Welcome to the Jungle! The Big East Meets the ACC as Georgetown Battles Duke.

It was a classic Big East meets ACC battle as number two Duke welcomed number twelve Georgetown to Durham, NC on Saturday, January 17th.  The traditional basketball powerhouses put on an impressive showing as Cameron rocked and rolled with its usual mix of energy and Cameron Crazy creativity.  The match-up of Greg Monroe of Georgetown and Gerald Henderson of Duke was clearly the most highly anticipated match-up of the season, as the freshman phenom was heavily recruited by Coach K.  However, Duke's power and experience proved to be too much for the Hoyas as Duke rolled to victory with a final score of 76 to 67. 

The key players for Duke were undoubtedly Greg Paulus and Gerald Henderson, with Henderson dropping twenty-three points, going ten for fifteen on the floor, along with four rebounds, three assists, two steals, and two blocks.  This spurt included two back-to-back threes that put Duke into a decisive lead with 4:28 left in the first half.  Paralleling this performance, Greg Paulus provided the defensive intensity and emotion that is a classic characteristic of the Duke basketball tradition.  Paulus, a previous three year starter, has come off the bench this season after battling injuries and and a series of poor performances.  However, this doesn't seem to bother him, and his performance has improved.  After the game according to AP/ESPN.com, Coach K stated, "What he showed was fight, he was attacking.  He was playing with emotion.  We don't win without Greg today."  

On the Georgetown side, things proved to be a little more hectic as freshman phenom Greg Monroe struggled with the athleticism and speed of the Duke defense.  Despite going six for seven from the floor, Monroe was held to twelve points and six rebounds.  Monroe also committed a technical foul early in the second half, that gave Duke a significant boost in momentum.  Monroe received the technical while on the bench after reportedly objecting to a blocking foul called on one of his teammates.  Duke quickly capitalized on the freshman's mistake hitting two free throws and sparking a fifteen to three Duke run.  Georgetown Coach John Thompson III stated on AP/ESPN.com, "They outplayed us.  We're not going to sit here and look at that [the technical foul] and say that's the reason the outcome was what it was."

With this victory, Duke closes out the non-conference schedule and begins an intense session of ACC play that will test every aspect of their game.  The Hoyas will also retreat back to the Big East to finish out the regular season.  Both teams looked strong, and should become better, sharper, and stronger as March approaches.  It will be interesting to see how far the teams can go in the NCAA tournament; both the ACC and the Big East are tough, bruising conferences.

For more information on the game visit ESPN.com.

For an interesting article regarding the history of the Duke vs. Georgetown match-up click here.