George Washington University Athletics
GW Men's Basketball Holds First Preseason Practice
10/2/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
 |  | Follow @GW_MBB |
Oct. 2, 2015
WASHINGTON -- The George Washington men's basketball team officially began preparations for the 2015-16 season on Friday with a spirited practice at the Charles E. Smith Center.
Friday marked the first official day the NCAA allows regular team practices - GW has spent the past several weeks focusing on individual work and conditioning.
The Colonials welcome back seven lettermen from last season's team which went 22-13 and captured the program's first-ever Postseason NIT victory. A trio of senior starters will give GW a wealth of experience as guard Joe McDonald, guard/forward Patricio Garino and forward Kevin Larsen bring a combined 271 career starts.
Garino led the team in scoring last season with 12.4 points per game while adding 5.3 rebounds and 1.7 steals to land on the Atlantic 10 All-Defensive Team for the second consecutive year. Larsen earned a spot on the A-10 All-Conference team after averaging 10.9 points and 7.4 rebounds. McDonald, meanwhile, posted 9.9 points, 5.8 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game.
GW also returns sophomore forward Yuta Watanabe who made 10 starts for the Colonials during his freshman campaign. The 6-foot-8 Watanabe averaged 7.4 points, 3.5 rebounds and 22.5 minutes while playing in all 35 games last season.
New to the program are a trio of transfers in forward Tyler Cavanaugh, guards Matt Hart and Alex Mitola, and a pair of freshmen in forward Collin Goss and guard Jordan Roland. Junior guard Jaren Sina is also new to the program, though will sit out the upcoming season after transferring from Seton Hall.
Cavanaugh and Hart both sat out last season after transferring while Mitola, who is enrolled in graduate school, is eligible to play immediately. Cavanaugh, who averaged 8.8 points and 3.9 rebounds as a sophomore at Wake Forest, will look to start in the frontcourt with Larsen.
The Colonials play their lone exhibition of the season on Saturday, Nov. 7, when Gannon visits the Smith Center. The regular-season opener is Friday, Nov. 13 vs. Lafayette, which precedes the home matchup with a nationally-ranked Virginia squad on Nov. 16. For tickets, click here.
Other news and notes for GW men's basketball:
Colonials Make Gains in the Weight Room
It was a busy -- and productive -- summer of offseason conditioning for many of the Colonials. Training with Director of Strength and Conditioning Matt Johnson, GW student-athletes made major gains in strength testing for a two-month period from July to September. Among the highlighted improvements were:
- McDonald increased his single leg squat 65 pounds (from 195 to 260), while Cavanaugh owned the highest single repetition at 305 pounds.
- On the trap bar deadlift, Garino made the biggest jump from initial testing to final testing, improving from 455 pounds in July to 515 pounds in September. The 515 repetition also represented the highest on the team, while every member of the team improved by at least 15 pounds.
- Larsen showed the greatest improvement and highest single-rep total on the bench press. After putting up 305 pounds in July, the senior benched 350 in September, an improvement of 45 pounds and 60 pounds ahead of McDonald who had the second highest rep at 290.
McDonald, Cavanaugh Garner National Acclaim
A pair of Colonials saw their names land on prestigious lists released by national media this week.
McDonald, who has started 97 of the 98 games GW has played since arriving on campus in 2012 and ranks 10th in school history in assists (337), was named one of the 10 Glue Guys to Watch by CBS Sports' Jon Rothstein. Said Rothstein: "Always bruised and battered, McDonald has more scrapes and cuts than almost any point guard in America. The 6-1 McDonald will never win anything based on style points, but his heart, determination, and tenacity have allowed the Colonials to earn 48 wins over the past two years which included appearances in both the NCAA Tournament and the Postseason NIT." See the full list here.
Also earning some national acclaim was Cavanaugh, who was named to a list of the Top 30 Transfers for the upcoming season by NBC Sports' Terrence Payne. Cavanaugh joined GW in 2014 after spending two seasons at Wake Forest where he averaged 7.0 points, 3.2 rebounds and 19.0 minutes while playing in all 64 games.
See the list here.
Garino Gains Experience with Argentina National Team
Eleven years ago, Patricio Garino cheered on the Argentina National Team from his home in Mar del Plata as the `Albiceleste' captured the nation's first Olympic Gold Medal in basketball. This past summer, Garino joined a few of the same stars -- namely Luis Scola and Andres Nocioni -- who helped win that gold medal in 2004 as Argentina competed in the 2015 FIBA Americas Championship in Mexico.
Garino made a strong showing in the tournament, finishing fourth on the squad in points (7.7 pg) and minutes (25.6 pg) while shooting 42.1 percent from 3-point range, which led the team. In the opening game of the tournament, Garino tallied 19 points on 4-of-5 shooting to help propel a 91-86 win over Puerto Rico.
Argentina went 7-1 in the preliminary and second rounds, then defeated Mexico 78-70 in the semifinal to secure a spot in the championship game and also a bid to the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Though Argentina lost the final to Venezuela, 76-71, Garino played a key role in helping his country qualify for the Olympics.
