George Washington University Athletics
GW Men's Basketball Notebook
12/9/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
With GW off to an 8-1 record this season, a look back at some of the most successful starts in program history:
2015-16
The Colonials are 8-1 with a win over No. 6 Virginia, and the lone loss coming to No. 24 Cincinnati at the Barclays Center Classic. GW has played a strong schedule, with wins against teams from the ACC (Virginia), AAC (South Florida), SEC (Tennessee), Big East (Seton Hall) and Big 10 (Penn State). That slate has yielded a No. 13 RPI for GW according to ESPN.com's Daily RPI, one of three Atlantic 10 teams in ranking in the top 15 (Davidson - 3rd, Dayton - 12th).
2013-14
GW won 11 of its first 12 games, including victories over Miami and No. 20 Creighton at the Wooden Legacy in California, and a 77-75 win over Maryland at the BB&T Classic. GW went on to reach the NCAA Tournament and win 24 games which tied for the second most in program history.
2005-06
GW rattled off eight straight wins to open the season before a loss at No. 19 NC State. From there, the Colonials tallied wins in each of their next 18 games to improve to 26-1 overall, the best one-loss start in program history. GW would conclude the season with a 27-3 overall record and an appearance in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
2004-05
GW started an Atlantic 10 Tournament Championship season with an 8-1 record across its first nine games. The slate included a tournament title at the annual BB&T Classic with consecutive upsets of No. 9 Michigan State (W, 96-83) and No. 12 Maryland (W, 101-92). GW went on to earn a bid to the NCAA Tournament and finish the season 22-8.
1997-98
The Colonials won 13 of their first 15 games, including wins over Boston College, DePaul and No. 19 Maryland, en route to a 24-win season (T-2nd most in program history) and an appearance in the NCAA Tournament in the eighth and final season under Mike Jarvis.
1995-96
The season began with eight wins across the first 10 games, including victories over James Madison, South Florida and a pair of wins over Sacramento State and Idaho (2OT) at the Sacramento Holiday Classic. GW would finish 21-8 and earn a trip to the NCAA Tournament.
1992-93
GW started its most successful season in program history by winning seven straight games, and 10 of its first 11, to open a season that would include the program's first-ever appearance in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament. Non-conference tournament titles included GW's own Red Auerbach Colonial Classic (Columbia, Tennessee State) and the Hatter Classic (Central Michigan, Bethune Cookman). GW defeated New Mexico and Southern in the NCAA Tournament before falling to Michigan in the Sweet 16, capping a 21-9 season.
1953-54
Bill Reinhart's Colonials opened the 1953-54 season with 11 consecutive victories en route to a 19-1 start, the second-best one-loss start to a season in program history. The Colonials easily dispatched of local rivals Richmond, Virginia Tech, Virginia and Georgetown as part of the run. GW would go on to win the Southern Conference Championship and make the program's first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance.
Tip-ins from the 76-66 win over Penn State
- Tyler Cavanaugh recorded his second double-double of the season with 18 points and 10 rebounds. He also had 15 points and 17 boards in the season-opening win over Lafayette.
- GW continued its hot shooting at home, knocking down 9 of 20 3-pointers (45%). In six games at the Smith Center, GW is shooting 48.2 percent from the field.
- Kevin Larsen had a game-high five assists, marking the fifth time the forward has led the team in that category this season. He leads the Colonials with 29 assists on the season.
- GW improved to 3-0 in "revenge" games against teams it had lost to last season. The Colonials have topped Virginia, Seton Hall and Penn State after falling to those teams in 2014-15.
- With seven boards, Larsen passed Walt Szczerbiak and Mike Battle on GW's career rebounds list and sits in 12th all-time with 697. Next up is Mike Jones (707).
Quotable
"I couldn't be happier with our group. I really like our group. What I like too is we're not there yet. Tonight we made some 3s. I thought that was going to be one of our strengths, but we've got to keep getting better."
- Mike Lonergan
What they're saying
Washington Post
GW's Cavanaugh continues to adjust to new teammates in victory
CSN Mid-Atlantic
Versatile GW powers past Penn State
Associated Press
Cavanaugh leads George Washington past Penn State 76-66
GW Hatchet
