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Gates, Cincinnati knock off Georgetown

Feb 24, 2011 - 7:26 AM Washington, DC (Sports Network) - Yancy Gates came off the bench to score 17 points and grab 11 rebounds to lead Cincinnati to a 58-46 victory over 11th- ranked Georgetown in a Big East slugfest at Verizon Center.

Dion Dixon supplied 17 points in a reserve role while Rashad Bishop added 12 for the Bearcats (22-6, 9-6 Big East), who took a big step toward punching their ticket to the NCAA Tournament with a signature win.

Austin Freeman netted a game-high 19 points and was the only player in double figures for the Hoyas (21-7, 10-6), who lost for only the second time in their last 11 games. Georgetown shot a miserable 12-for-48 from the floor, including an even worse 5-of-23 effort from three-point range.

"They played hard, plain and simple. They came out playing really hard in the second half and we came out flat," Freeman said.

Trailing 8-5 almost seven minutes into the game, the Bearcats embarked on a 14-0 surge, capped off by a Justin Jackson tip-in, to grab an 11-point lead with nine minutes to go before the break.

Georgetown countered with a 14-3 run, finished off by Nate Lubick's three- point play, to knot the score at 22 with 3:45 remaining in the half. The game was tied at 26 at the intermission after a Gates tip for the Bearcats with five ticks to go.

Cincinnati's defensive presence took over in the first part of the second half, as the hosts managed only three foul shots and fell behind 43-29 on a Dixon triple with 11 1/2 minutes to play in the game.

Georgetown's first bucket finally came on a Hollis Thompson three-pointer with 9 1/2 minutes to go. The Bearcats then ended a scoring drought of nearly six minutes on a Jackson jumper that made it 45-32 with 5:55 to go.

The Hoyas never got closer than eight the rest of the way and seven foul shots over the final two minutes sealed the win for the Bearcats.

Game Notes

Gates made 7-of-12 shots...All four of Bishop's makes were from three-point territory, from where Cincinnati shot 7-for-14...The Hoyas made only 4-of-23 shots in the second half...Georgetown leads the all-time series, 4-3.