Madison Square Garden was the site of another installment of the Patrick Ewing-Chris Mullin rivalry. Just like in the old days in the 1980s, Ewing and Mullin faced off at the World’s Famous Arena. This time they were on the bench, coaching their alma maters Georgetown and St. John’s. It was fitting a Georgetown center stole the spotlight, as Jessie Govan to on a show that capped with a crucial go-ahead three pointer.
With the game tied at 64-64, the 6-foot-10 junior stood at the top as the Hoyas ran a spread. As the shot clock ticked down from 10, Jonathan Mulmore swung the ball to Govan, who stepped into a three that successfully went in the basket to give Georgetown a critical 67-64 lead with 26.7 seconds remaining in the game.
That bucket proved huge, as the Hoyas would go on to win 69-66 after a St. John’s bucket and two made free throws by Mulmore to clinch the win. Govan capped off a stellar night that he finished with 18 points on 7-of-19 shooting, 13 rebounds, and two assists. The go-ahead bucket was his only made trey of the night.
Marcus Derrickson added 17 points and eight rebounds, as Georgetown bounced back from their 24-point beating at the hands of Creighton on Saturday. The win also prevents the Hoyas (12-4, 2-3 in Big East) from falling into the basement of the Big East standings and kept their rivals, the Red Storm, winless (0-5) in conference play.
As for the Hoyas’ head coach Ewing, he not only returned to the court that he tormented Mullin and St. John’s for four years, he was returning to the arena where his NBA jersey hung in the rafters. Ewing spent 15 seasons with the Garden’s primary tenant, the New York Knicks. Throughout the game he was met with cheers from the mixture of Hoyas and Knicks fans.
