George Washington University Athletics
GW Women's Hoops Visits Upstart URI on Thursday Evening
1/14/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
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Jan. 14, 2015
WHO: GW Women's Basketball (14-2, 3-0 A-10)
WHAT: Game #17, A-10 Game #4 at Rhode Island Rams (10-5, 2-1 A-10)
WHERE: Thomas M. Ryan Center (7,800), Kingston, R.I.
WHEN: Thursday, Jan. 15 at 7:00 p.m.
VIDEO: A-10 Digital Network
STATS: via GoRhody.com
AUDIO: WRGW Sports
TWITTER: @GW_WBB | #RaiseHigh
NOTES: GW Notes 
WASHINGTON - The George Washington women's basketball team heads north for a pair of games in New England this week, beginning with an evening showdown at Rhode Island on Thursday. Tipoff from the Ryan Center is slated for 7 p.m.
At 14-2 on the season, GW has matched its best-ever 16-game start, and after defeating Richmond, 77-67, on Saturday afternoon at the Charles E. Smith Center, the Colonials are 3-0 in A-10 play for the second year in a row. The win was GW's 12th in a row - the sixth-longest active streak in Division I.
Junior Jonquel Jones posted her sixth double-double in the last seven games and her eighth of the season to lead four Colonials in double figures against Richmond on Saturday. The Naismith Trophy candidate totaled 21 points and 11 rebounds and added three assists and three blocks. Senior Chakecia Miller tallied a season-high 16 points to go with six assists and four steals, as she moved into seventh place all-time at GW with 246 steals in her career. Sophomore Caira Washington recorded 14 points and eight rebounds, and sophomore Hannah Schaible chipped in 10 points.
Jones, who repeated as Atlantic 10 Player of the Week on Monday, earning her fourth award of the season, is the only player in the league averaging a double-double. She leads the A-10 in rebounding (11.2 rpg) and ranks fifth in scoring (16.4 ppg), including a league-high 20.3 points per game against conference opponents. Washington is also averaging 20.0 points per game in league contests, as she has raised her season scoring average by nearly four points (12.6 ppg) over the last six contests.
The league leaders in scoring margin (+14.9 ppg), the Colonials have outscored opponents by 17.3 points per game during their 12-game winning streak.
GW has dominated the all-time series against Rhode Island, with 38 wins in 44 meetings since 1984, including four in a row. Jones scored 17 points last season against the Rams in an 83-68 victory at the Smith Center.
After having won just 14 games over the last three years combined and being picked to finish 13th in the 2014 A-10 preseason poll, Rhode Island (10-5, 2-1 A-10) has turned things around under first-year head coach Daynia La-Force, posting 10 wins for the first time since 2008-09.
The Rams, who won seven in a row between Thanksgiving and Christmas, are coming off a 71-62 win at Davidson on Sunday - their first conference road win since 2010. Freshman Charise Wilson scored a game-high 22 points on five threes and added four steals, while Symone Bullard poured in 17 points and Tayra Melendez tallied 12 points and a team-best seven rebounds.
A four-time A-10 Rookie of the Week, Wilson is the league's fourth-leading scorer, averaging 16.6 points per game - the only Ram averaging double figures on the season, as URI ranks last in the A-10 in offense, averaging just 58.7 points per game. Bullard, however, joins Wilson among the league's scoring leaders in conference play, as she is averaging 17.0 points per game over her last there contests.
Rhode Island is one of the top defensive teams in the conference, allowing just 58.5 points per game on 35.6 percent shooting, which ranks third and fourth in the A-10, respectively. The Rams also lead the league with 10.5 steals per contest.
