U-G-L-Y

There's no alibi for this one.

Today's game against Fairfield was even ugly from before it began.

The aesthetic catastrophy commenced with actual aesthetics. The Hoyas came out donning horrendous white uniforms. It is difficult to even begin to describe how much Hoyas fans hate white jerseys. First, white is NOT a school color. Union Blue and Confederate Gray. It ain't that complicated! Second, the white uniforms hearken back to the nadir of the Georgetown basketball program. I half expected to see the Mustachioed One trolling the sidelines. The Georgetown Hoyas should never never never wear white jerseys again. While the players are inside McDonough practicing free throws, Hoya Blue members should hold a massive bonfire in front of the gym and burn ever white Hoyas jersey they can find. And throw on some black and teal ones for good luck!
Also hearkening back to the nadir of the Georgetown basketball program was today's performance. The game started inauspiciously enough with Jessie Sapp--perhaps cursed by Barker Davis's fine profile in the Washington Times today--took a knee to the back of his head, seconds into the game. He didn't leave the arena but played sparingly throughout the rest of the contest.

Ugly thing #3 has to be the lackluster perimeter defense the Hoyas displayed in the first half. This has been a constant source of consternation over the last two years. For some reason, we seem to have difficulty covering shooters on the perimeter, making mediocre teams like Fairfield look like a bunch of Jimmy Chitwoods.

The fourth source of ugliness on this day was the Hoyas' performance on the free throw line. Vernon, Jeremiah, DaJuan, Roy--you all need to spend some time working on your free throw shooting. Roy and DaJuan have been automatic in the past. Jeremiah has decent form. So those three should be fine. Vernon has a lot to work on. Ticket's physical gifts are patent. His skills--particularly his shooting form--need a great deal of work. Come this time next year, we are going to need him to be much better. Having said that, though, Vernon has improved his defense and rebounding, so there is no question he is working hard and will continue to improve.

There were a few good things to come out of this debacle. First, Jeremiah Rivers played very well. His defense was tough, as was his outside shooting and penetration. I also thought DaJuan played aggressively on both ends of the floor. Chris Wright showed some fire and exhibited clamp-down defensive pressure. And the students once again were excellent in their support of the Hoyas' lethargic performance.

Bring on the Crimson Tide, and let us never speak of the Fairfield game again.