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C M Y K E11 DAILY 01-27-07 MD SU E11 CMYK The Washington Post x S Saturday, January 27, 2007 E11 CollegeGameday Rivers Gets in Flow TODAY After a Fitful Start Hoyas Freshman Is Healthy, Learning GEORGE MASON (11-8, 5-4 CAA) N. CAROLINA (18-2) AT JAMES MADISON (6-13, 3-6) AT ARIZONA (14-5) By Camille Powell 2 p.m., Comcast SportsNet 1 p.m., WUSA (Channel 9), Washington Post Staff Writer Starting Over: After their WJZ (Channel 13) five-game winning streak ended Jeremiah Rivers’s performance at Wednesday against Back in Business: The Wildcats Duke in early December — six Georgetown vs. league-leading Virginia ended a three-game Pacific-10 losing points and just one turnover inside a Commonwealth, the Patriots have streak, their longest since 1983-84, on frenzied Cameron Indoor Stadium Cincinnati an opportunity to begin a new run Wednesday night with a 71-47 victory over — should rank as one of the high- When: Noon. Where: Verizon Center. with a series of games the next Arizona State. The story of the game was lights of the season thus far for the TV: MASN. Radio: WTEM (980 AM). five days against struggling 6-foot-9 forward Jordan Hill, a little-used reserve Georgetown freshman guard. Records: Hoyas 14-5, 4-2 Big East; teams: JMU, UNC Wilmington and who was thrust into the starting lineup when Coach But that game also is a reminder Bearcats 10-9, 1-4. Delaware. Mason has had little Lute Olson suspended leading scorer Marcus Williams for of the difficulties he has faced this trouble with the lower half of the an undisclosed violation of team rules. Hill scored a season; just when it seems he is set- returned to the court against Tow- CAA but has yet to beat a team career-high 12 points, shooting 5 for 7, and grabbed nine tling in, he gets hurt. In the final son on Dec. 20, but over the next ahead of it in the standings. This rebounds. three minutes, Rivers landed awk- three games he played a total of 11 stretch is crucial for the Patriots Making Their Points: The game matches two of the wardly on teammate Jonathan Wal- minutes. It was hard for him to get because the ensuing three games highest-scoring teams in the country. North Carolina, led lace’s foot and sprained his right an- into any sort of rhythm in those brief will be against conference powers by Tyler Hansbrough’s 18.7 points per game, is second kle; he had to be helped off the floor. stints, and his play reflected that. He Old Dominion, VCU and Hofstra. in the country in scoring at 87.5 points per game. Led by After weathering injuries and illness tried to use his time on the bench to Williams’s 18.1, Arizona is seventh in the country, throughout the preseason, Rivers learn. averaging 84.1. was frustrated by another setback. “Watching does help, I’m not go- Rank and File: North Carolina is 38-41 against ranked “It was kind of like start-stop, ing to lie, and I’ve watched a lot of teams this decade, but 22-13 since Coach Roy Williams’s start-stop,” said Rivers, who missed tape with the coaches,” Rivers said. arrival in the 2003-04 season. a week-and-a-half of practice in Oc- “But being out there, just the pre- Miles From Home: The series between the schools is tober because of an injured foot and ciseness of the cutting and the pass- tied at three wins apiece, and this is the first time North also dealt with low blood sugar and ing, that’s huge. So you need to be Carolina has ever played in Tucson. This is the longest trip dehydration in early November. “I out there more than anything.” North Carolina has ever made for a regular season game was like, ‘Oh my gosh, when is this As a senior at Winter Park (Fla.) this late in the season. The Tar Heels have played west of going to stop?’ I feel like now, hope- High, Rivers played point guard for the Mississippi River after Jan. 1 just four times, most fully.” a team that advanced to the 6A state recently Jan. 3, 1989, at Pepperdine. Rivers, the son of Boston Celtics final. He often had the ball in his — From News Services and Staff Reports Coach Doc Rivers, now says that he hands, and he controlled the game finally is 100 percent healthy and both with his scoring and his distrib- that he’s comfortable with his role as uting. the only backup guard behind start- But the Hoyas’ offense doesn’t Free Throw Issues: The Patriots ers Wallace and sophomore Jessie have one dominant ballhandler; in- have the best field goal Sapp. In the Hoyas’ 66-52 win over stead, they rely on passing and spac- percentage in the conference DePaul on Wednesday, Rivers was ing and moving without the ball to (46.8) but are last in free throw MICHIGAN STATE (17-4, 4-2 BIG TEN) AT OHIO STATE (17-3, 5-1) on the court for key stretches be- create open shots. Rivers said when shooting (65.8) following a 9 p.m., ESPN2 cause Wallace and Sapp were in foul he first got to Georgetown, he didn’t 9-for-21 performance trouble; Rivers remained steady know how to cut. Wednesday. Last season, they (one turnover) against the Blue De- “A lot of basketball is playing shot 66.4 percent from the line mons’ pressure. without the ball, and that’s the big- overall and 72.2 percent in “He’s getting there. It’s a proc- gest adjustment for me,” Rivers conference play. The starters ess. It’ll take time,” said George- said. “I’m so used to playing with the with the best percentage, town Coach John Thompson III, ball in my hands. That’s why I was Folarin Campbell and Will whose team hosts Cincinnati today struggling, because I was fighting it Thomas, were a combined 8 of at Verizon Center. “The fact that we at first.” 18 against VCU, and both are thin [at guard], his growth and Rivers scored six points at Rut- Thomas and Dre Smith missed development is essential.” gers on Jan. 17 — his first points the front end of one-and-one The 6-foot-4 Rivers was averag- since the Duke game — and had opportunities on consecutive ing 14 minutes off the bench in his four against DePaul. He chose his possessions in the second half. first six games of the season, and he spots to drive to the basket against JMU Blues: The Dukes, whose was starting to settle into his role the Blue Demons, and also looked to two-game winning streak ended when the Hoyas traveled to Duke on kick out the ball to shooters. Wednesday with a 67-51 loss at Dec. 2. In the 61-52 loss to the then- “With him getting more time and Northeastern, allow the most No. 11 Blue Devils, he played a ca- being put in different situations, he’s points in the league (72.4) and reer-high 21 minutes and made all becoming more comfortable,” Wal- are last in field goal percentage three shots he took in the first half, lace said. “He’s handling the ball defense. The Patriots — 73-52 including a pull-up jumper with 16 well and getting a grasp of the of- winners over JMU two weeks ago seconds remaining that gave the fense. Jeremiah doing what he’s in Fairfax — have won six of the Hoyas a 34-27 halftime lead. doing opens up a lot of avenues for past seven meetings and, in their But after spraining his ankle, he me and Jessie, as well as the other previous two visits to missed the next three games. Rivers guys on the team.” Harrisonburg, won by an average of 20.5 points. — Steven Goff Man Among Boys: Still recovering from surgery on his 70-46 victory over Minnesota on Wednesday night was right wrist last summer, Ohio State freshman Greg Oden the Spartans’ fourth straight win. They’ve done it with Surprising Colonials AREA MEN’S GAMES is giving more regular hints at the dominant player he can defense — they held the Golden Gophers without a field K American at Lafayette, 2 be. In Wednesday’s 59-50 victory at Northwestern, Oden goal for nearly 13 minutes, and they lead the Big Ten and K Navy vs. Colgate, 3:30 had 17 points and 17 rebounds, scoring 10 of his points rank eighth nationally in scoring defense, allowing 56.3 K Howard vs. Coppin State, 4 over the final 10 minutes 19 seconds. Oden entered the points per game. ‘See an Opportunity’ AREA WOMEN’S GAMES game averaging 15.3 points and 9.5 rebounds. Boards of Control: No Spartan ranks among the top 100 Marc Carig K Navy vs. Colgate, 1 Sharing the Wealth: The Buckeyes’ Mike Conley ranks nationally in rebounding, yet Michigan State is fourth in the By K Howard vs. Coppin State, 2 fourth in the country with 6.8 assists per game. country in rebounding margin, averaging 9.7 more per Washington Post Staff Writer K Georgetown vs. West Virginia, 3 Shutting It Down: After losing its first two conference game than its opponents. K American at Lafayette, 6 games, Michigan State appears to have righted the ship. A — From News Services and Staff Reports As the George Washington men’s basketball team has contin- ued its surprising run through the GW at Rhode Island Atlantic 10 Conference, Coach When: 2 p.m.