Georgetown knocks WVU out of NIT

D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera had 32 points and 11 rebounds to lead Georgetown to a 77-65 victory over West Virginia on Tuesday Night at McDonough Arena in the opening round of the NIT.

The Hoyas (18-14, 8-10) used a great second half, after a tight first half in order to beat the Mountaineers (17-16, 9-9).

With under 17:30 to play, Smith-Rivera converted an uncontested layup to tie the game at 36. On the next Georgetown offensive possession, Smith-Rivera hit a deep three to give the Hoyas a lead they would only extend the rest of the game.

WVU hung with the Hoyas over the next five minutes keeping the game within striking distance as Terry Henderson knocked down a three-pointer and Devin Williams put in a three-point play, but it wasn't enough.

Jabril Trawick and Markel Starks hit shots from beyond the arc. Then Smith-Rivera had a few more easy layups. Trawick finished the game with 12 points and Starks added 14 points for Georgetown.

Georgetown capped the win when Nate Lubick threw down a dunk in transition.

The Hoyas completely dominated the second half and took a lead as large as 17 in the final minutes of the game.

Georgetown finished the game shooting 37-percent from three compared to West Virginia, which finished the game shooting 27-percent. The Hoyas also grabbed 11 offensive rebounds in the game that led to easy second chance points.

In the first half, the game had a slow start to it. Both teams struggled to score the basketball. Georgetown used a zone defense and West Virginia played well on the other end of the court. Through the first twelve minutes of the game, the two teams combined for eight turnovers and committed 17 fouls during that span.

After those 12 minutes is when the game started to take shape.

Staten and Dibo carried West Virginia in the first half. Staten capped a 15-point first half with a emphatic old-fashion three-point play with under a minute to play. Dibo chipped with 11 points, hitting four of eight shots from the field.

Staten would finish the game with 23 points to lead WVU. He also had 9 assists.

Smith-Rivera put the Hoyas on his back in the first half leading the way with 12 points.

In total the first half had nine lead changes and saw six ties.

With the loss, the 2013-14 basketball season is over for West Virginia. The Hoyas will move onto the second round of the NIT.