Omer Yurtseven collected 17 points and eight rebounds as Georgetown shook off a sluggish start and ran their winning streak to six games with an 80-60 victory over American on Saturday afternoon in Washington, D.C.
The Hoyas (10-3) won their final nonconference game by outscoring American 53-30 in the final 24:14 after trailing 30-27. They made their surge despite losing second-leading scorer Mac McClung to an eye injury late in the first half.
McClung was injured when American's Sa'eed Nelson accidentally poked him in the right eye as the players chased down a rebound near the 3-point line with 3:34 remaining in the first half. McClung made two free throws before leaving the game, finishing with eight points.
Yurtseven nearly posted his seventh double-double of the season but sat out for the final 15:03 as the Hoyas pulled away for their 10th straight win over American dating to Dec. 15, 1982.
Terrell Allen and Jahvon Blair added 14 points apiece as Georgetown shot 53.7 percent and outrebounded American 42-25.
Nelson scored 17 points to lead American (4-7), which came into the game leading the Patriot League in scoring. Mark Gasperini added 12 as the Eagles were held to their second-lowest points total, shot 41.4 percent, missed 20 of 23 3-point attempts and committed 16 turnovers.
American missed its first seven 3-point attempts but took its first lead at 20-19 on a 3-pointer by Ben Lubarsky with 9:30 left in the first half. The Eagles held a 28-24 lead on a 3-pointer by Stacy Beckton Jr. with 5:28 remaining and led 30-27 on a basket by Nelson with 4:14 remaining, but the Hoyas ended the half with a 14-2 run and held a 41-32 lead at halftime.
Georgetown led by double digits the rest of the way after Yurtseven's basket 52 seconds into the half. American was within 56-42 with 13:43 left, but the Hoyas used a 9-0 run to pull away and cruise to victory.
--Field Level Media
American U. | Georgetown | |
Sa'eed Nelson 17 | Scoring | Omer Yurtseven 17 |
Sa'eed Nelson 3 | Assists | Terrell Allen 5 |
Stacy Beckton Jr. 5 | Rebounds | Omer Yurtseven 8 |
Josh Alexander 2 | Free Throws Made | Jahvon Blair 4 |
Sa'eed Nelson 3 | Steals | Terrell Allen 2 |
Sa'eed Nelson 1 | Blocks | George Muresan 1 |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
American U. | 60 | 41.4 | 3-23 | 9-13 | 9 | 23 | 1 | 9 | 16 |
Georgetown | 80 | 53.7 | 2-9 | 20-28 | 12 | 38 | 3 | 7 | 18 |