WASHINGTON – Rutgers coach Mike Rice is very eager to see some video of the Scarlet Knights' 52-50 loss at No. 10 Georgetown. He may have something to say once he does.
"There were some bizarre plays, some bizarre whistles," Rice said. "Before I get into it, I'd like to look on replay to see if they were the correct call. Because again, we do foul. We did play a lot without a purpose as far as our positioning and playing with our hands instead of our feet and our bodies. But it was interesting the last two minutes, it was decided by a couple of, a whistle by a certain individual referee who decided to take it upon himself to decide the game.
"I didn't mind probably 30 of those calls. The last two minutes, I just don't know where you come up with that. And again, I could be completely wrong. I'd like to go and look at it before I criticize."
Rutgers made four of seven free throws, and Georgetown made 25 of 36 free throws — including two by Otto Porter with 8.5 seconds left. He scored the game's final six points.
"He is composed," Georgetown coach John Thompson III said. "Otto doesn't get rattled. He just plays the game."
Center Harry Sims led Georgetown (16-3, 6-2 Big East) with 12 points, 10 rebounds and two assists. He made 8 of 13 free throws.
The Hoyas made just 12 field goals, matching Harvard for the fewest in a win this season. Harvard beat Florida State, 46-41, Nov. 25 with just 12.
Mike Poole made a long 2-pointer with 2 seconds left on the shot clock and Eli Carter made a 3-pointer to extend Rutgers' lead to 50-45 with 2:35 left.
Porter then made a layup with 1:36 left, and after Rutgers (11-9, 3-4) committed an offensive foul, Porter made a jumper with 1:10 left to tie the game at 50.
After Porter's free throws, Carter, who scored 14 points, missed a shot at the buzzer.
"I told our players that they played with tremendous heart, playing as hard as they could," Rice said. "But in the Big East, that's good enough. You have to have some purpose to that and some toughness."
Georgetown has won three straight games and avoided becoming Rutgers' third top-10 victim. The Scarlet Knights beat No. 10 Florida on Dec. 29, and No. 8 Connecticut on Jan. 7 — both in New Jersey.
Georgetown is 18-2 at home against Rutgers, including a 10-game winning streak since 2000.
Georgetown has won 10 of its last 11 matchups with Rutgers. But the Scarlet Knights — looking for their first winning season since 2005-06 — entered the game stronger than it has been in recent years.
The Hoyas took their first lead with 4:16 left in the first half. At that point, the Hoyas were shooting 3 of 21 from the field, but they had made 14 of 16 free throws and rebounded half of their 18 misses.
Rutgers used a 7-0 run to take a 25-20 halftime lead. Georgetown didn't make a field goal in the first half's final 9:38 and fished the half shooting 3 of 23 with nine turnovers.
The Hoyas' offense picked up slightly in the second half, and they finished 12-of-41 shooting with 14 turnovers.
"Our defense won the game for us," Thompson said.
Georgetown, which entered the game second in the Big East making 37.2 percent of its 3-pointers, missed all eight of its 3-pointers in the first half. But Markel Starks and Jason Clark, the Hoyas' starting guards, each made 3-pointers before the second-half's first timeout to shake off a combined 0 for 5 from the field in the first half.
Starks missed Georgetown's win at DePaul on Tuesday because of a stomach ailment, but he returned to the starting lineup Saturday. He scored three points.
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