Georgetown Has Its Rivals Thinking Big

Welcome to Georgetown basketball 1989, when Sam Jefferson and Anthony Allen (combined scoring average of 1.3 points in 1988) could turn out to be just as important as Alonzo Mourning and Dikembe Mutombo, who will both start this season, John Thompson said.

This is a team whose overall success may best be measured by a pinch of this and a dash of that, just like in the cakes that Anna Thompson used to make for her son John.

To be sure, Mourning, a sophomore, and Mutombo, entering his junior season, will be in the forefront for the Hoyas. Mourning averaged 13.2 points and 7.3 rebounds with 169 blocked shots in establishing himself as one of the most dominant players in the country during his first collegiate season. Mutombo, a native of Zaire, was a relative basketball novice last year but still proved to be a ready reserve, blocking 75 shots.

Perhaps anticipating the havoc the duo could create on defense, or maybe thinking ahead about countering a Syracuse front line of LeRon Ellis, Derrick Coleman and Billy Owens, Thompson said he will put them on the court at the same time.

“Dikembe has to play a more significant role for us this year; he will be a significant part of the program,” Thompson said this week during the team’s media day. “I think they both have to become more comfortable with playing together and if they can it will give us some advantages. I would suspect there would be some disadvantages too -- we wouldn’t be able to apply as much pressure and we’d have to play more zone defense -- but we’ll have to wait until we get out on the floor and see.”

Mutombo, who averaged just over 11 minutes per game last season, said he’s looking forward to the challenge.

“I think we’ll have much fun; the blocked shots will go high this year,” he said. “I’m feeling more comfortable. Last year I had to learn the American game, the language -- the basketball language too. I didn’t feel sad that I didn’t play that much, but now I’m ready.”

The biggest problem is finding someone to replace departed seniors Charles Smith and Jaren Jackson. They totaled nearly 40 percent of the team’s points a year ago, Smith, the former Olympian averaging 18.7 points, with Jackson 12.3. Perhaps more importantly, they were the glue for a team that went 29-5 and came within one game of the Final Four.

“I’ve told the kids time and time again that someone is going to have to step up, that they are going to have to show more responsibility,” Thompson said. “That has happened every year -- who would have predicted that Smitty would turn out to be Smitty.”

That’s where seniors Jefferson and Allen come into play, as far as Thompson is concerned. Jefferson had seven points and eight rebounds in an 85-77 loss to Duke in the final of the East regionals last season; if the Hoyas could get that kind of regular production from one or both men this year, Thompson would be elated.

What he is expecting is leadership. Conversely, the other two seniors on the team, Mark Tillmon and Dwayne Bryant, will be counted on to both score and lead.

With Mourning and Mutombo playing together, Georgetown can expect to see a steady diet of collapsing zones.