• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers

Georgetown tops Alabama in Big East/SEC Invitational

Dec 6, 2007 - 5:06 AM BIRMINGHAM, Alabama (Ticker) -- DaJuan Summers and Georgetown once again found a way to win without Roy Hibbert coming up big.

Summers scored 18 points and Jessie Sapp added 12 as the fourth-ranked Hoyas continued their undefeated start with a 70-60 victory over Alabama in the Big East/SEC Invitational on Wednesday.

The 7-2 Hibbert had 14 points, but contributed just one basket after halftime for Georgetown (6-0), which is off to its best start since beginning 10-0 in 2003-04.

It was another less than stellar effort for the senior center, who mustered a season-low seven points in a 61-49 victory over Fairfield on Saturday.

Summers also stepped up in that previous game, scoring 16 points as the Hoyas dispatched the Stags with a game-closing 16-5 run.

With Hibbert held in check in this one in part by fellow Wooden Award candidate Richard Hendrix, Georgetown went outside to spearhead the victory.

After the Crimson Tide's Mykal Riley hit a 3-pointer to give his team a 57-56 edge with four minutes remaining, Summers answered back with one of his three baskets from the arc to recapture the lead.

After a defensive stop on the other end, Sapp knocked down a 3-pointer from the left wing with 2:25 to go and Hibbert added a basket in the lane 33 seconds later - his only field goal after the break - as the Hoyas went on a 14-3 run to close out the contest.

Summers had seven points during the final spurt, and finished 6-of-11 from the field en route to a season high in scoring.

Jonathan Wallace added 11 points for Georgetown, which finished 9-of-23 (39.1 percent) on 3-pointers.

Hibbert did not have a problem on the defensive end, finishing with nine rebounds and four blocks. The Hoyas ended up with a 45-29 advantage in rebounding.

Hendrix had 17 points and nine boards for Alabama (4-3), which lost to a top-10 team for the second time in a week, falling short on the road against then-No. 9 Texas A&M, 76-63, on November 28.

Riley chipped in 15 points - 13 in the second half - for the Crimson Tide, who shot just 33.3 percent (8-of-24) in the second half.

The senior Riley was not bothered by Georgetown's increased defensive intensity down the stretch, connecting on all three of his 3-pointers after the break.

With All-Southeastern Conference point guard Ronald Steele sidelined for the season due to knee surgery, Rico Pickett struggled filling in as the top playmaker. The freshman finished 1-of-8 from the field with three points and managed just two assists against a turnover.