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Georgetown routs Villanova with 3-point blitz

Mar 13, 2008 - 9:01 PM NEW YORK (Ticker) -- Georgetown made sure there would be no controversial finish this time.

The ninth-ranked Hoyas set a school record with 17 3-pointers and led virtually from start to finish Thursday en route to an 82-63 victory over Villanova in the quarterfinals of the Big East Conference tournament.

Jessie Sapp hit six 3-pointers and Jonathan Wallace five for the Hoyas (26-4), who will face West Virginia in Friday's semifinals. Sapp scored 23 points and Wallace added 19 of his 20 points in the first half.

"They (Wallace and Sapp) took the game over," Georgetown coach John Thompson III said. "John Wallace got us going in the first half and Jessie Sapp took over in the second half."

On February 11, Wallace made two free throws with one-tenth of a second left as Georgetown benefitted from a foul called 80 feet away from the basket to defeat Villanova, 55-53.

In Thursday's rematch, the Hoyas hammered the Wildcats with a deadly outside assault, shooting 17-of-28 from 3-point range to improve to 13-0 as the top seed in the Big East tournament.

Georgetown also tied a tournament mark for 3-pointers in a game set by West Virginia last year in a first-round win over Providence.

Sapp, a New York City native, made 6-of-9 3-points attempts while Wallace finished 5-of-6 from beyond the arc.

"Jessie plays well when he comes home and gets a chance to hug his mama," Thompson said.

"I just came out and play my best," Wallace said. "Tonight, it was my biggest game."

Georgetown center Roy Hibbert was held scoreless for the first time since January 17, 2005 - his freshman season - before fouling out. The Hoyas overcame Hibbert's quiet game with their long-range shooting.

"I think it was both both us hitting our shots and not having Hibbert in the game due to foul problems," Thompson said of his center's struggles. "They played us to go inside and when they were collapsing on Roy, he kicked it out and guys hit their shots."

Wallace was unstoppable in the first half, making seven of his eight shots, including all five of his 3-point attempts.

Scottie Reynolds scored 13 points for Villanova (20-12), which defeated Syracuse in the first round Thursday.

Reynolds suffered a deep gash over his right eye when he was hit on a drive to the basket in the first half. He went to the bench to be treated for the cut, then returned before heading back to the bench in the second half.

Villanova was trailing, 51-50, with 11 minutes remaining when Reynolds returned to the bench.

"Scottie played hard and wanted to try to get us back in the game," Villanova coach Jay Wright said. "But it was one of those nights. He just could go. We're a good team and we just couldn't respond today."

Georgetown hit six of its first seven 3-pointers - including three by Wallace - to open a 20-10 lead eight minutes into the contest.

Villanova quickly erased a 40-29 halftime deficit in the first five minutes of the second half. Antonio Pena's layup gave the Wildcats a 47-43 lead with 13:06 remaining.

But the Hoyas regained control with a 19-5 run, opening a 62-52 lead on Austin Freeman's 3-pointer with 8:04 left.

DaJuan Summers added 19 points for the Hoyas, including three 3-pointers.