SportsDirect Inc.
Preview: Lipscomb at Georgetown
Georgetown looks for its third straight win when it hosts Lipscomb on Saturday. The Hoyas are fresh off an 84-80 upending of No. 24 Virginia Commonwealth in the Puerto Rico Tip-Off on Sunday and have logged 80-plus points in three of their last four games. D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera leads Georgetown with 19 points per game, shooting 50.9 percent from the field, 52 percent from 3-point range and 88.9 percent from the foul line.
Markel Starks, who averages 16.4 points and a team-high 4.6 assists, is also sharp at the foul line, shooting 92.6 percent. Nate Lubick paces the Hoyas on the glass with 6.2 rebounds. The Bisons, who haven’t won or lost consecutive games this season, are led by Martin Smith at 15 points per game.
TV: Noon ET, FSN.
ABOUT LIPSCOMB (3-3): Smith, who shoots 82.6 percent from the free-throw line, and twin Malcolm Smith provide a 1-2 punch for the Bisons. Malcolm Smith logs 13.5 points and a team-high 6.7 boards per game while J.C. Hampton adds 13.8 points and a team-high 3.2 assists. Carter Sanderson chips in 10 points per game and Khion Sankey averages 8.2 and 5.6 rebounds.
ABOUT GEORGETOWN (3-2): Joshua Smith adds 14 points on a team-best 64.9 percent shooting for the Hoyas. As a team, Georgetown is shooting 50 percent from the floor, which ranks second in the Big East. Smith-Rivera trail only Creighton’s Doug McDermott and St. John’s D’Angelo Harrison among top scorers in the Big East.
TIP-INS
1. Jabril Trawick and Mikael Hopkins pitch in 7.2 and 6.6 points, respectively, for Georgetown.
2. The Hoyas rank third in the Big East in field-goal percentage defense at 39 percent.
3. Georgetown is the only team in the conference with a negative rebounding margin at minus-0.4.
PREDICTION: Georgetown 82, Lipscomb 67
