2025 Big East Basketball Previews: Georgetown Hoyas
The most accurate Georgetown Hoyas preview written by a staff entrenched in Big East basketball.
Coach: Ed Cooley– 3rd year here. Prev; Fairfield 2006-11 (92-69), Providence 2011-23 (242-153)
2024-25: 18-16 (8-12), 7th Big East, second round NCAA Crown
2025-26 Big East Rank: 5
Returning Starters/Players: 2/6*
Returning Minutes (Torvik): 30.8%
*This series was inspired by fellow UConn Report writer Cole Stefan*
You’d have to be roughly 45 years old to remember Georgetown’s lone hoist of a national championship trophy. In the politest, most basketball-coded way I can put it; that’s old. Really old.
So old, in fact, that the star player of that team came back to coach the program after a 17-year NBA career — and failed pitifully. But I’ll need to back-track a little bit further to fully illustrate the slow and painful decay of the Hoya program over the last decade.
The ship that John Thompson III had built, which sailed to the NCAA Tournament eight times in its first 10 years, started to sink by the end of the 2016-17 season. A loss to Arkansas State in a cavernous off campus arena and the loss of many top recruits boiled over; Thompson was fired, replaced hastily by Ewing.
He nearly capsized the ship. The program cratered to a 13-50 record over his final two years, punctuated by losses to Dartmouth, Loyola Marymount, American and DePaul – thrice.
His dismissal appeared imminent after a 32-point loss to Villanova in the Big East Tournament. And that it was.
The program was on the prowl for his replacement when it locked eyes with Ed Cooley, who had led Providence to a Big East regular season title just two years prior.
I won’t describe the process at the mercy for any Friar fan reading, but know that Cooley is no longer coaching in Friartown. He’s here now, and he has been for three years.
But this one seems crucial. He’s had the time – and certainly the funding – to tailor the program to his liking. Now it’s time to yield the tantalizing results that Hoya fans have desired for a decade; consistency.
Off Season — Additions and Losses
The Hoyas return two players who combined for 46 starts last season in do-it-all guard Malik Mack and wing Caleb Williams. Reserves Kayvaun Mulready and Julius Halaifonua (injury) are also back but totaled just 59 points in spot roles off the bench.
The other seven players who started at least one game all depart, including the team’s two leading scorers and NBA exports Thomas Sorber and Micah Peavy, Jayden Epps (22 starts, 12.8 points per game), Drew Fielder (31 starts) and Jordan Burks (11 starts).
Cooley was tasked with replenishing over 75% of the team’s scoring from last year and opted to dive headfirst into the portal to do so – abstaining completely from the high school ranks.
He came out with a slew of high-major transfers (six, to be exact), four of which should see time in a reconstructed backcourt. KJ Lewis (Arizona) headlines the group. The fiery two-way guard is in line for a starting role next to Mack and immediately becomes the Hoyas’ best defender.
Langston Love (Baylor) spent four years in Waco, primarily as a backup in a deep Bear backcourt. He has the burly frame and quick stroke that Cooley covets in a bigger guard and should see the court for a considerable chunk each night.
Veterans Jeremiah Williams and DeShawn Harris-Smith will spell them off the bench. Williams offers five years of experience and a reliable inside game, while Harris-Smith, an All-Big 10 Freshman selection in 2023, brings a heightened level of physicality to the rotation.
Isaiah Abraham appeared in just three games for Connecticut after New Year’s Day. He’ll look to crack the Hoya rotation on the wing in a relatively thin room.
Vince Iwuchuku (St. John’s) rounds out the class. The former consensus five star prospect spent last year in Queens after two previously at USC. He’ll contend for a starting spot immediately in a young and inexperienced frontcourt.
Ball Handlers
Mack’s return as a do-it-all facilitator heightens the ceiling of the Hoya offense tremendously. The former Ivy League Rookie of the Year will step into a larger role entering year two under Cooley after splitting time with Epps at the point last season.
| FG/A | 2PT/A | 3PT/A | USAGE % | |
| STAT | 11.9 | 6.7 | 5.2 | 22.5 |
| PERCENTILE | 90 | 86 | 84 | 73 |
A confident shooter, slippery driver and sticky defender, Mack arguably has the most well-rounded skillset on the team.
Even with the presumed uptick in production, Mack likely won’t be the sole ball handler on the floor, much like last year. Expect one of Jeremiah Williams (Rutgers/Iowa State/Temple) or Lewis (Arizona) to share the court with Mack as the second guard.
Jeremiah Williams is the surer bet as the second ball handler. The sixth-year senior made hay with the Scarlet Knights as a downhill, physical bruiser and defensive pest. He should complement Mack well off the bench.
Georgetown scored above its season average (72 points) in 10 of the 19 games that Mack dished four or more assists, including a win over Syracuse in mid-December where Mack tallied eight of them.
Over 40% of his team-leading 136 assists were dished to the frontcourt duo of Sorber and Fiedler. Both are gone, forcing Halaifonua and Iwuchukwu to step into larger scoring roles to fill that vacuum.
OTHERS: Michael Van Raaphorst – Averaged 2.7 minutes per game in five appearances.
Other Guards
A pair of Big 12 transfer guards will share starting responsibilities along the three point line.
Lewis, a slightly smaller 6-foot-4, 210 pounds, will likely grab the two spot. As was his role with the Wildcats last year, he’ll be entrusted to guard the opponent’s top scorer. Offensively, upgrading his deep shot (which ranked in the sixth percentile among guards last year) could elevate Lewis’ game from an irritating on-ball defender to a game-wrecking two-way force.
Love will likely take the other starting spot. After tearing his ACL in 2021, the veteran guard appeared in 74 games — starting 14 — for the Bears over the past three seasons. Despite a career-low in field goal percentage (38.9), Love notched career-highs in points (24), rebounds (10) and three-pointers made (5) in 12 starts in 2024-25.
Mulready will serve as the first of two depth pieces. The true sophomore appeared in 22 games for the Hoyas last year, averaging 1.4 points on 30.3% shooting from the field. He’ll need to shore up his shot to become a more stable part of the offense.
Cooley is banking on the once-seen potential of Harris-Smith, who earned All-Freshman honors at Maryland in 2023-24. His playing time caromed last year under Kevin Willard, however, with points dipping from 7.3 to 2.5 and rebounds from 4.3 to 2.4.
OTHERS: Mason Moses – Did not see any action last year (injury). Austin Montgomery – Walk-on started career at LSU. Played sparingly in two seasons here. Hashem Asadallah – Appeared in five games last year.
Wings/Forwards
Two sophomores and a redshirt freshman comprise the Hoya wing room, making it one of the youngest groups in the conference.
It totals 14 starts and 140 points, with Caleb Williams accounting for all the starts and 126 of the points – Abraham added the other 14 with Connecticut.
Caleb Williams is in line for the starting role after starting 14 of the team’s final 23 games last season. He never exploded on the stat sheet, mainly because he wasn’t asked to; Sorber and a host of backcourt options held down the bulk of the scoring last year. The former Industry three-star leaned on his on-ball defensive abilities and penchant for transitional offense.
He’ll need to step up entering year two, however, with offensive expectations hinging on the development of the wing room. Finding the rim more consistently will be step one – Williams finished nine games last season with zero points.
Abraham and Jayden Fort will add depth.
Abraham’s physical traits and recruiting pedigree alone will get the sophomore onto the court. The former consensus top 75 prospect seldom saw the court for the Huskies in conference play but is brimming with potential as a shot maker from all three levels.
Fort redshirted during his first year with the Hoyas after reclassifying from 2025 to 2024. The 6-foot-9, 216-pound forward added weight to couple with his already elite athleticism while taking the year to learn Cooley’s system. He’ll surely see the court in what should be a “wing by committee” for the Hoyas.
Post Players
The Hoyas won’t miss anybody more than Sorber, who was selected with the 15th pick in the 2025 NBA Draft after a 14.5-point, 8.5-rebound freshman season. Sorber hit double-figures in 18 of his 23 starts, including a 25-point, 14-rebound outburst versus Providence in late January.
Cooley has experienced life without him, however, as a February foot injury sidelined the Big East’s second-leading rebounder for the final month-and-a-half of the season. That life wasn’t pretty; the Hoyas were outrebounded in six of its final nine games, losing as many.
| TRB/G | ORB/G | DRB/G | BLK/G | |
| With Sorber | 33.2 | 22.9 | 10.3 | 4.2 |
| Without Sorber | 29.4 | 21.3 | 8.1 | 2.4 |
Stepping into his role is a trio of unproven yet talented commodities – two of which were with the program last year.
Seven-foot Halaifonua appeared in six games as a true freshman before a lower-body injury costed him the rest of the season. The former industry three-star reached career-highs in points (6), field goal attempts (5) and minutes (17) in a November win over Mt. St. Mary’s. He can stretch the floor, hitting two three-pointers in eight tries, but will need to consistently rebound to maintain the starting spot.
He’ll battle for the role with Iwuchukwu, who transferred from conference-foe St. John’s this spring. The former consensus five-star prospect brings a winning pedigree and towering 7-foot-1 frame to the frontcourt.
Iwuchukwu served as Zuby Ejiofor’s primary backup with the Johnnies last year, averaging 2.7 points and 0.5 blocks on 7.2 minutes per game. The former blue-chipper also spent two years at USC acting as the Trojans’ primary rim protector, swatting 33 shots in six starts.
Also in the mix is 6-foot-9 redshirt freshman Seal Diouf, who missed the entirety of last season with an undisclosed injury.
Playstyle
The teams that populated Cooley’s tenure at Providence had a fistful of defining characteristics; rock-solid, assignment-oriented defense, consistent and aggressive offensive rebounding and a steady, methodical half-court pace.
This Georgetown team should have at least two of them. It’s a wiry defensive-minded group that isn’t afraid to roll up its sleeves – perhaps one of the last bastions of the “old” Big East.
Lewis will spearhead the defense, which should see a drastic upgrade in efficiency, particularly on the perimeter. Halaifonua and Iwuchuku will need to develop on the offensive glass, especially considering the Hoyas won’t be the most precise bunch offensively; all five projected starters shot below 43% from the field last season.
2025 Projection
Last year’s 18-16 overall mark and eight conference victories were good for Georgetown’s best since the 2018-19 season. If Cooley can build off that momentum with what should be one of the conference’s saltiest defenses, the Hoyas could be eyeing a return to the NCAA Tournament – as an at-large. Finding offensive consistency will be paramount in those efforts.
Additionally, a thornier non-conference schedule will make it harder to stockpile early wins — Georgetown racked up eight of them against non-conference Quad 4 teams last year, fueling its 12-2 start. Trips to Maryland and North Carolina, a home date with Clemson and a neutral site MTE against Dayton and either BYU or Miami will serve as a litmus test for the Hoyas before the standard 20-game Big East gauntlet begins in mid-December.
Expect Georgetown to hang in with the heavyweights and contend for a first round bye in the Big East Tournament. It isn’t unrealistic to expect 20 wins and a tournament berth from this team in 2025-26.
