Who: Men’s basketball
Where: Rose Hill Gym, Bronx, N.Y.
When: Wednesday, March 6 at 7 p.m.
Men’s basketball (8–21, 4–12 A-10) embarks on its final road trip of the season for a rematch against Fordham (11–18, 2–14) Wednesday night.
GW enters the contest following a 64–58 loss to St. Bonaventure at home. Both teams are going through cold spells entering the rematch. The Colonials have not won since their 79–67 victory over Massachusetts on Feb. 20, while the Rams are in the midst of a four-game losing streak.
The Colonials overpowered the Rams in their last meeting on Jan. 31, when GW grabbed a 79–61 victory off a 30-point performance by redshirt junior guard DJ Williams.
Case for the Colonials:
The Rams will be the lowest-scoring offense the Colonials have seen since their 73–58 loss to Saint Louis Feb. 13. Although GW scores the Atlantic 10’s fewest points thus far, Fordham averages the second-lowest point total, racking up just 66.7 points per game.
GW’s defense should be able to hold off the Rams’ offense, especially if the the away squad shores up its play on the block and under the glass, where the Colonials were dominated by the Bonnies – losing the rebounding battle 39–28 and giving up 19 second-chance points.
Sophomore guard Maceo Jack has continued to be hot from the three-point line. He rained down 15 points from beyond the arc last time out and is leading the team with 38.0 percent shooting from the perimeter.
The Colonials were able to put three players in double-digit scoring against the Rams last time around, and if Jack and Williams show up the way they did against Fordham in January, GW should be able to pull out the road win.
Case for the Rams:
The Colonials are struggling to pick up points on offense, shooting 37.3 percent from the field across their last three games compared to a season average of 41.2 percent.
In their last time out, the Rams were still able to sink nine three-point shots against the Colonials despite the loss. GW allowed Rhode Island – the worst three-point shooting team in the A-10 – to tally 10 three-point shots and rack up 80 points against the Colonials on the night.
Fordham dished Rhode Island a three-point 66–63 upset loss to the Rams last month. If Fordham gets hot from the perimeter, it should be able to keep pace with the Colonials on offense.
The Bonnies were able to pick up 34 points in the paint against the Colonials by attacking the post. If Fordham exploits the block in the same way St. Bonaventure did last week, it will be a long night for GW.
Bottom line:
The Colonials have been able to put together a high-octane performance on offense in games past, and should be able to do the same against the Rams the second time around.
But they have also been beatable on defense as of late. So if the Rams decide to focus their offense on the block, they should be able to facilitate a consistent scoring presence. Still, the Rams are 2–15 in their last 17 contests and have been outscored by an average of 20 points across their last three outings. Expect GW to return to Foggy Bottom with a win.
