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No. 9 Georgetown seeks first Big East final since 1996

Mar 9, 2007 - 7:15 PM No. 16 Notre Dame (24-6) vs. No. 9 Georgetown (24-6) 7:00 pm EST

NEW YORK (Ticker) -- With a coach named John Thompson and a big man named Patrick Ewing on the floor, Georgetown fans have been re-living the program's glory days.

The ninth-ranked Hoyas attempt to win for the 14th time in 15 games and advance to their first Big East Conference tournament final since 1996 with Friday's showdown against Notre Dame.

A charter member of the Big East, Georgetown won six tournament crowns between 1980-1989, along with the 1984 NCAA title under Hall of Fame coach John Thompson.

His son, John Thompson III guided the Hoyas to their first regular-season championship since 1995-1996 in his third season. They are 10-0 all-time as the tournament's No. 1 seed.

Georgetown scored the first 14 points and widened the lead to 25 in the first half before holding on for a 62-57 victory over Villanova in Thursday's quarterfinals.

With the elder Thompson and Ewing watching their sons from the stands, Roy Hibbert scored 14 points and Big East Player of the Year Jeff Green added 12 for the Hoyas.

Noter Dame raised its all-time tournament record to 4-11 with its sixth straight victory, an 89-83 win over Syracuse in Thursday's quarterfinals.

The Fighting Irish made 13-of-34 baskets from the arc and benefited from Syracuse's inability to hit its free throws. The Orange were just 16-of-29 from the charity stripe.

Russell Carter scored 24 points, Colin Falls added 23 and Luke Harangody 20 for Notre Dame, which has never reached the Big East title game.

Georgetown posted a 66-48 victory over Notre Dame in their only meeting January 6. Hibbert scored 18 points for the Hoyas, who limited the Irish to just 31 percent (16-of-52) shooting.

The winner faces either Louisville or Pittsburgh on Saturday.