshman and sophomore years, he had slumped during his junior season and been relegated to the bench. This year, he returned to form, starting all 31 games. In December 1989, he scored 27 points against North Carolina and 29 against Virginia Tech. During the five-game stretch from the victory over Northern Iowa on December 29, 1989, through the defeat of DePaul on January 13, 1990, he averaged 26 points a game, including a career-high 39 points against Providence. As the season wore on, he had 26 points at Villanova, 25 versus Seton Hall, and 20 at St. John's. In the rematch at Providence in February, he tied the career-high 39-point performance he had set against them a month and a half earlier, including connecting on a Georgetown-record seven three-point shots – a record destined to be matched only once over the next 18 years. He scored in double figures in 10 of his final 11 games.[2]

Back from touring with a Big East all-star team during the summer of 1989, senior guard Dwayne Bryant returned as a team co-captain this season and started all 31 games. With freshman David Edwards playing point guard, Bryant was free to play shooting guard, and he responded with the best offensive season of his collegiate career. He scored in double figures in 21 games, and in the later games of the season averaged 16 points per game, including a 20-point effort against Connecticut and nine rebounds and a career-high 25 points against Syracuse consecutively in the last two games of the regular season. For the year, he averaged a career-best 12.3 points per game.[5]

The season finale in which Bryant had his career-high scoring performance at the Carrier Dome before 33,015 against archrival Syracuse – the largest on-campus crowd in NCAA basketball history – was a wild game. Thompson was ejected – only his third ejection since taking over the Georgetown program in 1972 – and the Hoyas clung to a two-point lead with five seconds left in the game and Syracuse having little prospect of making even a long-range shot to tie. However, senior forward and team co-captain Sam Jefferson unnecessarily fouled Syracuse sophomore power forward Billy Owens, who sank both of his free throws to tie the game. Syracuse prevailed in overtime, beating the Hoyas 89–87.[6]

Beginning with the regular-season-finale loss at Syracuse, the Hoyas stumbled in their final five games, losing three, each of them by five or fewer points. After a bye in the first round of the 1989 Big East tournament, Georgetown defeated Providence in the quarterfinals but lost to Connecticut in the semifinals. The Hoyas were the No. 3 seed in the Midwest Region of the 1990 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament – the 12th of 14 consecutive Georgetown NCAA tournament appearances – and defeated Texas Southern in the first round before the Midwest Region' No. 6 seed, 25th-ranked Xavier, upset them in the second round. In the final seven games of the year, Mourning had been limited to an average of just over six shots per game, and that had hurt the Georgetown offense.[3][4]

The 1989-90 Hoyas were ranked No. 8 in the season's final Associated Press Poll and No. 6 in the final Coaches' Poll. Mark Tillmon and Dwayne Bryant graduated in May 1990, Tillmon having had the best season of his career, averaging 19.8 points per game for the year and 12.7 for his career, and Bryant with a school-record shooting average from three-point range of 39.9%. During their four seasons on the team, the Hoyas had posted a record of 102–24 overall and 53–5 at home.[2][5]

Roster

[edit]

Source[2][3][4][5][7][8]

Sophomore guard Ronny Thompson was the son of head coach John Thompson Jr.

# Name Height Weight (lbs.) Position Class Hometown Previous Team(s)
10 David Edwards 5'10" N/A G Fr. New York, NY Andrew Jackson HS
11 Kayode Vann 6'1" 175 G Jr. New York, NY Berkeley Carroll School
12 Dwayne Bryant 6'2" 190 G Sr. New Orleans, LA De La Salle HS
20 Mark Tillmon 6'2" 190 G Sr. Washington, DC Gonzaga College HS
22 Johnny Jones 6'6" N/A F Grad. Sch. Coral Springs, FL University of the District of Columbia
24 Anthony Allen 6'7" N/A F Sr. Port Arthur, TX Abraham Lincoln HS
30 Ronny Thompson 6'4" 190 G So. Washington, DC Flint Hill School (Oakton, VA)
33 Alonzo Mourning 6'10" 240 C/F So. Chesapeake, VA Indian River HS
34 Michael Tate 6'6" N/A F Fr. Oxon Hill, MD Oxon Hill HS
40 Milton Bell 6'7" N/A F So. Richmond, VA John Marshall HS
41 Antoine Stoudamire 6'3" 180 G/F Fr. Portland, OR Jesuit HS
44 Mike Sabol 6'7" 210 F Fr. Washington, DC Gonzaga College HS
50 Sam Jefferson 6'9" 230 F Sr. Washington, DC Flint Hill School (Oakton, VA)
55 Dikembe Mutombo 7'2" 245 C Jr. Kinshasa, Zaire Institut Boboto

Rankings

[edit]

Source[9][10]

Ranking Movement
Legend: ██ Improvement in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking. ██ Not ranked the previous week. RV=Others receiving votes.
Poll Pre Wk 1 Wk 2 Wk 3 Wk 4 Wk 5 Wk 6 Wk 7 Wk 8 Wk 9 Wk 10 Wk 11 Wk 12 Wk 13 Wk 14 Wk 15 Final
AP 5 3 3 3 3 3 3 2 2 3 6 5 3 5 7 5 8
Coaches 4 4 3 3 3 3 3 2 2 3 6 5 2 3 5 6 [note 1]

1989–90 Schedule and results

[edit]

Sources[11][12][13]

Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
city, state
Regular Season
Fri., Nov. 24, 1989*
No. 5 vs. Hawaii Loa
Hawaii Loa Classic
W 109-56  1–0
Kaneohe Armory (671)
Kaneohe, HI
Sat., Nov. 25, 1989*
No. 5 vs. Hawaii Pacific
Hawaii Loa Classic
W 79-57  2–0
Kaneohe Armory (845)
Kaneohe, HI
Sat., Dec. 2, 1989*
No. 3 Florida International W 114-67  3–0
Capital Centre (7,494)
Landover, MD
Thu., Dec. 7, 1989*
No. 3 vs. No. 17 North Carolina
ACC-Big East Challenge
W 93-81  4–0
Brendan Byrne Arena (18,641)
East Rutherford, NJ
Sat., Dec. 9, 1989*
No. 3 Rice W 81-60  5–0
Capital Centre (7,057)
Landover, MD
Wed., Dec. 13, 1989*
No. 3 Saint Leo W 92–51  6–0
Capital Centre (N/A)
Landover, MD
Sat., Dec. 16, 1989*
No. 3 District of Columbia W 112–39  7–0
Capital Centre (N/A)
Landover, MD
Wed., Dec. 20, 1989*
No. 3 Virginia Tech W 97–64  8–0
Capital Centre (15,982)
Landover, MD
Fri., Dec. 29, 1989*
No. 3 vs. Northern Iowa W 83-49  9–0
Thomas & Mack Center (4,348)
Paradise, NV
Tue., Jan. 2, 1990
No. 3 at Boston College W 83–53  10–0 (1–0)
Silvio O. Conte Forum (8,674)
Chestnut Hill, MA
Sat., Jan. 6, 1990
No. 3 Providence W 93-91  11–0 (2–0)
Capital Centre (15,891)
Landover, MD
Mon., Jan. 8, 1990
No. 3 at Pittsburgh W 87-71  12–0 (3–0)
Civic Arena (16,588)
Pittsburgh, PA
Sat., Jan. 13, 1990*
No. 2 at DePaul W 74–64  13–0
Rosemont Horizon (N/A)
Rosemont, IL
Wed., Jan. 17, 1990
No. 2 Boston College W 68–45  14–0 (4–0)
Capital Centre (10,291)
Landover, MD
Sat., Jan. 20, 1990
No. 2 at Connecticut
Rivalry
L 65–70  14–1 (4–1)
Hartford Civic Center (16,294)
Hartford, CT
Mon., Jan. 22, 1990
No. 2 at Villanova W 70–69  15–1 (5–1)
Spectrum (16,407)
Philadelphia, PA
Sat., Jan 20, 1990
No. 3 No. 11 Syracuse L 76–95  15–2 (5–2)
Capital Centre (16,683)
Landover, MD
Tue., Jan. 30, 1990
No. 6 Seton Hall W 70–48  16–2 (6–2)
Capital Centre (10,504)
Landover, MD
Sat., Feb. 3, 1990
No. 6 at No. 18 St. John's W 74–67  17–2 (7–2)
Madison Square Garden (17,588)
New York, NY
Wed., Feb. 7, 1990
No. 5 Pittsburgh W 97–81  18-2 (8–2)
Capital Centre (12,630)
Landover, MD
Sat., Feb. 10, 1990*
No. 5 Florida W 56–40  19–2
Capital Centre (13,538)
Landover, MD
Tue., Feb. 13, 1990
No. 3 at Providence L 90–94  19-3 (8–3)
Providence Civic Center (13,106)
Providence, RI
Sat., Feb. 17, 1990
No. 3 at Seton Hall W 68–60  20–3 (9–3)
Brendan Byrne Arena (17,181)
East Rutherford, NJ
Wed., Feb. 21, 1990
No. 5 St. John's L 62–63  20–4 (9–4)
Capital Centre (13,748)
Landover, MD
Sat., Feb 24, 1990
No. 5 Villanova W 83–53  21–4 (10–4)
Capital Centre (19,035)
Landover, MD
Wed., Feb. 28, 1990
No. 7 No. 4 Connecticut
Rivalry
W 84–64  22–4 (11–4)
Capital Centre (19,035)
Landover, MD
Sun., Mar. 4, 1990
No. 7 at No. 10 Syracuse L 87–89 OT 22–5 (11–5)
Carrier Dome (33,015[14])
Syracuse, NY
Big East tournament
Fri., Mar. 9, 1990
(3) No. 5 vs. (6) Providence
Quarterfinals
W 78–77  23–5
Madison Square Garden (17,588)
New York, NY
Sat., Mar. 10, 1990
(3) No. 5 vs. (2) No. 8 Connecticut
Semifinals/Rivalry
L 60–65  23–6
Madison Square Garden (17,588)
New York, NY
NCAA tournament
Fri., Mar. 16, 1990
(3 MW) No. 8 vs. (14 MW) Texas Southern
First round
W 70–52  24–6
Hoosier Dome (39,417)
Indianapolis, IN
Sun., Mar. 18, 1990
(3 MW) No. 8 vs. (6 MW) No. 25 Xavier
Second round
L 71–74  24–7
Hoosier Dome (N/A)
Indianapolis, IN
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ No Coaches' Poll this week.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "1989-90 Big East Conference Season Summary". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved August 16, 2021.
  2. ^ a b c d "The Georgetown Basketball History Project: The Top 100: 18. Mark Tillmon". Archived from the original on July 7, 2014. Retrieved March 16, 2014.
  3. ^ a b c "The Georgetown Basketball History Project: The Top 100: 4. Alonzo Mourning". Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved March 16, 2014.
  4. ^ a b c "The Georgetown Basketball History Project: The Top 100: 16. Dikembe Mutombo". Archived from the original on February 14, 2012. Retrieved March 16, 2014.
  5. ^ a b c "The Georgetown Basketball History Project: The Top 100: 47. Dwayne Bryant". Archived from the original on August 7, 2014. Retrieved March 16, 2014.
  6. ^ "The Georgetown Basketball History Project: Classic Games". Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved March 16, 2014.
  7. ^ "The Georgetown Basketball History Project: Rosters 1980-81 to 1989-1990". Archived from the original on March 30, 2015. Retrieved November 30, 2013.
  8. ^ The Georgetown Basketball History Project: Player Directory: Jersey Numbers
  9. ^ 1989-90 Big East Conference Season Summary
  10. ^ sports-reference.com 1989-90 Polls
  11. ^ The Georgetown Basketball History Project: 1980s Seasons
  12. ^ "The Georgetown Basketball History Project: Records vs. All Opponents". Archived from the original on November 3, 2013. Retrieved November 30, 2013.
  13. ^ 2012-2013 Georgetown Men's Basketball Media Guide, p. 64.
  14. ^ Waters, Mike, "A look back at the 13 times Syracuse basketball has set the attendance record at the Carrier Dome," syracuse.com, 31 January 2014, 12:30 p.m. EST