CINCINNATI (AP) — Georgetown’s Big East opener was one difficult night for the Hoyas.
D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera scored 18 points, but the Hoyas struggled to score in a 70-53 loss at Xavier on Wednesday.
“Xavier did a good job,” Georgetown coach John Thompson III said. “They didn’t do any one thing in particular. Nothing was easy for us today. Every team in this conference is good from top to bottom.”
Jalen Reynolds matched a career high with 17 points for Xavier (10-3, 1-0), which has won five of six. Remy Abell and Dee Davis had 12 points apiece.
Xavier held Georgetown to 36 percent shooting and forced 16 turnovers.
Josh Smith had 10 points for the Hoyas (8-4, 0-1), who had won three in a row and four of five. It was the Hoyas’ lowest point total of the season.
Smith made a jumper with about 14 minutes left to get Georgetown within two, but Xavier responded with a 10-2 run. Trevon Bluiett capped the surge with two free throws that made it 49-39 with 9:13 remaining.
Smith-Rivera came into the game fifth in the conference in scoring.
“Remy Abell did an outstanding job against DSR,” Xavier coach Chris Mack said.
Reynolds helped Xavier grab control with a three-point play with 6:58 left. The sophomore was whistled for a technical foul on the play, but he helped the Musketeers finish the game strong.
“Everyone knows that I’m an emotional player. I flexed on that one,” Reynolds said. “We played hard. It is a blessing to do what I do on the court.”
Davis had a layup and two foul shots to extend the lead to 65-50 with 2:45 to go.
TIP-INS
Xavier: Mack ran his total to 121 career wins, breaking a tie for second on the school’s list with Arizona coach Sean Miller.
Georgetown: The Hoyas blocked 10 shots and held the Musketeers 11 points below their season average.
UP NEXT
Georgetown hosts Creighton on Saturday.
Xavier visits DePaul on Saturday.
FEELING LOW
Bluiett started the game with a 13.3 scoring average, good for ninth in the conference, but he was 0 for 6 from the field. His only points came from four free throws.
“He was sick as a dog,” Mack said. “Out of eight practices he missed five of them.”
CHANGING SIDES
Smith-Rivera was booed all game long. Smith-Rivera was heavily recruited by Xavier out of high school but chose to attend Georgetown instead. Smith-Rivera is from Indianapolis, a two-hour drive from the Cintas Center.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.