McDonald was taken out of the building by emergency medical personnel to be evaluated. Head coach Mike Lonergan had not yet spoken with training staff after the game.
“I didn’t even see him get hit, I just saw him on the floor and he’s probably one of the three toughest kids I’ve ever coached so I figured he got hit pretty hard if he was laying there,” Lonergan said.
Gradually lightening the mood in the Smith Center after McDonald’s departure, the Colonials hit 13 three-pointers on 48 percent shooting. Six of those came from Cavanaugh, who had 30 points and 10 rebounds.
The game was tied at 16 with nine minutes left before halftime when GW took off. By the time, midway through the second half, that the Colonials got back-to-back-to-back three-pointers from Cavanaugh, Matt Hart and Alex Mitola, they had doubled up on Duquesne, 51-24, since that point. That was before Mitola hit three free throws after being fouled shooting, again from downtown.
“Once you see a couple go in, then it just feels like you’re shooting into an ocean so it was really nice to get into a flow,” Cavanaugh said.
Even Larsen, who scored 25 points and added a game-high 11 rebounds, hit one from beyond the arc. 
Defensively, GW held Duquesne to 36.4 percent shooting and a 5-for-22 performance from beyond the arc while outrebounding them 50-28. Derrick Colter and Mar’Qywell Jackson had 10 points each as the only Dukes in double-figures as the Colonials keyed on Colter and Micah Mason. The veteran pair of guards were a combined 5-for-16.
“We wanted to focus on two guys. I don’t like to normally do that but those two guys, we wanted them to have a rough night and they didn’t get a lot of shots off and they didn’t shoot a great percentage so I think that was a key,” Lonergan said. “They combined for 18 instead of 40, which they’re capable of.”
Mitola filled in smoothly for McDonald, scoring a season-high 15 points in 24 minutes. All four of his buckets from the field were from beyond the arc. He also collected four of GW’s 18 assists, including a behind-the-back pass that set up one of Cavanaugh’s threes. Ball movement was critical to GW’s big game on offense.
“He’s not a good shooter, he’s a great shooter,” Lonergan said. “And I know a lot of people like to Monday morning quarterback and wonder why he plays and this and that, thinking he’s just some secret weapon to make free throws, but he can shoot. The adjustment to this level has been tough, he’s small, it’s hard for him to get a good look but tonight guys found him.”
Other bench players got more minutes than usual, due to McDonalds exit and the score. Jordan Roland played 13 minutes, Anthony Swan saw eight and Collin Goss, who got big cheers for a block in garbage time, saw five, but the trio did not record a point. Paul Jorgensen and Hart, who normally receive good minutes, scored nine and seven points, respectively, with Lonergan saying he felt like Jorgensen got out of a “fog” 
Starters Yuta Watanabe and Patricio Garino were both quiet, going a combined 0-10 from the field.
The Colonials now head on the road to play Massachusetts on Tuesday before a trip to Dayton on Friday. It remains to be seen if McDonald will be able to play.
“Joe, he’s our most important guy,” Larsen said. “So seeing him go down, it was tough. But we’ve got Paul and Alex very confident and can step in when needed.”
Tipoff in Amherst is set for 7 p.m.
