Pettway posts first-career double-double as Bulldogs fall to Georgetown, 77-47, Saturday

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Rookie forward Marcel Pettway (North Providence, R.I.) set a new career high for the second-straight contest and picked up his first-career double-double with 15 points and 12 rebounds, but the Bryant University men's basketball team fell to Georgetown, 77-47, Saturday afternoon at the Verizon Center.

In the final bout of the 2K Classic benefiting Wounded Warrior Project, the Bulldogs (2-4) kept the score tight through the opening 18 minutes in a back-and-forth first half, not allowing the Hoyas (2-3) to get out in front by double digits until D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera (9 points) connected on a triple as the clock ticked under the two-minute mark for a 35-24 Georgetown lead.

Pettway's fifth layup of the half – the rookie went 5-for-6 from the floor in the first frame – brought the score back to nine with less than 90 seconds to play, but Isaac Copeland would net five in the final 64 seconds, including a last-second floater that sent the Hoyas into the locker room with a 40-26 halftime lead.

The Bulldogs had chances to pull the game even from the line throughout the half but managed to connect on just 4-of-9 from the stripe. Still, the Bryant defense forced Georgetown into late-clock outside shots en route to a 3-for-11 mark from downtown in the stanza.

The Bulldogs kept things close early in the frame thanks to two key layups from Pettway and a clutch Gus Riley (Nelson, New Zealand) 3-pointer from the top of the arc that cut the Hoyas lead back to two, 13-11, seven minutes in.

Georgetown would build a seven-point edge, 20-13, on a Reggie Cameron (9 points) trifecta at the 10:41 mark, but the Black and Gold quickly brought the margin back to two scores.

In the second half, though, Georgetown picked up momentum, paced by eight points from Bradley Hayes and seven more from L.J. Peak, who finished the game with a contest-high 20 points off 6-of-8 shooting (7-10 from line). Marcus Derrickson posted his own double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds on the day, while Copeland and Hayes finished with 13 and 10 points, respectively.

Pettway finished the afternoon with a 7-of-12 mark from the floor, posting new career bests at the basket and on the glass. The frosh struggled from the line, though, converting just 1-of-5 freebie opportunities. Senior point guard Shane McLaughlin (Old Tappan, N.J.) added 10 points with two assists and two steals while playing 35 minutes. Junior forward Dan Garvin (Bethel, Conn.) was limited to seven points but pulled in a season-high 10 boards with two blocks.

The Bulldogs found themselves in early foul trouble following the halftime intermission, picking up five whistles in the first three minutes.

After an opening flurry of points, both sides would go cold, keeping the margin stuck at 45-30. But the Georgetown shooters would not stay that way for long, moving the home side's lead to 20 points, 55-35, with a three from Cameron with 11:46 remaining, aided by five Bulldog turnovers in a less than five-minute span.

Sophomore guard Bosko Kostur (Melbourne, Australia) (5 points, 6 rebounds) connected on the long ball with nine to go on the clock for a 59-38 margin, but the Bulldogs wouldn't get any closer in the final minutes.

Bryant finished the game shooting 31.7 percent from the field but went just 4-for-25 from long range and only 5-of-15 from the charity stripe. Georgetown converted 43.3 percent of its shots and went 7-for-29 from 3-point range and 18-of-24 from the line. The Hoyas outrebounded the Black and Gold, 47-37.

Bryant heads back north for its next matchup and will look to get back in the win column Monday night against the University of New Hampshire in Durham, N.H. (7 p.m.).