Preview: Georgetown at Seton Hall

Since defeating Villanova by 20 points on Jan. 19, Georgetown has endured one disappointing performance after another. The Hoyas' last 5 games have included wins against Marquette (in overtime) and Creighton - the 2 worst teams in the Big East - in addition to defeats against Xavier, Providence and, most recently, Villanova. Looking to avoid a third straight loss for the first time this season, Georgetown travels to Seton Hall on Tuesday. The Pirates are struggling in their own right, having dropped 5 of 7 with the only wins coming against Marquette and DePaul. 

Since knocking off Villanova on Jan. 3, Seton Hall has lost 3 of its last 4 home contests, although the defeats came by a total of 11 points. After hosting Georgetown, the Pirates begin a stretch of 3 straight road games, while the Hoyas' schedule lightens up down the stretch.

ABOUT GEORGETOWN (15-8, 7-5 Big East): 

The Hoyas' final 6 games include 5 contests against teams below them in the Big East standings, but coach John Thompson III knows his team cannot afford more games like Saturday when it shot 30 percent, missed its final 16 3-pointers and compounded the offensive issues with 15 turnovers. 

"We're just going to have to be better on both ends of the court," Thompson told reporters. "You have to learn quick lessons and prepare for another tough environment to play in against another tough team." 

Virtually every Hoya struggled against Villanova, with leading scorer D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera (15.2 points) going 0-of-4 from 3-point range and finishing with 2 points after making multiple treys in his previous 9 games.

ABOUT SETON HALL (15-8, 5-6): 

Since averaging 85 points in back-to-back wins over Marquette and Xavier, Seton Hall has scored 62 and 54 points in its last 2 defeats, including Saturday's loss to Marquette that left the team searching for answers. 

"There's no will. Nobody cares about winning, sadly," senior Brandon Mobley told reporters. "When we're losing, when things go south, we get to pointing fingers and things like that and that's not what good teams do. That's what teams that lose do, and that's what's happening right now." 

Sterling Gibbs is the team's leading scorer at 17.1 PPG, but his scoring has dipped from 24 to 22 to 21 to 16 in his last 4 outings.

TIP-INS

1. Since scoring 20 points against Marquette on Jan. 28, Seton Hall freshman G Khadeen Carrington has totaled 15 points on 7-of-26 shooting in the last three games.

2. Georgetown freshman F L.J. Peak had 10 assists in the first 3 games. Since then, he has 17 assists in 20 games.

3. The Pirates won both matchups last season by double figures.

PREDICTION: Georgetown 59, Seton Hall 54