Georgetown's win over Pitt an inside job

When he drew up the game plan for Pittsburgh, Georgetown coach John Thompson III certainly didn't count on a combined 1-for-10 shooting performance from leading scorers Jason Clark and Hollis Thompson. But it didn't matter in the long run because 6-10 center Henry Sims and 6-8 wing Otto Porter dominated the paint by combining for 40 points on 14-for-21 shooting.

It added up to a surprisingly easy 64-52 victory for the Hoyas in the second round of the Big East Tournament Wednesday at Madison Square Garden. No. 13 Georgetown (23-7) advanced to a quarterfinal matchup against Cincinnati (22-9) at 2:30 this afternoon looking like a team that might do some damage.

Sims and Porter finished with 20 points apiece, and the senior center added a game-high 13 rebounds, five assists and one blocked shot. Freshman Porter hit a couple three-pointers but mostly went inside, scoring 14 of 16 Hoyas points in the middle of a 22-10 second-half run that pushed their lead to 53-39. Freshman Greg Whittington added 11 points and was a defensive presence at the top of Georgetown's 1-2-2 zone.

"Henry was very good today in terms of his effectiveness on the block, as a passer and with his decision-making," Thompson said. "We're pretty good when we get that kind of smart effort out of him and he produces like he did today . . . We also had a few freshmen step up out there."

Faced with Georgetown's tremendous length, including the 6-8 Whittington and 6-7 Thompson in addition to Sims and Porter, Pitt (17-16) managed to shoot only 27.6 percent in the first half and made only 5 of 21 three-point shots in the game. Only senior Ashton Gibbs reached double figures with 14 points, and the Panthers were outrebounded 36-25 and outscored in the paint 28-20.

Pitt forward Nasir Robinson, who was held to seven points, admitted the size differential was a major problem for the Panthers, who bullied a young St. John's team in the first round. "It was a big problem," Robinson said. "We were going in there and shooting against two or three guys. They were more physical than us."

In the first half, Pitt took a 21-15 lead with 6:40 left but was outscored 16-2 to fall behind at halftime, 31-23. Coach Jamie Dixon challenged his team to attack the rim, and they scored three straight baskets in the paint to cut the deficit to 31-29. But Georgetown's Thompson adjusted.

"I told them to go back to the zone," the Hoyas coach said. "I gave one of those speeches at halftime where you challenge your guys. I said, 'You've got to strap up and guard man-to-man.' That might not have been the brightest thing to do. So, I said, 'Fellas, back to the zone.'"

The loss certainly ended a streak of 10 straight NCAA appearances by Pitt.