What: Men’s basketball (21-8, 10-6 A-10) vs. George Mason (10-19, 4-12 A-10)
Where: Smith Center, Washington, D.C., ASN, CSN (TV)
When: Tuesday, March 1 at 8 p.m.
GW will look to complete a series sweep over cross-town rival George Mason Tuesday as the Smith Center plays host to Senior Night.
The Colonials bested the Patriots back on Jan. 31 in Fairfax, Va., taking the decision 76–70 behind a game-high 19 points from senior swingman Patricio Garino.
Both teams enter the game coming off losses–GW fell to VCU at home Saturday, and George Mason was defeated by last-place La Salle on the road.
While GW is still jockeying for a potential fifth seed in the Atlantic 10 tournament, the Patriots sit second to last in the conference after a disappointing 4-12 performance thus far in league play.
Here’s what to expect from Tuesday’s Revolutionary Rivalry showdown which will honor seniors Patricio Garino, Kevin Larsen and Joe McDonald, as well as graduate student guard Alex Mitola in a pre-game ceremony:
The case for the Colonials:
Four GW starters scored in double-figures and combined for 55 points in the six-point victory earlier this year, while the team went a stellar 30-for-36 from the free throw line.
While Garino led his team in scoring, redshirt junior forward Tyler Cavanaugh posted 15 points to add to his team-leading average of 16.7 per game. Larsen contributes team-high 8.4 rebounds per game, but will need more help as the Colonials were outrebounded by the Patriots 47–42 last time out.
While GW owns a mediocre +0.03 turnover margin, fifth-worst in the A-10, George Mason is in dead last in that category with a staggering margin of -5.41. The Patriots’ average of 14.4 turnovers per game is also second-worst in the league.
With those numbers in mind, the visitors will once face a tall task in thwarting GW’s defense, the fourth-strongest in the conference, which is conceding an average of 68.2 points per game to opponents.
George Mason also only averages 66.4 points per game on offense, and will need much more to keep up with GW’s average of 75, a good portion of which comes from the line where the Colonials are shooting 75.9 percent.
The case for the Patriots:
A pair of George Mason guards lead the squad’s offense. Freshman Otis Livingston II and junior Marquise Moore, averaging 11.8 and 11.5 points per game, respectively, combined for 28 points against GW in EagleBank arena and will need to continue to provide a spark when they visit Foggy Bottom.
Six-foot-11-inch senior center Shevon Thompson collected a game-high 12 rebounds against the Colonials back in January and leads the league with an average of 10.3 boards per game. His presence down low could cause problems for GW on the glass.
The Patriots were also able to secure a 31–29 halftime lead in Fairfax, going 10-for-12 from the line to GW’s 8-for-9 in the first frame, until the Colonials began fouling less and getting to the stripe themselves with better inside play in the second.
George Mason also managed a total of seven three-pointers in that contest to GW’s six, but gave the ball away 11 times. If the Patriots can limit turnovers, shoot well and dominate the glass they have a chance at pulling off an upset.
The bottom line:
In their final game at the Smith Center, expect GW’s graduating class to play with a ton of heart. The matchup should serve as an effective tune-up for the Colonials as they head into the final week of the regular season and before heading to Brooklyn for the A-10 Tournament.
