Georgetown Upsets No. 14 Syracuse

Georgetown finally saw some reward for having such a tough schedule.

Preston Shumpert could barely see at all, and Syracuse had no chance without him.

Kevin Braswell had 16 points, six steals and five assists Monday night at Washington in Georgetown’s 75-60 upset of the 14th-ranked Orangemen, giving the Hoyas the type of quality win they need to stay in contention for an NCAA tournament berth.

Mike Sweetney added 18 points and 13 rebounds for the Hoyas, 13-7 overall and 4-4 in the Big East Conference, who had been 0-6 against teams currently ranked in the Top 25.

“It’s important for us to be able to say we beat a team like Syracuse,” said Georgetown Coach Craig Esherick, who beefed up the nonconference schedule after a disappointing NCAA seeding last year.

Shumpert, a senior forward and the Big East’s second leading scorer, wore goggles after a flare-up of an eye injury and played only 19 minutes--including one minute in the second half. He scored three points on one-for-five shooting, his lowest scoring output since the third game of his sophomore year.

Shumpert scratched the cornea in his right eye during the Orangemen’s loss to Pittsburgh last year in the semifinals of the Big East tournament.

Coach Jim Boeheim said the eye was swollen shut when Shumpert woke up Sunday morning.

“Before the game, he really couldn’t see out of it, but he thought he could go,” Boeheim said.

“He was in more pain at halftime. It flared up, and I just didn’t think he could go anymore.... I don’t think a good player should be playing when he can’t see.”

The Orangemen (17-5, 6-2) also missed eight consecutive free throws and were eight of 18 from the line for the game.

Before the game, Georgetown announced that forward Victor Samnick will sit out the rest of the season after having foot surgery.

No. 2 Kansas 105, No. 22 Missouri 73--Drew Gooden had 26 points and 10 rebounds, and Kirk Hinrich had 23 points at Lawrence, Kan., and the Jayhawks won in a rout after leading by one point at halftime.

Jeff Boschee and Nick Collison each had 13 points for the Jayhawks (18-2, 7-0 Big 12), who outscored Missouri by 20 points over the first six minutes of the second half.

It was the worst loss of the season for Missouri (15-6, 5-3), which was ranked No. 2 after a 9-0 start but has gone 6-6 since.

It was Kansas’ largest margin of victory over Missouri at Lawrence.

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Gale Catlett, in his 30th season as coach, is taking a leave of absence from West Virginia for medical reasons, Athletic Director Ed Pastilong said.

Pastilong did not say how long Catlett would remain on leave and did not provide specifics about his condition.

The Mountaineers (7-11, 0-6 Big East) are on a nine-game losing streak, matching the school record from the 1936-37 season.

While Catlett is on leave, his nephew, assistant Drew Catlett, will handle the coaching duties.