Big East Basketball: 5 biggest takeaways from 2019 recruiting classes

NEW YORK, NY - MARCH 14: James Farr #2 of the Xavier Musketeers and Daniel Ochefu #23 of the Villanova Wildcats jump for the opening tip during the championship game of the Big East basketball tournament at Madison Square Garden on March 14, 2015 in New York City. (Photo by Alex Trautwig/Getty Images) /

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MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN – MARCH 09: Head coach Patrick Ewing of the Georgetown Hoyas reacts in the second half during the game against the Marquette Golden Eagles at Fiserv Forum on March 09, 2019 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo by Quinn Harris/Getty Images) /

1. Patrick Ewing loading up on bigs

We’ve seen some improvement with the Georgetown Basketball program since legendary Hoya center Patrick Ewing returned, finishing 19-14 (9-9) last season. And we’ve already seen his development skills, including All-Big East big man Jessie Govan.

With him and fellow senior forward Trey Mourning now departed, it’s time for a new wave of frontcourt players for Coach Ewing to work with. He already has Omer Yurtseven, a 7’0 center transfer from NC State who was a double-digit scorer and All-ACC player in 2018. The junior will slide in for Govan as the starting center next year.

But Georgetown will need future frontcourt assets as well. And that’s what they did with three of their incoming freshmen being centers. Qudus Wahab is the headliner, ranked in the top-150 overall and had numerous power conference offers. Joining him are Malcolm Wilson and Timothy Igohoefe, a pair of three-star rated 6’11 centers who also have long-term potential with the Hoyas. The hope is that at least one of them beings All-Conference caliber while the others make contributions as rotation pieces.

The perimeter for the Hoyas is set with sophomore guards Mac McClung and James Akinjo, as well as talented forward Josh LeBlanc. And with Yurtseven eligible to play, the team has expectations of making it back to the NCAA Tournament in 2020. But this recruiting class is about the future of Georgetown, especially down low. Let’s see what Ewing does with this crop of big men.

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