What: Men’s basketball (19-11, 9-8 A-10) vs. Massachusetts (17-13, 10-7 A-10)
When: Saturday March 7 at 3:30 p.m.
Where: Smith Center
For the last time this season the Colonials return to the Smith Center for a senior day match up with Massachusetts. The team will honor lone senior John Kopriva Saturday before what could be his final game in Foggy Bottom.
GW enters its regular season finale hot off a commanding 67-51 win at George Mason. Junior guard Patricio Garino posted 15 points and nine rebounds in the victory, while freshman guard Paul Jorgensen added 11 second-half points off the bench.
After winning six straight, Massachusetts has dropped four of its last five games. Most recently the Minutemen fell in a close 56-53 decision to Richmond Wednesday night and will look to snag one last win before heading to Brooklyn next week.
With Massachusetts currently in sixth-place, one game ahead of GW, Saturday’s contest will be a battle for the No. 6 seed in the Atlantic 10 Tournament. Depending on the outcome of Fordham and St. Bonaventure’s game the same day, a Colonials’ loss will leave GW looking at either a No. 7 or No. 8 seed.
The Case for Massachusetts:
Four Minutemen are averaging double figures in scoring, led by senior center Cady Lalanne who is posting a team-high 11.6 points and 9.3 rebounds per game.
Following closely behind are senior forward Maxie Esho, averaging 11.5 points and 6.5 rebounds, and junior guard Trey Davis, averaging 11.3 points. Junior guard Derrick Gordon’s 10.0 points round out a Minutemen offense that is averaging 69.5 points per game, fourth-best in the A-10.
Massachusetts also holds the fourth-best assist average in the conference with 13.7 per game, and commands the boards with an average of 25.0 defensive rebounds, the second best in the A-10 after Davidson.
Defensively the Minutemen concede more points than GW, but lead the Colonials in other areas. The road team averages 4.3 blocks to GW’s 4.0 and 6.9 steals to the Colonials’ 5.6.
The Case for GW:
While their opponent averages more points per game, the Colonials are shooting more efficiently: going 44 percent from the field to Massachusetts’ 43.5 percent.
Each member of the junior core-four is averaging double figures in scoring, with Garino leading the team with 12.5 points per game. Garino’s return to form at George Mason, as well as improved bench production, bodes well for the Colonials who will enter their final home game with confidence.
The Colonials also hold the edge defensively; allowing just 61.1 points per game while Massachusetts concedes an average of 69.7. Additionally, GW has the overall rebounding advantage, averaging an A-10 best +4.6 rebounding margin to the Minutemen’s +1.9.
With a No. 6 seed on the line expect both teams to play aggressively in order to gain some momentum heading into next week. If the Colonials can limit turnovers, shoot well at home and play team defense like they did at George Mason, the team can easily wrap up its regular season with a win.
