The Fastest 40 Minutes in Basketball just wasn’t enough time on this night.

Just as the first “L” was about to be added to No. 16 Georgetown’s schedule, No. 9 Missouri (5-1) lost its poise and the Hoyas regained theirs for a thrilling 111-102 overtime victory in Kansas City.

With his run-and-gun team leading 94-91 with 15 seconds left in regulation and a chance to ice the game, Missouri sophomore guard Michael Dixon missed the second of his two free throws, allowing the Hoyas (7-0) one last chance in a game they had led by as many as 18 in the first half. After an ill-advised, off-balance three by sophomore forward Hollis Thompson didn’t go down with five seconds left, senior guard Chris Wright turned out to get yet another opportunity for Georgetown. The Hoyas regained possession off the miss and junior guard Jason Clark made a perfect pass to Wright, who drained the game-tying trifecta from well beyond the arc with less than a second to play to send the game to overtime.

Prior to Wright’s heroics, Missouri forward Laurence Bowers missed both of his free throws with 19 seconds left and the Tigers leading 93-89. On the ensuing trip up the floor, Dixon fouled Wright in the backcourt, and with Mizzou over the foul limit, the senior tri-captain – who scored 21 points, dished out 10 assists and made all nine of his free throws – coolly sunk both ends of his 1-and-1, pulling the Hoyas to within two at 93-91.

Still reeling from their collapse and the Hoyas’ comeback in the final moments, the Tigers fell victim to a trio of Clark three-pointers that slammed the door on a 17-8 run through overtime and an improbable nine-point win. Clark served as the closer in overtime, but for the game he poured in 26 points on 11-of-20 shooting from the field.

But Georgetown probably would not have gotten the last-second chances it did without another All-American-type performance from senior guard Austin Freeman, who finished with 31 points on 10-of-17 from the field and 6-of-11 from three-point land. He propelled the hot-shooting Hoyas to a 54-47 lead at the break with 19 first-half points, and with the Tigers looking to pull away late in the second half, Freeman drove the lane on consecutive possessions for an old-fashioned three-point play and another layup to single-handedly erase an 85-80 deficit with three minutes left in the second half.

Georgetown shot out of a cannon to start the first half, opening up an 18-point lead more than halfway through the period. The Hoyas started the scoring with a patented backdoor pass from Freeman to Wright, and after a strong move to the rim by junior center Henry Sims with 15:42 remaining, they had a 16-9 lead and had made seven of their first eight shots.

The backdoor continued to swing open during the first half, as freshman forward Nate Lubick showed off his passing skills on a nice bounce pass to a cutting Clark at the 12-minute mark, which is just about when Freeman got rolling. He went on a personal 8-0 run at one point, and two of his five first-half threes drew Tiger timeouts.

While the Hoyas were in control for most of the first half, Mizzou’s press and transition game began to take advantage of Georgetown turnovers. Guard Marcus Denmon was on fire all night, scoring 27 points on 10-of-12 shooting, including 5-of-7 from beyond the arc. He sparked the Tigers’ sizzling second-half performance and gave them their first lead of the game with 8:25 to go in regulation when he nailed a three to make it 77-75.

Sophomore guard Vee Sanford, who continues to show big-time potential in limited minutes, sank a three-pointer of his own to retake the lead for the Hoyas. But a quick 7-0 run fueled by Mizzou points off turnovers put the Tigers back up 85-80 with 4:21 to go.

The nail-biting win can be added to the list of eye-catching, early-season triumphs for the Freeman-Wright Hoyas, along with Duke, Butler and Washington last year and Memphis and Connecticut two seasons ago. Still to be proven, however, is whether this group can play with the same poise and energy against every team on its schedule. If that happens, Freeman and Wright’s final season in the Georgetown backcourt could solidify their legacy as all-time greats on the Hilltop.

For now at least, things don’t get much easier, as the Hoyas return to the District for a 12 p.m. tip-off against a tough Utah State team this Saturday.