Patrick Ewing is out as head coach at Georgetown after six seasons at his alma mater.
The Hoyas made the move Thursday and launched a national search for Ewing’s replacement.
“Patrick Ewing is the heart of Georgetown basketball,” university president John J. DeGioia said in a statement. “I am deeply grateful to Coach Ewing for his vision, his determination and for all that he has enabled Georgetown to achieve. Over these past six years, he was tireless in his dedication to his team and the young men he coached and we will forever be grateful to Patrick for his courage and his leadership in our Georgetown community.”
After the Hoyas’ season ended Wednesday night with a 80-48 loss to Villanova in the first round of the Big East tournament, Ewing declined to speak much about his future as coach but indicated he did not want to step down.
“Look, I am proud of being a Georgetown Hoya. This institution has been great to me over the years,” Ewing told reporters. “I’d be honored to come back as the coach here. That’s it.”
The Hoyas went 7-25 (2-18 Big East) in Ewing’s final season in charge. The program went a combined 75-109 under Ewing, making the NCAA Tournament just once — when Georgetown completed an improbable run through the 2021 Big East tournament as the No. 8 seed to earn the league’s automatic bid.
Ewing was hired by his alma mater in 2017 without prior head-coaching experience. It was also his first foray into coaching at the college level after serving as an assistant for the NBA’s Washington Wizards, Houston Rockets, Orlando Magic and Charlotte Bobcats/Hornets between 2002 and 2017.
In 2021-22, the Hoyas set a new Big East record for futility by going 0-19 in conference play. They finished the season on a 21-game losing streak, but athletic director Lee Reed gave Ewing a vote of confidence in a statement released before the end of that season.
Ewing starred at Georgetown from 1981-1985 and helped the Hoyas reach three Final Fours and win their only national championship. He went on to a legendary career with the New York Knicks and was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2008, and the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame in 2012.
–Field Level Media
