The Georgetown Voice, November 11, 2016 by The Georgetown Voice

VOICE The Georgetown

November 11, 2016

NOVEMBER 11, 2016

THE GEORGETOWN VOICE Volume 49 • Issue 6

news

Men’s Preview Robbie Ponce

4-5

Rodney Pryor Profile Tyler Pearre

Akoy Agau Profile Jonny Amon

Women’s Preview Alex Lewontin and Margaux Fontaine

Dorothy Adomako Profile Brynn Furey

Natasha Adair Profile Jonny Amon

10-11

Meet the New Guys Jorge DeNeve and Emma Battle

Meet the New Girls Nick Gavio and Beth Cunniff

Big East Preview Parker Houston and Justin Olander

Lineups Kevin Huggard

15 The Basketball Preview Staff: Producers Robbie Ponce Kevin Huggard Editors Tyler Pearre Chris Dunn Jonny Amon

Cover Photos credited to Georgetown Sports Information, Tyler Pearre

editor-in-chief Kevin Huggard Managing editor Graham piro executive editor Ryan miller Features editor Caitlyn cobb news editor lilah burke assistant news editors margaret gach, cassidy jensen, isaiah seibert

contents

Cover by emma francois and Alli Kaufman

staff

Designers Emma Francois Alli Kaufman

Contributors: Jorge DeNeve Nick Gavio Alex Lewontin Margaux Fontaine Parker Houston Phillip Steuber Brynn Furey Emma Battle Justin Olander Beth Cunniff Jon Block Brian mcmahon Jake Glass Lindsay Reilly Cecilia Li Jack Townsend

culture

executive editor Brian Mcmahon Leisure editor michael bergin assistant leisure editors Amy guay, caitlin mannering, Devon O’Dwyer Sports editor robert ponce Assistant sports editors Tyler pearre, phillip steuber

opinion

Executive editor kenneth lee voices editor Lara Fishbane Editorial Board Chair Daniel Varghese Editorial Board Jon Block, Chris dunn, Kevin Huggard, kenneth lee, ryan miller, GRAHAM PIRO, PHillip Steuber

halftime

Leisure editor Danielle hewitt assistant leisure editors Dan sheehan, claire smith Sports editors Jonny Amon, Chris Dunn

design

Executive editor Emma Francois Spread editor Alli Kaufman Photo editor sarah jane kim assistant design editors Megan Howell, Lindsay Reilly, Abbey Roberts Staff Designers Jake Glass, Sam Lee, Aicha Nzie, cate o’leary, elizabeth pankova, rachel corbally, adam semprevivo, jack townsend

copy

copy chief Anna Gloor editors Audrey Bischoff, Jack Cashmere, Clara Cecil, Claire Goldberg, Isabel Lord, Isabel Paret, Julia Pinney, Jack Townsend, Gabriella Wan

online

podcast editor Jon block

business

general manager Naiara parker senior associate, finance and alumni outreach Jessica ho

The opinions expressed in The Georgetown Voice do not necessarily represent the views of the administration, faculty or students of Georgetown University, unless specifically stated. Columns, advertisements, cartoons and opinion pieces do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editorial Board or the General Board of The Georgetown Voice. The university subscribes to the principle of responsible freedom of expression of its student editors. All materials copyright The Georgeton Voice, unless otherwise indicated.

editor@georgetownvoice.com Leavey 424 Box 571066 Georgetown University Washington, DC 20057

THE GEORGETOWN VOICE

Dear Readers, In light of this week’s election, basketball seems insignificant. Or, rather, it is insignificant. Clearly, many across the country found the election of Republican nominee Donald Trump to be an exhilarating development. On campus, the mood has seemed to be far different. Many students have expressed, either through demonstration or on social media, their profound sense of concern and anxiety in response to Tuesday’s election results. Considering the current state of our campus environment, we debated whether or not it was an appropriate time to offer the Georgetown community an issue devoted solely to something as comparatively unimportant as basketball. We decided, ultimately, to run this issue. We did so for a few reasons. First, regardless of the campus political climate, the players on this school’s basketball teams will take the floor on Friday and Saturday, and we see no reason to deny them our usual level of coverage. In addition, our staff has spent the recent weeks working fervently to prepare an issue that will inform our readers’ expectations for the coming basketball seasons. To disregard the work of our writers, designers and editors because of the results of Tuesday’s election seemed unfair to their efforts. We recognize that many on campus view this election as a catastrophic event, and one that could even be personally threatening. This particular issue, however, is not the space to address such feelings. We do not intend to ignore such sentiments. Instead, we will continue to offer our publication as a platform in the coming days and weeks for those who have experienced such visceral reactions to this election that they feel they should make themselves heard. We always solicit personal essays from the campus community for our “Voices” section. At this time, we would like to make a more specific request, asking for reactions to Americans’ choice on Tuesday and its effects on the lives of those in the Georgetown community. This election has raised many questions. In a time of uncertainty, we hope that the Voice can help this campus community comprehend together what is to come in the course of American politics. If you would like to share your experience of election night or the days that have followed, we offer ourselves as the platform for such sharing. Ideas for pieces can be submitted to either our editor-in-chief at editor@georgetownvoice.com or our “Voices” editor at voices@georgetownvoice.com. In this strange time on campus, many seem unsure what to do next. We do not delude ourselves by thinking we have charted the perfect course, yet we are doing what we can. In this issue, we bring you a collection of pieces that were a joy to put together, and in the coming days and weeks we hope to bring you a series of stories of something deeper. We can only hope that these can promote thought and dialogue on campus, and that as this country moves into its next phase in politics those in our community who feel such severe unease can eventually find some comfort. So we give you this issue, along with our continuing promise to make your voices heard, and hope that our community may find peace in the time to come.

Sincerely, Robbie Ponce, Sports Editor Kevin Huggard, Editor-in-Chief

NOVEMBER 11, 2016

MEN’S PREVIEW

FULL SPEED AHEAD HOYAS READY TO LEAVE RECENT DISAPPOINTMENTS IN THE REARVIEW

TYLER PEARRE

ROBBIE PONCE Just one game into the 2015-16 Georgetown men’s basketball season, Coach John Thompson III was fumbling for the reset button. His team had just been defeated by the Radford Highlanders, an unranked, mid-major opponent, in what was supposed to be a tune-up game for his Hoyas—who had entered the season with lofty postseason aspirations. Adding insult to injury was the fact that the loss came in double-overtime and in Georgetown’s home opener. Though the game may have seemed like a fluke at the time, the Georgetown season ended in a similar manner to how it began, with hope for the restoration of one of college basketball’s most historic basketball programs suspended somewhere in the balance between delusion and optimism. 32 games and 17 losses after the team’s opening defeat, the cold winter helped Georgetown’s derailed season come to a skidding stop, but not without leaving its share of bumps and bruises. The Hoyas’ injury-ravaged, inexplicably inconsistent season was not just underwhelming, but historically bad. The Hoyas finished 7-11 in Big East Conference play and 15-18 overall, recording the program’s worst winning percentage (.455) since the 1971-72 season. Finding a silver lining in Georgetown’s previous campaign remains a troublesome task, as even the team’s bright moments (which included an early season tournament win against Wisconsin and

a come-from-behind victory against Creighton in conference play) were overshadowed by glaring, non-conference losses at home to Radford, Monmouth, and UNC Asheville. Following an 8167 drubbing in the Big East Quarterfinals at the hands of the Villanova Wildcats, Georgetown’s season ended without an appearance in the NCAA or NIT Tournament for the first time since Thompson took over the program in 2004. For Thompson, last year offers lessons, but it cannot dominate the Hoyas’ mindset heading into the new campaign. “It’s almost like it’s like a book that’s sitting in the corner of my desk,” Thomson said about the team’s memory of last season. “It’s there, you can think about it, you can remember it, you can learn from it, but we’re not going to keep rehashing [it].” More than eight months since the final buzzer in Madison Square Garden shut the door on the ’15-16 season, Thompson and the Hoyas have been granted a clean slate, and a chance to tackle a new season with plenty of new faces both on the court and in the coaching staff. Hoping to fill the void left by last season’s leading scorer D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera who graduated in May, Georgetown bolstered its backcourt in the offseason by recruiting transfer guards Rodney Pryor and Jonathan Mulmore, each of whom is expected to carry a heavy load for the Hoyas on both ends of the court this season.

THE GEORGETOWN VOICE

Pryor, who averaged 18.0 points and 8.0 rebounds per game for Robert Morris last season, offers the Hoyas a diverse skillset and the ability to play and guard multiple positions. Mulmore, a transfer from Allegany Junior College in Cumberland, Maryland, averaged 26.1 points and 5.9 assists per game, both good for the nation’s best, for the Trojans’ last season. In addition to the scoring punch these two guards will be expected to supply for the Blue and Gray this season, their athleticism and defensive fervor have contributed greatly to upping the intensity of offseason workouts leading up to the ’16-17 season. “The athleticism has increased a lot. Our practices are a lot more competitive, which is really great, relative to last year,” Thompson said. “It’s a difference when you bring in Jon [Mulmore] and Rodney ... They’ve quickly established a presence within our team, in the locker room, and away from the court, which is very good.” Georgetown’s backcourt was also boosted by the recruitment of freshman guard Jagan Mosely, who chose Georgetown after a standout senior season for at St. Anthony High School in Jersey City, New Jersey. Thompson has complimented the freshman guard’s maturity and noted the depth that he provides to Georgetown’s backcourt—a luxury that the Hoyas lacked last season. Mosely, Mulmore, and Pryor join a group of guards that also features junior returners LJ Peak and Tre Campbell, each of whom provided an occasional but inconsistent spark for the Hoyas last season. Peak was the second-leading scorer for the team last season with 12.9 points per game, shooting .409 from three-point rang—a great improvement from the .246 that he averaged in his freshman year. Campbell’s statistics last season were modest, as he averaged 4.1 points and 1.7 assists per game, but the third-year point guard spent time as the team’s primary ball handler when Smith-Rivera rested on the bench. Last season, the Hoyas were heavily reliant on the outside shooting of Smith-Rivera, whose ability to demand attention at the perimeter helped Georgetown spread the floor on offense. This space allowed the Hoyas to take the second most three-pointers of any Big East team last year, yet the team’s three-point shooting was almost as cold as a winter walk from Darnall to Leo’s. Georgetown only shot a better percentage from behind the arc (.339) than St. John’s (.326) and Providence (.321), and the team will rely on its backcourt additions to add a much-needed punch from the outside in order for Thompson’s Princeton offense to work efficiently this season. In the frontcourt, Georgetown will depend on the offseason development of several key returners, including sophomore center Jessie Govan, who has been mentioned by DraftExpress. com as a first-round NBA prospect, and sophomore forward Marcus Derrickson. These two big men were solid offensive contributors last season and have put in significant time this offseason refining their defensive games. “All last year, that’s all I had, my jump shot, so this year was a focus on developing other things while keeping my jump shot,” Derrickson said, who shot .376 from the three-point line, and .869 from the free throw line last season. “Every situation, I just want to be more of a threat in every aspect. If I have to lock up somebody or I have to guard a guard, I want to be able to guard a guard. If I have to guard a big man, I’ll be able to guard a big man.” Though several Georgetown players mentioned that they had been working throughout the offseason to become better defenders, the Hoyas’ success will hinge on team defense. Last season, the Hoyas led the Big East in fouls committed per game (23.5), but the team’s aggressive defense didn’t translate into forced turnovers, as Georgetown finished ninth in the conference in steals per game (5.45). “I think our defense really let us down last year. When we’ve had good teams, we’ve been very good defensive teams. Last year we were not a very good defensive team,” Thompson said. “Last year we fouled too much; last year we didn’t get to the line enough … But our defense is key. We have to get stops, we have to create stops, and no matter what we’re doing offensively, we didn’t make life difficult enough for our opposition last year.” With the depth that Thompson has at his disposal and a keen eye on experimenting with new offensive and defensive schemes, there have been murmurs throughout this offseason that the Georgetown coaching staff has considered incorporating “small-ball” lineups more frequently into the fold this year. With the team’s backcourt depth and players like Derrickson, junior forward Isaac Copeland, and sophomore forward Kaleb Johnson, each of whom is capable of guarding multiple positions and stretching the floor on the offensive end, Georgetown will aim to play more up-tempo basketball and avoid the stagnation in the halfcourt offense that plagued the team last season. Copeland and Johnson are both players whose intensity on defense and aggressive pursuit of defensive rebounds will be crucial if the Hoyas hope to get out in transition more this season. “Yeah, I think for us to be really good I need to attack the boards on both ends better,” said Copeland, who averaged 5.4 rebounds per game last season. “Playing fast is part of the offense; you know, you need defense to do that.” “Up-tempo basketball is fun, you’re out there competing and having fun, flying around,” Pryor said when asked about the prospect of playing more in transition this season. “Me and Jon [Mulmore] push each other and push everyone else on the team—whether it’s in

sprints or transition drills—to really push each other to get up and down the floor as fast as we can.” With the new season on the horizon, however, much about this Georgetown team remains unknown. The Big East’s coaches picked Georgetown to finish fourth in the conference, leaving Georgetown out of the top two in the preseason coaches’ poll for the first time since the creation of the new Big East. This surprised few after the team finished the previous season by going 2-10 in its final 12 games. With legitimate questions surrounding how Thompson plans to incorporate new and returning players into his system, Georgetown is not a team that is expected by many to contend for an NCAA Championship this season. If the season begins with questions facing the Hoyas, the team’s early slate of games will provide plenty of opportunities to answer them. In its non-conference schedule, Georgetown will host Maryland on Nov. 15 in only its second game of the season. A week

“WE WANT TO WIN, WE WANT TO WIN. BIG EAST. NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP. WE WANT TO WIN,” JOHNSON SAID WITH A COY SMILE. later, the Hoyas take part in the Maui Invitational, where they’ll play a series of difficult opponents, including Oregon and either Wisconsin or Tennessee, within a three-day span just before Thanksgiving. A little more than three weeks later, the Hoyas will travel to New York to take on the Syracuse Orange at the Carrier Dome, in their second-to-last game before Big East conference play begins. This schedule will be physically and emotionally demanding for the Blue and Gray, but Thompson and the Hoyas don’t have any intention of waving a white flag. Last year’s season underwhelmed, and the program hasn’t won a Big East Tournament or advanced past the third round of the NCAA Tournament in nine years, but something different could await this team. But what? “Just winning a lot of games,” senior swingman Reggie Cameron said. What’s the team’s main objective in Big East play? “Just destroy everybody,” Peak said. What could your team’s success look like this season? “We want to win, we want to win. Big East. NCAA Championship. We want to win,” Johnson said with a coy smile, unwilling to temper his excitement for the promises that await within the new season. It might be easy for one to laugh off Johnson’s grandiose predictions, but the belief woven within them may prove to be what is truly special about this Georgetown team. This Georgetown team is not one that clings onto what the program once was; it’s a team that is in search of its own identity. This Georgetown team is not fixated on adding to the number of retired jerseys that rest on the walls of McDonough or on living up to accomplishments that are inscribed within the trophy cases in the Thompson Center. This team has no Allen Iverson, no Patrick Ewing, no Otto Porter. What it does have, however, is more than a handful of reasons to prove itself as a legitimate contender. This team is tired of hearing people talk (and write) about how awful last season was. This team isn’t used to having to fight for respect. This team is hungry for success. The Hoyas are hyper-aware that few college basketball analysts and experts expect great things of them this year. Yet this is neither a team that is doomed to fall into mediocrity, nor one that is overly concerned with living up to what “Georgetown basketball” represented in the ’80s. The fact that Georgetown enters this year with a lack of preseason hype gives its players even more reason to pack plenty of in-season fight. With the start of a new season just a day away, the 2016-17 Georgetown men’s basketball team owes nothing to its name, and that is exactly what will make it a compelling squad to watch this season.

RODNEY PRYOR

Sports Info Georgetown

After posting a dismal 15-18 record in its 2015-16 campaign, the once-great Georgetown men’s basketball team entered its long offseason searching for answers. Who would the team turn to in a time of increased scrutiny and microscopic criticism? How would the Hoyas replace the production of their fourth all-time leading scorer, D’Vauntes SmithRivera, who graduated last spring? Enter Rodney Pryor. It was a long road to the Hilltop for the 6-foot-5-inch graduate student guard. While heavily recruited in high school, he initially enrolled in Kirkwood Community College due to academic concerns. Following a disappointing freshman season, Pryor transferred to Cloud Community College but was forced to sit out his two seasons at the school as a result of multiple injuries. Despite his string of bad luck, he was recruited by Robert Morris University, where he quickly found his groove, averaging 16.8 points on .46 shooting, 6.4 rebounds, and 1.8 assists per game in two seasons as the leader of the Colonials. Last season, he was named a member of the First Team All-Northeast Conference squad. Pryor has endured three transfers, a torn ACL, and a broken foot, but his sixth season in the collegiate ranks may pose the most monumental challenge he has faced to date: reinvigorating Georgetown men’s basketball on the national stage. Following an offseason clouded by unpredictability, one of the only certainties entering the season is Pryor’s position as leader of the team. Although this is his first and only year with the team, his work ethic in practice and experience have quickly earned the respect of his teammates and coaches. Very little is known about what the Georgetown lineup might look like entering the year, but Pryor’s position as a starter is virtually guaranteed. “I think coming in the coaches knew and the players knew what my role was going to be on the team early on,” Pryor said. “Being new, I had to really dial in on learning the plays and getting involved with the players, showing them my passion, showing them my leadership.” “He’s kind of fitting that leadership mold well even though coming in; he’s just getting into his groove,” sophomore forward Marcus Derrickson said. “This is Rodney’s sixth year playing college basketball, and he’s just as experienced as anybody,” senior forward Reggie Cameron said. “He’s a constant voice in practice. I think the guys respond well to him.” In addition to his leadership skills, his offensive prowess is evident. He scored 23 points against No. 1 seed Duke in the 2015 NCAA tournament and posted over 30 points in multiple appearances in Georgetown’s League this summer. His production and efficiency are welcome additions to a team that struggled to find a consistent offensive threat last season aside from Smith-Rivera. Pryor’s true value, however, goes far beyond just scoring. “The thing with Rodney is, I think he can play anything,” Thompson said. “His biggest asset is just how hard he plays. He’s someone that can score as you indicated, but at the same time, he rebounds, he defends. Loose balls? He’s going to get on the floor.”

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TYLER PEARRE

NOVEMBER 11, 2016

THE TRANSFER’S LONG ROAD TO LEADERSHIP ENDS ON THE HILLTOP High energy and maximum intensity have come to define Pryor during his collegiate career. He is aggressive and willing to do any task on the court—even those that will not make it into the box score—which presents numerous challenges for opposing teams. This tenacity may be just what the doctor ordered for a Georgetown program in need of inspiration, as last year’s squad demonstrated periods of uninspired and lethargic play throughout the year. The Blue and Gray need more than just a go-to scorer; they need a spark-plug, someone who is prepared to lead the team into battle night in and night out. “I want to be able to bring 120 percent every time I step onto the floor for this team,” Pryor said. “We don’t want to have any down energy night. Whether we’re up 20 or down 20, we want to play with the same energy and passion in every game.” If the heavily-circulated rumors of the Hoyas employing a faster offensive scheme prove true, Pryor’s motor will be a catalyst of this change. He possesses a unique blend of skill, athleticism, and experience that makes him a clear threat in the open court. In Kenner League play, he demonstrated not only an ability to finish a variety of difficult shots around the rim, but also the situational awareness to pull-up and drain the mid-range jumper. “I’ll tell you, people will always talk about playing fast, playing fast, that’s great. You have to be able to make decisions fast. Correct decisions fast,” Thompson said. With the skill set of Pryor at his disposal, Thompson may just have the piece he needs to establish a new brand of Georgetown basketball. Pryor’s chemistry with his new teammates will be tested early and often this season, as Georgetown will take on No. 25 Maryland, No. 5 Oregon, and No. 19 Syracuse before the start of conference play. This may be Pryor’s first experience playing in a major NCAA conference, but his approach to the game remains unchanged. “I think you have to just do what you know you have to do: the fundamentals, the regular principles to the game, staying dedicated, staying focused,” Pryor said. “(I’m) just honing in on what I do best, which is working out, staying in the gym, and really staying around my teammates.” The stakes are as high for this year’s Hoyas as they have ever been in the JTIII era, and Pryor has been thrust to the forefront of a team trying to pivot from last year’s disappointment to a push for the NCAA Tournament. His play on the court will be instrumental in the Blue and Gray’s success this year, but his influence on the team may last much longer than just one season. He may just be the player that ushers Georgetown back onto the national radar.

THE GEORGETOWN VOICE

AKOY AGAU

THE TALENTED BIG MAN READIES FOR HIS LONG-AWAITED DEBUT

Georget own Spo

Akoy Agau just wants to play basketball. In the last few years, however, the world didn’t seem too keen on granting Agau his wish. Since winning his fourth straight state championship at Central High School in Nebraska, Agau has barely been able to get on the hardwood. A limited role at Louisville and a devastating knee injury before his junior season at Georgetown left Agau with few competitive minutes over the past three years. Out of high school, Agau was a highly sought after four-star prospect. He received offers from top programs including West Virginia, Nebraska, Georgetown, and Louisville. Enticed by the offer from the previous year’s national champion, Agau chose to join coach Rick Pitino at Louisville. Yet he soon faced a variety of obstacles and struggled to find a place in the Cardinals’ skilled and competitive frontcourt rotation. During his freshman year at Louisville, Agau averaged just five minutes per game. Later in the season, he was indefinitely suspended from the team because of what was described by Pitino as a “very minor” attitude issue, but then returned to the team later in the season. Before his sophomore year began, Agau suffered a sports hernia and had surgery during that summer. He averaged 3.7 minutes per game in his sophomore year before deciding to transfer to Georgetown midway through the season. While ineligible for the second half of the 2014-2015 season and the beginning of the 2015-2016 campaign, Agau promised to be an exciting defensive prospect to help fill out Georgetown’s frontcourt rotation. Then, on the night before Midnight Madness, the power forward tore his ACL while practicing and was ruled out for the entirety of the 20152016 season. The injury was frustrating for Agau, who had been hoping to make an immediate impact on the team: “Transferring in, and then getting hurt right away … it was very hard to just sit out there,” he said. When Coach John Thompson III initially recruited Agau to Georgetown, he attempted to convince the four-star recruit that he would be the team’s next Jeff Green. Green, along with Roy Hibbert, led the 2007 squad to the Final Four—the furthest the Hoyas have advanced in the NCAA tournament since 1985. Agau welcomed the comparison. In his time at Georgetown, Green was known for doing a little bit of everything. Scoring, defending, and rebounding were all critical components of his game. Now, Agau looks to recreate that playing style and contribute in a similar manner. “Jeff was a guy who Coach Thompson had play a lot of different positions for him. Obviously, I want to make the statement that I can do a lot of different things on the floor—rebound, block shots, every once in a while get a rebound and push the ball on the court,” he said. To help round out his game, Agau told the Voice that he spent a lot of time working on rebounding over the summer, which he hopes will address the Hoyas’ struggles on the boards last season. Last year, Georgetown tied for sixth in the Big East in rebounds per game (35.8), and the coaching staff recognizes the team’s

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JONNY AMON need to rebound more effectively in order to compete in the Big East this year. “We’ve had a little struggle sometimes with rebounding for the past few years on these teams,” Agau said. “So that’s something our coaches this year are really [putting] an emphasis on and making sure that we’re rebounding, blocking our guy out before we get the ball … Rebounding is a big part to winning games.” In addition to rehabbing his knee and working on his rebounding, Agau has also worked on making sure his body is in proper shape for the upcoming season. “A lot of it was my right knee, definitely strengthening that. But it’s also working on the other leg, making sure it’s equally as strong,” he said. When asked if he thinks he is fully recovered from his ACL tear, Agau seemed confident. “Yes, I’m 100 percent. I’m out here practicing … As of right now, God willingly, if I don’t get hurt, I’m available and 100 percent,” he said. Fully healed, Agau is ready to make an impact, and Thompson knows it. When asked how long it will take Agau to ease into the game, Thompson said, “[Agau]’s anxious. We had a scrimmage last week, and he was like a high school freshman out there in terms of how excited he was and how jittery he was.” When Kris Jenkins’ shot dropped through the net for Villanova in the national championship, the Big East found itself in a renewed place of prominence. The spotlight will be shining bright on every team in the conference this year, and Agau feels that the competition will be stronger than ever. “This conference is going to be better than it was last year. I think it’s pretty scary to say that,” he said. Agau’s long-awaited Hoyas debut may be nearing, but the forward will have to fight for his spot in the rotation. In a frontcourt loaded with skilled players including Isaac Copeland, Marcus Derrickson, and Reggie Cameron, Agau will look to distinguish himself from his teammates with his defense and hustle. Thompson knows that Agau is a player willing to lay it all out for the team. “He goes a hundred miles an hour, and so he’s one of those kids who you say ‘slow down’ and he says ‘okay, Coach’ and then he takes off at a hundred miles an hour,” Thompson said. Despite the Hoyas’ fierce competition this season, the forward’s tough transition from one program to another, and the incessant injuries, Agau is ready to get back in the game. He’s ready to be a part of a team that is competing for a national championship, but he knows it won’t come easy. “I think we have a chance to do something special, but we still have a lot of work to do,” Agau said. This Saturday, Agau will play basketball again. He will play for a team that needs to prove itself. He will play for a team that many people have written off and forgotten about. For Agau, the critics are wrong to ignore his play and his team, and he’s been waiting for this exact moment to prove it.

ON THEIR WAY ALEX LEWONTIN AND MARGAUX FONTAINE Georgetown basketball finished the 2015-16 season with a winning record and an NIT tournament berth. No, this isn’t a glimpse into a utopian alternate universe, but the real-life story of the Georgetown women’s basketball team, which played its way to a 16-14 (9-9 Big East) record, an appearance in the quarterfinals of the Big East tournament, and a WNIT bid. The campaign represented a marked turnaround from the team’s prior season, when Georgetown notched only four wins during Head Coach Natasha Adair’s first year on the job. From the onset, it was apparent that the 2015-16 Hoyas were a different team. They leapt out to a 3-1 start, including a secondhalf comeback win over George Mason—a gritty performance of the type that would come to characterize the season. The team’s winning ways continued through nonconference competition, and the team entered Big East play boasting a 7-3 record, capping off their non-league play with a decisive 82-46 rout of Towson. However, with Big East conference games came shades of the team’s struggles from the previous year. The team slipped to 9-9 midway through January after a miserable 2-6 start in the Big East. Things looked bad, but all was not lost. “Midway through the year, once we got into conference, all the things that we had been talking about, it just started making sense,” Adair said. “The lightbulb was on [and] it just translated into wins.” After four straight losses, Georgetown, in another late-game comeback of the sort that would soon become familiar to fans, topped Villanova on the road, and then the dominoes began to fall. One win turned to two, then three, and suddenly the team set their season-high streak, winning four straight before losing to No. 24 DePaul. The Hoyas split the remainder of their schedule, earning a record above .500, the fifth seed in the Big East Tournament, and a WNIT bid—their first in four years. It was no national title, but the team had turned the tide. Building off last year’s momentum, the team is looking to continue this upward trend into the upcoming season. “The way the season ended last year, at Rutgers, was basically an offensive rebound putback,” Adair said. “That has fueled us; that motivates us. So everyday when we talk about

NOVEMBER 11, 2016

Women’s Basketball Looks to Build on Previous Success

what we need to do to win a Big East championship … it helps us grade the day, it helps us push one another.” The mention of the Big East championship was not idle talk. Almost every player on the team identified it as the goal foremost in their minds. The Hoyas do not lack for ambition— but do they have the squad to match? On paper, the team is better than last season’s. Four starters are returning: junior guard DiDi Burton, sophomore guard Dionna White, junior guard Dorothy Adomako, and senior forward Faith Woodard. Each has been working hard to improve in the offseason, and White and Adomako earned Preseason All-Big East honors. Georgetown’s crop of incoming talent, which includes three freshmen and two now-eligible transfers, will aid the versatility and depth boasted across the roster. One question remains on everyone’s mind: who’s starting at center? At press time, it is still unclear, and when asked, Adair was tight-lipped. The graduation of forward Dominique Vitalis, the only player to start every game in 2015-16, leaves a clear vacancy, but it's one that the Hoyas should have the depth to fill. “Our five spot is probably one of the most improved positions, and we have versatility,” Adair said. “The beauty with this team, you’ll see us play different ways. You’ll see us play big; you’ll see us play small, and that will help us change up our defensive scheme a little bit.” Adair has options: junior center Yazmine Belk, who led the team in blocks last season despite not starting in a game, and sophomore center Jodi-Marie Ramil both provide experience at the position. New talent on the roster also provides options off the bench, even in positions where the starter isn’t in question, giving the Hoyas the requisite depth and skill to play harder and faster this season. “If you notice they all have on knee-pads, because I said that’s what we want to do: we want to rip those knee-pads up,” Adair said. “We wanna get down and go for those loose balls.” Adair has been emphasizing hustle plays, especially those that don’t bring the glory of points or stats. Adair has thus far been successful in instilling this culture in the team, and though losing five seniors could make it hard to maintain, Adair is confident that there are plenty of voices to provide leadership. She cites Woodard and fellow seniors

Tyshell King and Jade Martin as a significant source, but also White, Adomako and Burton: “What we do is by committee.” Given the quality of the team fans should be looking forward to an exciting season. But another aspect that has encouraged student attendance at home games over the past few years has been creative promotions, the brainchild of assistant athletics director of marketing, Chris Grosse. The 2014-15 season saw the “Hail to Kale” promotion, which earned the team a shout-out from none other than First Lady Michelle Obama. Continuing the vegetable theme, 2015-16 saw “BEETS by Georgetown,” which featured a beet juice-chugging contest and free beet salads for fans in attendance. “We love it, we love his creative juices, and the kids love it,” Adair said. “It’s those types of commitments, just through the whole department, the whole support staff, that makes us just do what we do and really enjoy it … I like kale now; I eat kale all the time now. Not beets though, not beets.” Off the court, the team has emphasized the Georgetown spirit of cura personalis, volunteering their time and energy through a variety of community service and engagement programs. “This is a very compassionate group of young women,” Adair said. “They definitely put others before themselves… they care about what other people are going through, and they want to do more. It allows them to work even harder day-to-day knowing all the good things they have here at Georgetown.” Among those good things is the brand-new Thompson Athletic Center. The players have 24-hour access to their own practice court and weight room. Such state-of-the-art facilities are not only an incredible benefit for the team, but also come with a mandate to continue striving. “Every time I walk in, in the front hall, in the rotunda, you see Coach [John Thompson, Jr.],” Adair said. “All of his fights, all of his hard work, all of what he stands for allows us to be here and allows me to be here. So I’m honored, but I also know we have work to do, and we won’t rest until it’s done.” Indeed, rest will not come soon for Adair and the Hoyas. A long and difficult season awaits them, but they approach it with poise, commitment, and a strong will: the tools they need to capitalize on their potential. Their first challenge will come tonight against George Washington, at 7 p.m. EST, in McDonough Arena.

Photos courtesy of GU Sports Info

DOROTHY ADOMAKO THE GEORGETOWN VOICE

SUCCESS BEFORE SELF: POISED TO LEAD BY EXAMPLE

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successes is a crucial part of her strength as a leader on the team. She is constantly looking to the future and putting her effort into individual and team improvement. Georgetown has seen enormous growth over the past couple of years, benefiting from a feeling of familiarity. “Last year we had five returners come in as the starting five; this year we have four, and having the same consistent coach is always great, and we’re just looking to grow from here.” The guard’s actions speak louder than her words. Adomako does not just talk about advancement, but has also taken steps toward improving the less-polished aspects of her game. She has continued to work hard in the offseason, specifically on extending her shooting range and learning to be more efficient and consistent. If the team is to improve and earn the rewards she has envisioned, Adomako’s offseason improvements will need to translate to on-court success. Adomako’s ability to play her leadership role effectively this season will dictate how high her team’s ceiling will be this season. In the past, she has led her team to many victories and is expected to continue to do so this year, but as a junior, she will be an even more important role model for the younger players on the team. “She’s just really, really taken on that leadership role.” Adair said. “She’s really been charged with the vocal piece of leadership. Picking up one of the younger ones and taking them under her wing, because, again, she will leave a phenomenal legacy here, and we want to make sure she does it the right way and she’s prepared as she transitions to the next level.” Off the court, Adomako is a motivated student, majoring in psychology and minoring in sociology. When asked about her other interests, Dorothy excitedly told the Voice that she worked for Nike this summer and had the opportunity to Facetime with Kevin Durant. It is clear that her heart is invested in the game of basketball. “I do want to play ball after college,” Adomako said. Adomako is passionate about her team, always considering how she can help her teammates advance. Her words and actions show that she is committed to working hard to help her team continue taking strides this season. Behind Adomako’s strong leadership, the women’s team has high hopes for its 2016-17 season. Though the team has grown during her time as a player, Adomako’s sights are always set on what can still be accomplished. “This year, we’re looking to go to the NCAA Tournament and play in the Big East Championship.”

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When Head Coach Natasha Adair sat down with junior guard Dorothy Adomako for her individual meeting this offseason, she could not help but reflect on Adomako’s leadership skills and sense of confidence. She remembers Adomako saying, “Coach, whatever I need to do for this team,” rather than focusing solely on herself. Adomako is an essential player for the women’s basketball team and a key component of the team’s growth over the past two years. Regardless of her past accomplishments, she has committed all of her energy to focusing on the future by driving herself to work hard at and outside of practice as well as placing faith in her teammates’ abilities to do the same this coming season. Even before Adomako started playing for Georgetown, it was clear that she had great potential. After leading Cosby High School to a 25-0 record in her senior year, she was named the 2014 Gatorade Virginia Girls Basketball Player of the Year as well as Regional and District Player of the Year and All-Metro Player of the Year for the second time. Adomako only added to her success after being recruited to play for Georgetown. In her freshman year, she was named the Big East Freshman of the Year after leading the team in both points (12.9) and rebounds (6.7) per game. As a sophomore, Adomako continued to grow and was named to the Preseason All-Big East Team and earned a spot on the Big East Weekly Honor Roll several times throughout the season, most notably for her strong performances in games against Towson and Villanova. This year, as a junior, Adomako has been named to the Preseason All-Big East team for the second time in addition to earning unanimous Big East conference preseason honors. When asked how these achievements will impact her game going forward, Adomako has made it clear that although they are exciting, awards aren’t her main focus going into the season. “It’s very motivational, it’s just, I can’t really think hard about the award I got,” Adomako said. “I just have to work hard. We haven’t started playing yet, so there’s a lot for us to do.” Even last year, when Adomako was asked about her accomplishments as freshman on the team, she told the Voice that she could not let success get to her head. “I have bigger goals—being the Big East Player of the Year and just helping my team win as much as possible,” Adomako said. The guard’s down-to-earth attitude regarding her

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BRYNN FUREY

NATASHA ADAIR 10

NOVEMBER 11, 2016

CRAFTING A CULTURE OF SUCCESS ON AND OFF THE COURT

Georgetown Sports

The Georgetown women’s basketball team was in need of guidance. The program had just hired its third coach in three years, and the team had not recorded a winning season since 2012. In Head Coach Natasha Adair’s first year, the 2014-15 season, the Hoyas managed only four wins. The reputation of the team was in shambles, and Adair was tasked with putting it all back together, piece by piece. Things did not look easy at the onset of Adair’s tenure. In her first year, the team fell to a humiliating 4-27, which included a 2-16 record in Big East conference play. Despite the Hoyas’ difficulties during that season, Adair was able to recruit star guard Dionna White to add to the team’s core of Dorothy Adomako and Faith Woodard. Entering Adair’s second season at the helm of the program, most observers had low expectations for the Hoyas. A small glimmer of hope existed in rising sophomore Adomako, who was named Big East Freshman of the Year the season before, but no one could have anticipated what was to come next. The Hoyas smashed through their low ceiling and matched their previous year’s total of four wins after the first five games of the 2015-16 season. The trio of White, Adomako, and Woodard played an instrumental role in turning the team around, and winning became a habit. “We had to build trust, we had to build just chemistry, consistency, and you saw last year turn, midway through the year once we got into conference. All the things that we had been talking about, it just started making sense,” Adair said. “The lightbulb was on, they were playing more freely, they were playing relaxed, so it just translated into wins and just team camaraderie.” They went on to finish the year at 16-14 and were eliminated from the first round of the WNIT at the buzzer against Rutgers. Despite the team’s early postseason exit, the Blue and Gray no longer found themselves at the bottom of the Big East and proved that they were ready to once again enter the national conversation. Though the team’s improvement over two seasons was unprecedented, it should be no surprise that Coach Adair knows what it takes to run a successful basketball team; the game has followed her everywhere she has gone. In high school, Adair starred as a track and field athlete before choosing to pursue basketball. Notably, she was recruited to play basketball at the University of Connecticut by renowned coach Geno Auriemma before suffering an ACL tear during a preseason game in her junior year of high school. Following her injury, Adair attended Pensacola Junior College, where she led the Pirates to a State Championship. After two years there, she transferred to the University of South Florida, where she finished her playing career and became one of the program’s all-time leading rebounders. Adair graduated from USF with a communications degree, then eventually landed a job as an assistant coach at Georgetown University under Patrick Knapp, who coached the women’s basketball team from 1986 to 2004.

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Adair was mainly responsible for recruiting and for assisting players with their postgames as an assistant coach at both Georgetown and Wake Forest. She was given credit for helping Rebekkah Brunson, who was chosen with the 10th overall pick in the 2004 draft by the Sacramento Monarchs, and was a three-time WNBA All-Star, develop into a strong post presence. At Wake Forest, she was given the role of recruiting coordinator and displayed her superior ability in this role. She attracted many future All-ACC players including Liz Strunk, Coteila Bond-Young, and Corrine Groves, each of whom would go on to score more than 1,000 career points. Eventually, Adair was promoted to Associate Head Coach and held that role over her last five years at Wake Forest from 2007 to 2012. It was inevitable that a coach as talented and wellrespected as Adair would eventually be hired as a head coach. After an eight-year stint at Wake Forest, Adair moved on to the College of Charleston and became its women’s basketball head coach. In two years at Charleston, Adair led the Cougars to a 3531 record and reached the quarterfinals of the Women’s Basketball Invitational. Then Georgetown came calling. Following an abysmal 11-21 season for the Hoyas under Jim Lewis, Athletic Director Lou Reed called Coach Adair, and she quickly moved from the College of Charleston to the Hilltop. For Adair, the move to D.C. was a dream come true. The experienced coach is a DMV area native who attended nearby Albert Einstein High School in Kensington, Maryland. She had already coached for the Hoyas from 1998 to 2004 and was the perfect fit for a Georgetown team searching for a new identity. As soon as she could, Adair called in two of her former players to serve as assistant coaches. Both Sarah Jenkins (COL ’05) and Melba Chambers (COL ’99) were eager to sign on to help their former coach. Chambers joined Adair after having already worked with her as an assistant at the College of Charleston. Because they used to play for Adair, the two player-turned-coaches are able to facilitate her message to the team, providing a link between coach and players. Coach Adair not only pushes her players to become better at basketball but also to become better people. In the coach’s eyes, it is important for the team members to recognize their place in the community and to give back. While many of the team’s service projects take place during the summer, when players have more time, they also served a Thanksgiving dinner at a local church and volunteered wrapping presents before Christmas in between games last season. The idea of participating in the community as well as working hard on the court coincides with Georgetown’s Jesuit ideal of cura personalis or “care for the entire person.” All Georgetown students are encouraged

THE GEORGETOWN VOICE

to help whenever they can, but Coach Adair is holding her players responsible to that mantra. In September, Coach Adair and the team volunteered for the group So Others Might Eat, an organization that donates time and supplies to the large D.C. homeless population. In October, the Hoyas served at the National Capital Walk to End Alzheimer’s, volunteering as guides and helping to raise awareness of Alzheimer’s. They also helped out at the tenth annual Stomp Out Sickle Cell Walk. Sickle cell anemia is a disease that has become a very personal issue for the team. During the walk, the Hoyas encountered a young girl, Peyton, who had been diagnosed with the disease, which mutates red blood cells. Adair noticed the girl staring at the team, bewildered, and invited her to meet the team. The players and Peyton then immediately formed a loving, strong connection. “Now she’s our little sister, and we will adopt her in our family, and we will follow [her] progress throughout the year and beyond,” Adair said. “Peyton was in the huddle kind of giving direction, telling us what we need to do.” Adair’s caring outlook is nothing new to the players. They recognize the passion she puts into volunteering. “That’s such a positive thing because when we see her involved, it makes us want to get involved,” said senior guard Mykia Jones. “When you see the type of person Coach A is, you can’t help but to love her, because she’s such a wonderful person, and she’s always wanting to help other people.” Adair attributes the increase in work rate in part to the heightened volume of service to the community. “They want to

get out as much as they can to give back, but also it allows them to work even harder day-to-day knowing all the good things they have here at Georgetown,” she said.

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Through their continuous community projects, the Hoyas have become a team bonded by more than just the name on the front of their jerseys.

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Adair might’ve sparked the team’s ongoing dedication to the community, but the players are now the ones who keep the commitment strong. “This is a very compassionate group of young women,” Adair said. “They will come to me and say, ‘Coach, can we do this, can we do that?’ We’re heading down to Florida over the Thanksgiving break, and they’ve already said, ‘Can we go to a soup kitchen?’” Through their continuous community projects, the Hoyas have become a team bonded by more than just the name on the

front of their jerseys. Adair prides herself in creating a team that has mastered chemistry. “You know now, in a sense, we’re here; it makes sense. We’re all on the same page; we all kind of have that one heartbeat, that mindset,” Adair said. “The trust is there. The team chemistry is amazing, and so now they’re hungry too.” Natasha Adair makes basketball fun. One small trait about her is that she gives all of her players nicknames. “The younger Ramil, Olivia Ramil, she and I give everybody nicknames. If you stay around me long enough I’m sure I’ll give you one,” Adair joked. Among the nicknames are “Mo’ Buckets” for freshman guard Morgan Smith and “The Big Fundamental” for Olivia Ramil herself. The notion that this team is one unit fosters a strong sense of camaraderie, which Adair wants to use to push the team to new heights this season. “The way the season ended last year, at Rutgers, basically an offensive rebound putback, so that has fueled us, that motivates us, so everyday when we talk about what we need to do to win a Big East championship, what we need to do to hang another banner in here, it helps us grade the day; it helps us push one another,” Adair said. The team’s growth over the last two years can be quantified in wins, but even that doesn’t adequately represent the growth of this program. Influenced by Adair’s guidance, this team has made an impact not only on the court but also in people’s lives. Before Adair, the women’s basketball team was broken. Only now, after two years under Adair, are the pieces finally being put back together.

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MEET THE NEW GUYS

Ra’Mond Hines G: 6’4”, 175 lbs. Washington, D.C.

“A crazy series of events” is how junior guard Ra’Mond Hines described his journey last March from team manager to Georgetown basketball player on the court of Madison Square Garden against DePaul. But playing at the Division I level against some of the country’s top teams has become the 6-foot-4 guard’s new norm. Majoring in economics and government with an english minor, the studious Hines graduated from local high school Gonzaga Prep believing his basketball days were behind him. After a year managing the team, stepping in to play defense during practice every now and then, and making a notable impression on fellow Gonzaga alum Coach Thompson, he now has a Hoya jersey all to himself. Hines has the fundamentals, work ethic, and conditioning to operate at the collegiate level, but not much is known about his specific strengths and weaknesses. More than likely, he won’t get any significant minutes but will be a valuable practice player and might see the court if Georgetown enjoys any runaway wins this year. That, of course, is not definite, and at 175 pounds, Hines arguably has some physical ground to cover before he’s in the shape to grapple with the big guys. More than anything, Hines will be significant if Coach Thompson loses any of the depth in his lineup, a problem Georgetown faced at the end of last season. Whether or not he makes it onto the Verizon Center jumbotron, his journey represents another of the series of unique stories that together make up this year’s men’s team.

Jagan Mosely G: 6’3”, 205 lbs. Morganville, N.J.

Despite his natural athleticism and ability with the ball, 6-foot-3, 205-pound guard Jagan Mosely plays with the sense of urgency and scrappiness characteristic of someone devoid of his natural talent. However, Mosely’s thoughts on this season also shed light on the environment under which he enters this year’s squad: with reservations, yet with hope. “I don’t believe any transition in life is easy … I love challenges, though, so I’m looking at the transition as a challenge” Mosely said. The freshman, who led St. Anthony’s High School in Jersey City with 13.0 points per game his senior year, has an aggressive drive, impressive shot, and the ability to create on the offensive end. His points per game doubled between his sophomore and junior years of high school, so his knack for unpredictable improvement makes it risky to place limits on his potential. Given the still-uncertain nature of the Hoyas’ lineup, it’s difficult to pinpoint when and where the fleet-footed guard will be used by Coach Thompson this season. Mosely likely won’t get starter’s minutes early in the season, but his drive and maturity could secure him the backup point guard spot or time as a shooting guard in the event a bigger player is transitioned into the paint. Coming from one of the most competitive high school basketball programs in New Jersey, Mosely is used to accepting criticism. However, Mosely is still a firstyear player, and his ability to learn and grow over the course of the early season will determine if he is to become a key player for Georgetown’s squad.

Jonathan Mulmore G: 6’4’’, 185 lbs. New Orleans, La.

At just 185 pounds, junior guard Jonathan Mulmore’s 6-foot-4 physical frame may not seem particularly imposing, but don’t let that fool you. Mulmore is fast with the ball, drives to the rim with authority, and is prepared to take bumps in the lane to finish or pass to an open teammate. Last year for Allegany College of Maryland, Mulmore averaged 11.6 free throw attempts per game, leading Division I of the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA). He shot .809 from the line (third in NJCAA), and his ability to draw fouls helped him average 26.1 points per game, making Mulmore the top scorer in the division. Mulmore also led the conference in assists with 5.9 per game. He adds another reliable ball handler to the team, so expect him to compete with fellow junior guard Tre Campbell for minutes. Head Coach John Thompson III points to Mulmore’s two years of college basketball experience as vital to his being so comfortable with the team already. “It’s not like you’re getting a bright-eyed, bushy-tailed freshman who’s still negotiating being away from home for the first time at college and everything else that I think the public forgets,” Thompson said. Mulmore can contribute right away, so when he takes the court on Saturday, he won’t be shocked by the learning curve. Expect a significant contribution right away from the junior.

NOVEMBER 11, 2016

JORGE DENEVE AND EMMA BATTLE George Muresan F: 6’9’’, 210 lbs. Potomac, Md.

Priority walk-on and 6-foot-9 freshman forward George Muresan is used to being in the shadows. No shadow is bigger than the one made by his 7-foot-7 father Gheorghe Muresan, the joint tallest player in NBA history, who played for the Washington Bullets in the ’90s. The younger Muresan may not be generating as much buzz as some of the team’s other new faces, but he can still find a way to make his presence felt on the team. A quick look at his highlight tape shows decisive post moves, a tenacious attitude defending shots and rebounding, and a fundamentally sound shot. His allaround aggression should be an asset to a Georgetown team that wants to run in the open floor, but at just 210 pounds, he could struggle to adjust to the sheer size of players that would match up with him in the college game. It may take Muresan a little time to adjust, but senior forward Reggie Cameron isn’t worried about him making the jump from high school. “He’s getting along. He’s shaking off his wet feet,” Cameron said. “He’ll be fine.” On a team already deep with talented big men, Muresan probably won’t see much playing time, but don’t be surprised if he provides an extra spark when the team needs one when he does get on the court. Muresan won’t be making any headlines, but Hoya fans will appreciate his work rate when he’s in the game. photos courtesy of Georgetown Sports Information

THE GEORGETOWN VOICE

NICK GAVIO AND BETH CUNNIFF

MEET THE NEW GIRLS

Marvellous Osagie-Erese G: 5’4” East Orange, N.J.

Osagie-Erese was added to the roster as a walk-on in the middle of the preseason and will fight for minutes off the bench for the Hoyas. A four-year high school basketball letter winner, she averaged 14.2 points, 5.3 assists, and 5.7 rebounds per game in her senior season at East Orange STEM Academy in New Jersey, leading her team in scoring en route to a 24-2 record and division championship. She wasn’t solely “marvelous” on the court, though; Osagie-Erese was her high school’s valedictorian in addition to starring as a basketball and track athlete. “What you’ll hear from Marvellous is just energy and excitement. Whatever we’re going to ask of her, she’ll do, whatever she needs to do, but she’s going to bring another, just leadership, another voice, and just add depth when we need it in certain areas, but just another spark that you’ll see,” Adair said of Osagie-Erese. Osagie-Erese will bring quick point guard play and energy to the Hoyas’ squad, but she’ll be battling with a talented and crowded Georgetown backcourt for playing time this season. With sophomore guards Dionna White, junior Dorothy Adomako, senior Mykia Jones, and others already established in the rotation, Osagie-Erese will likely have to wait a few years until she sees serious minutes.

Cynthia Petke F: 6’2” Yaounde, Cameroon

Graduation hit the Hoyas’ frontcourt hard. The losses of forwards Dominique Vitalis and Logan Battle, two key contributors at the position last season, created a hole in the Hoyas’ rotation that must be addressed. Cynthia Petke will be a large component of the team’s new frontcourt dynamic. A 6-foot-2 junior college transfer originally hailing from Yaounde, Cameroon, Petke brings size, experience, and athleticism to Georgetown’s frontcourt. Petke spent her first junior college season at Hutchinson Community College, where she averaged 15.1 points and 10.3 rebounds per game as Hutchinson advanced to the 2015 NJCAA Division I championship game. Last season, she played at Chipola Community College, where her 14.4 points per game and 11.0 rebounds per game were both good for team best. “[Petke] can score inside, she can score outside, but she’s just that blue-collar worker, that if you say ‘rebound,’ you look around and she’s flying all over the place,” Adair said. Petke will bring aggressive rebounding, strong defense, and a polished post game to the Hoyas’ frontcourt. The junior will be eligible to play this season and is expected to compete with freshman Olivia Ramil and returning forwards sophomore Jodi-Marie Ramil, junior Yazmine Belk, and senior Faith Woodard for minutes.

Morgan Smith G: 6’0” Upper Marlboro, Md. Olivia Ramil C: 6’2” Binghamton, N.Y.

Olivia Ramil joins her older sister, sophomore Jodi Marie, on a talented Georgetown team. Nicknamed by Coach Adair “The Big Fundamental,” Olivia is a very versatile player. “She has great footwork, she has a great touch around the rim, but she can also stretch [the floor] and shoot the three ball,” Adair said. She will compete with her sister and junior Yazmine Belk for minutes at the center position. In comparison to Jodi, who is loud and energetic, Adair described Olivia as “that quiet peace.” Adair also promised fans will see the “Ramil tandem” at some point this year. Jodi is excited to play with her sister. “Olivia and I have been playing together since second grade, so we’ve been able to grow up and learn each other’s game as we go. It’s an absolute blessing that we can get to continue in playing together, like Olivia knows me and I know Olivia, just the chemistry that we have is just… it’s a been a blessing being able to play with her and continue on.,” Jodi said. Expect to see Olivia making a big impact at center for a Hoyas team that is hungry for a Big East Championship.

Morgan Smith, who played high school basketball in nearby Upper Marlboro, Md., is joining a guard-heavy Georgetown team, yet she is already finding a way to stand out. At 6-foot she is versatile, and in Coach Adair’s words, is a “crazy athlete.” In her senior year at Riverdale Baptist School, she averaged 8.1 points per game and 4.7 rebounds per game, helping her team to a 36-3 record. Her ESPN scouting report calls her “Explosively athletic, a versatile perimeter performer [who] attacks glass, [is] superb in uptempo, and [is] a developing offensive threat.” Smith will have to compete for minutes with a very talented group of guards, including Dionna White, DiDi Burton, Jade Martin, Mykia Jones, and Dorothy Adomako. Despite the competition, she seems to have found her place on this team. “I bring a lot of positive energy and just energy in general, getting the team going and keeping everyone positive,” she said of herself. Coach Adair agrees. “We call her Mo’ Buckets… Her personality is so bubbly ... she just lights up the room. That’s what she brings to the court.” photos courtesy of Georgetown Sports Information

NOVEMBER 11, 2016

BIG EAST PREVIEW PARKER HOUSTON AND JUSTIN OLANDER

Jay Wright’s defending national champion Wildcats return their two best players from last year. One of them, D.C. native Josh Hart, has been picked by most pundits to win Big East Player of the Year, and the other, Kris Jenkins, hit one of the most important shot in the history of college basketball the last time he played an official game. The last national champion to return its two best players was Florida in ‘06, and they took another one home that March. This team is less talented than last year’s, though, with the losses of Ryan Arcidiacono and Daniel Ochefu. After fivestar center Omari Spellman was declared ineligible this offseason, they might be susceptible to getting bullied inside.

Chris Mack’s run-and-gun offense topped the Big East last year with 80.5 points per game, and this team shouldn’t miss a beat with its entire starting backcourt returning, including the three highest-scoring Musketeers from last year and the reigning Big East Sixth Man of the Year J.P. Macura. Six-foot-6 point guard Edmond Sumner’s abilities in transition have earned him the highest spot for a Big East player on most NBA draft boards. However, the loss of big men James Farr and Jalen Reynolds means Xavier needs to figure out where the rebounding on which its fastpaced style relies is coming from this year.

The Blue Jays’ backcourt should strike fear into the hearts of the rest of the conference, as Maurice Watson Jr. and Kansas State transfer Marcus Foster should be able to score points in bunches. Nevada transfer forward Cole Huff ’s streaky shooting could be a problem for any team in the Big East. The team’s biggest concerns come on the defensive end, as Creighton’s only returning center is 6-foot-9 Zach Hanson, and a lack of depth could leave Greg McDermott’s team weak on the boards and in the paint.

The leadership of veterans Bradley Hayes and Rodney Pryor should provide a calming presence in the locker room. Yet on the court, the Hoyas need a new player to step up after the graduation of star guard D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera. If sophomore center Jessie Govan reaches the potential that several NBA scouts believe he possesses, his shooting from the center position and ability to protect the rim will give Georgetown the flexibility to make sure the season doesn’t slip through their fingers again.

The rest of the Big East is lucky Isaiah Whitehead decided to declare for the draft this year. Although ‘Nova is the defending national champ, Seton Hall enters this season with the Big East Tournament title belt. Junior forward Desi Rodriguez is poised to make a leap, and four-star recruit and knockdown shooter Myles Powell is good enough to become their go-to scorer this year. As a freshman, though, Powell won’t be the leader Whitehead was last year, making it hard to see them repeating as Big East champs. Altogether though, a tournament run isn’t out of the question for Kevin Willard’s Pirates.

Though the Bulldogs’ three-point shooting doesn’t compare to Villanova’s—no team’s in the nation does—Chris Holtmann’s squad can really spread the floor. Losing your two best players is never easy. Butler will largely rely on junior small forward Kelan Martin’s ability to put up video game-like scoring numbers and create offense for himself and others this year, something his .65 assist-to-turnover ratio suggests will not happen. This, combined with the team’s abysmal interior defense, suggests Butler will have to surprise some people to make a run this year.

Marquette had a scary-good offseason, adding three highlyregarded recruits and two transfers, leaving them with a deep backcourt that could cause the Golden Eagles to overachieve and turn some heads. At 6-foot-11, center Luke Fischer thrives around the basket, frequently looking to post up and utilize his jump hook, but will not be seen taking many outside shots. Apart from Fischer, though, they lack any size on the interior and could be exploited inside by teams like Georgetown with depth down low.

Human highlight-reel and ankle collector Marcus LoVett heads a backcourt alongside Big East Freshman of the Year candidate Shamorie Ponds that has the potential to jumpstart St. John’s back to Big East relevance. Center Yankuba Sima showed great potential as a rim protector and rebounder, but he needs to improve on the offensive end to remain on NBA scouts’ radars. Despite their talent, after losing their three leading scorers, an instant turnaround does not appear likely for the Red Storm.

Providence lost more talent than anyone else in the conference, and after seeing Ed Cooley’s squad struggle last season without Kris Dunn or Ben Bentil on the court, the new season does not look promising. Despite that, pairing four-star recruit and slasher Alpha Diallo with another solid scoring option in Rodney Bullock means the Friars may be able to surprise some teams this year.

10.

Eight new players—four freshmen and four transfers—should bring about the hope of a new year after winning only three games in the Big East. Returning junior Billy Garrett hopes to continue his steady production, but with one half of last year’s team gone, roster turnover could make for a disastrous season for DePaul.

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THE GEORGETOWN VOICE

lineups

THE ROTATION

KEVIN HUGGARD This year’s men’s team has depth, and from all the early indicators, Head Coach John Thompson III seems likely to make full use of it. If the talk of playing at a faster pace pans out, then Thompson should have plenty of reason to experiment with different combinations on both ends of the floor. And, while this team returns four of the starters from last year, the Hoyas’ deep bench— along with the addition of a handful of talented transfers and freshmen—should make it far from certain as to who will earn the most minutes during the 2016-17 season. In light of this, the Voice projects below a few of the units that Thompson could employ in the coming campaign.

STARTERS

Jonathan Mulmore (2) - Rodney Pryor (23) - Isaac Copeland (11) - Marcus Derrickson (24) - Jessie Govan (15) Nothing is set in stone, but this group looks ready to begin the season as the first choice for the Hoyas. The two transfers, junior guard Jonathan Mulmore and graduate student guard Rodney Pryor, should provide much of the speed and scoring in a quickened Hoyas offense, and junior forward Isaac Copeland remains among the most versatile players on the roster. In the frontcourt, sophomore forward Marcus Derrickson and sophomore center Jessie Govan should create mismatches, with each capable of overpowering smaller defenders in the post or stepping out to shoot over slower-footed opponents.

GOING BIG Jagan Mosely (4) - L.J. Peak (0) - Isaac Copeland (11) - Akoy Agau (22) - Bradley Hayes (42) All the talk this offseason has been about speed, but like any good Hoya squad, this team boasts plenty of size as well. Against smaller opposition, Thompson can go to his bench and bring in two talented bigs—junior forward Akoy Agau and graduate student center Bradley Hayes—to bully opposing frontcourts. Isaac Copeland should continue to be among the minutes leaders for Thompson’s team, while L.J. Peak may very well continue the role he has carved out for himself as a key contributor off the bench. Freshman guard Jagan Mosely brings a blend of size, strength, and speed at point guard to round out a talented substitute five.

GOING SMALL

Jonathan Mulmore (2) - Rodney Pryor (23) Kaleb Johnson (32) - Isaac Copeland (11) - Marcus Derrickson (24) Let’s not call it the “Lineup of Death.” Not yet, at least. It’s more than a stretch to compare this group to the five players that powered so much of the Golden State Warriors’ dominance of the previous NBA regular season, but if the Hoyas jump onto the small-ball bandwagon, they should be able to run past plenty of opponents this year. It remains to be seen how often Thompson will actually roll out this lightning-fast unit, which could feature Derrickson at the five. If he can defend against taller post players, then this group could prove to be a lethal formula for Georgetown. If not, it may become nothing more than an occasional gimmick and object of fan speculation. Whatever happens, this group should be a lot of fun to watch.

Five on Five An un-diverse collection of former Hoyas meet for a hypothetical pickup game.

Politicos JOHN PODESTA former campaign manager for Hillary Clinton “The Mailman 2.0” Leaks out in transition

ERIC TRUMP son of the president-elect Marksman from downtown, hunting rifle-like accuracy

DONALD RUMSFELD former secretary of defense Touts himself as a defensive specialist, but considered a liability for his tendency to drive recklessly into the paint

Entertainers

GEORGE TENET former CIA director “I seen him the other day.” ~ Kanye West

BILL CLINTON former president “I did not commit a five-second violation on that play.”

JIM GAFFIGAN comedian Master of the Hot-Pocket-pass BRADLEY COOPER actor and general heartthrob Limitless range

JOHN MULANEY comedian Gets hyped before games by playing Tom Jones’ “What’s New, Pussycat?” on repeat.

NICK KROLL comedian Is occasionally spotted eating tuna sandwiches on the bench

MIKE BIRBIGLIA comedian Signature move: the sleep-eurostep

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