Villanova will go for its fifth win in a row on Saturday when it hosts Georgetown.

The ‘Cats defeated the Hoyas 85-74 in the first meeting between the teams on January 22. Since then, the Hoyas have lost nine straight games, running their overall losing streak to 15. They enter Saturday with a 6-19 record overall and a 0-14 mark in the Big East.

Clearly, it’s been a rough go for the Hoyas. They’ve dropped to 199th in KenPom (149th offensively, 252nd defensively) and sit 195th in Haslametrics (125th offensively, 260th defensively).

Instead of our traditional game preview, we talked with Ron Bailey of HoyaReport.com about the matchup to get some insight on the Hoyas.

We started by asking Bailey what the biggest issue has been for the Hoyas this season. “Defense,” Bailey said. “They literally can’t stop perimeter players or bigs. Exceeding averages/career highs is standard operating procedure for foes.”

The numbers certainly back up Bailey’s assessment here. We’ll dig into some of the numbers specifically in a bit, but the Hoyas are giving up 77.3 points per game and four of their last six opponents have scored 80+. They’ve given up 80+ 12 times total and three opponents have scored over 90.

One part of the defensive issue stands out and carries us to our next question for Bailey: Has Georgetown failed to capitalize on its size, and if so, why? “One could definitely say that,” Bailey said. “Why? The bigs are pretty much developmental so they can’t shoulder a real load. Also, the smalls largely don’t share the game with them.”

Georgetown boasts three players standing 7+ feet. Ryan Mutombo is 7-2 while Timothy Ighoefe and Malcolm Wilson are both 7-0. As Bailey noted, that trio is a work in progress so none of the three average more than 16 minutes per game. But you would think, at the very least, that size could pay some dividends on the defensive end. That has not been the case.

Georgetown is 282nd in opponent’s 2-point percentage (52.3%) per KenPom. Likewise, Haslametrics ranks the Hoyas 275th in opponent’s near-proximity percentage. In the first meeting between the teams, Villanova shot 21-33 (63.6%) on 2-point attempts and outscored the Hoyas 42-28 in the paint.

Things aren’t much better offensively. Georgetown ranks 350th in 2-point percentage at just 42.9%, per KenPom. Haslametrics has the Hoyas ranked 292nd in near-proximity percentage. Against Villanova, Georgetown was able to overperform in that area, hitting 53.1% of its 2-point attempts. That’s something to keep an eye on Saturday.

The size has also only yielded mixed results on the glass. The Hoyas have had some success on the offensive glass, pulling down 32.6% of their offensive rebound opportunities, the 45th best number in the country. Haslametrics, which adjusts its numbers to show performance against the average opponent, is even more bullish on the Hoyas’ offensive rebounding: it ranks them No. 1 in potential second-chance points and No. 29 in second-chance conversion percentage.

Interestingly, that hasn’t translated to the defensive glass. Georgetown allows opponents to grab 29% of their offensive rebound opportunities (218th) and Haslametrics has the Hoyas ranked 258th in opponent’s potential second-chance points and 272nd in second-chance conversion percentage.

Villanova managed a 30-26 overall advantage on the glass in the first meeting between the teams and was able to keep the offensive rebound number even at 10. The ‘Cats even produced a one-point edge in second-chance points. Replicating that effort would go a long way towards another win, as extra opportunities is one way Georgetown can offset some of its other deficiencies.

One issue for the Hoyas earlier in the season was a lack of continuity as they dealt with injuries and COVID issues. Jay Wright felt the Hoyas were starting to get some rhythm ahead of the last meeting between the teams, and we asked Bailey if they’ve been developing that. “They’ve at times been cohesive since the COVID break,” Bailey said. “Offensively. But its’ been inconsistent to say the least.”

Obviously, that hasn’t shown up in the results quite yet, perhaps due to the inconsistency Bailey mentioned, but it’s also the kind of thing that can reveal itself suddenly as things start to click.

One surprise in the last meeting between the teams was Collin Holloway. The sophomore forward averages about 24 minutes per game and 8.6 points. But against ‘Nova he was virtually unstoppable, playing nearly 36 minutes and dropping 25 points on 9-10 shooting overall and 2-3 from deep. He also dished out five assists. We asked Bailey about Holloway.

“Holloway is a crafty undersized four man who scores with both hands around the rim,” Bailey said. “Knows how to use his body to score. Is not a top defender as he’s a tweener who is slow for guards and little for bigs. Will compete. Has lost weight since freshman year and became a better shooter.”

There are plenty of more established names on the Hoya roster, but Holloway is certainly on Villanova’s radar, and it will be interesting to see if he can replicate that performance.

Speaking of those more established names, Aminu Mohammed and Donald Carey stick out. Kaiden Rice has been a nice contributor and Dante Harris has proven he can be an impact player. So, who is most important to Georgetown?

“Most important player is Aminu Mohammed,” Bailey said. “Hoyas need him to score and rebound…he leads the team in both. Grad guard Don Carney may be next. A savvy guard, Carey shoots and passes at a high level. His leadership growth is great to see.”

‘Nova did a nice job on Mohammed in the first meeting, limiting him to 13 points on 4-9 shooting and five rebounds. Carey managed 11 points but shot just 4-14. However, he did dish out seven assists.

Speaking of assists, Georgetown assisted on 18 of 25 baskets against ‘Nova while the ‘Cats assisted on just eight of 30. We’d like to see the ‘Cats generate more baskets for each other and be less reliant on one-on-one play.

While Georgetown’s record and metrics might have fans relaxing and looking for an easy win, ‘Nova won’t be looking past the Hoyas. As we noted in our preview of the first matchup, the Hoyas do some things that can be problematic for Villanova and on days they put their strengths together it can be a dangerous recipe. One, they like to play with pace and use pressure defense. Two, they’ve been above average from beyond the arc. And three, they can get extra opportunities on the offensive glass. On a day where they force turnovers, get extra chances from the glass and shoot at or above their average from 3 the Hoyas can give be a headache for any opponent. Also, they are still working on cohesiveness, something that can click suddenly once a team has had some time to gel, and you don’t want to be the opponent when it does.

Turnovers, the offensive glass and the 3-point line will be the key factors we’ll be keeping an eye on Saturday.

The game is schedule for a 5 p.m. tip on FOX.