George Washington University Athletics
GW's Seniors Leave Lasting Legacy
4/1/2016 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
NEW YORK -- George Washington's memorable basketball season revolved around three seniors who participated in the program's transformation over the last four seasons.
It was appropriate, then, that the Colonials' celebration near the end of Thursday's NIT championship began when guard Joe McDonald got forward Kevin Larsen's attention and accepted the big man's pass through the lane for a layup. A second later, Larsen shared a jubilant moment near midcourt with wing Patricio Garino.
Three seniors. And, thanks in part to Thursday's 76-60 triumph at Madison Square Garden, one lasting legacy for one of the Colonials' most pivotal classes.
"I think that's what we came here for, to hang banners in the Smith Center," Garino said afterward in the locker room. "Knowing we did that, coming back in the future and seeing we did that because of all these memories, it's unbelievable and it's definitely the legacy we wanted to leave."
George Washington (28-10) set a school record for victories in a season and claimed its first NIT championship in six trips to the event. It also has 74 victories since the start of the 2013-14 season, the most in a three-year period in school history.
Throughout all of it, Garino, Larsen and McDonald were mainstays in a program on the rise, one that has reached an NCAA tournament and two NITs in the last three seasons.
""I'm really happy for those guys because they helped get our program, which is a great program with tradition, they helped get us back on the map. …," Lonergan said. "I told them 'You want to leave a legacy.' They had an NCAA tournament and two NITs and a win at Pitt [last year], but we wanted to do more once we didn't make the NCAA tournament. Hey, winning this is a big deal for our school and our program, and it's not easy."
It was also an impressive moment for the Atlantic 10, which saw only three of its schools earn NCAA tournament berths in back-to-back seasons after its teams landed six invites in 2014.
"The Atlantic 10 is a great league," Lonergan said. "It doesn't get enough respect, it really doesn't. It has a great commissioner and great teams, and hopefully this will help the Atlantic 10 as much as GW."
And make no mistake, this could have a lasting impact in Foggy Bottom.
Individually, Garino, Larsen and McDonald own secure places in program lore. Garino is the Colonials' 11th-leading all-time scorer (1,550 points) and ranks third in steals (220). McDonald is fourth in school history in assists (447). Larsen checks in 13th in points (1,470) and fifth in rebounds (952).
But the most telling figure for all three is how often they donned a George Washington uniform. Larsen (136 games), McDonald (133) and Garino (129) are the top three in Colonials history in games played.
Lonergan had playing time to sell to his first full recruiting class, and he found receptive audiences. Kevin Sutton, Garino's high school coach and later a Colonials assistant, helped convince the Argentine that George Washington was the right landing spot. Larsen was a bit of a sleeper out of nearby Montrose Christian, but the Colonials quickly figured out they had a steal in the gifted passer.
McDonald was an early target as well, and Lonergan and his staff left little doubt as to how much he both wanted and needed the D.C.-area product. When they arrived on campus as freshmen, they joined a program coming off a 10-21 season.
"They got to start for the majority if not all their careers," associate head coach Hajj Turner said. "That was huge, and they believed in us when there was not really a reason to believe in us. We really didn't have anything to sell. Now we're getting guys and winning games and getting players we weren't involved in [before] because of the trust they had in us. They took a risk, a huge risk and it paid off."
It didn't happen overnight, though. George Washington went 13-17 as Garino and McDonald started every game and Larsen was a lineup fixture nearly all season. Still, it was a feisty group that showed improvement as the season went along, and there was little question they would be the cornerstones of the program's long-term growth.
With the help of transfers Isaiah Armwood and Maurice Creek, the Colonials earned an NCAA tournament bid the following year. But from there it was a team that largely belonged to Garino, Larsen and McDonald, and they brought home a pair of postseason berths in their final two years.
"The best part of it has been seeing their maturation over the years," assistant coach Maurice Joseph said. "They came in as freshmen, lost a lot of close games. They were just deer in the headlights and didn't really know how to win college basketball games. They became tougher as they matured. They figured out ways to win and they stuck together. It's been an unbelievable process."
At this point, their strengths are evident. McDonald is one of the toughest players Lonergan has coached, an exceptional rebounder for his size who minimizes mistakes. Larsen is a strong interior player whose greatest gift is his deft passing. And Garino is a do-everything sort who can create easy points with his defense and is also an exceptional outside shooter.
"They're all brothers," junior forward Tyler Cavanaugh said. "They're so close. They built this thing up from when it was down and they trusted coach. They've been so good, so talented, and this has been such a balanced team all year. It's been so much fun on and off the court with these guys."
Some of the greatest fun came in the last two weeks after absorbing the sting of missing the NCAA tournament. Lonergan believed the Colonials were a victory away from landing in the field of 68, but knew entering Selection Sunday his team was NIT-bound.
At that point, he wanted to impress upon his seniors that there was still more to accomplish.
"I think we were always motivated," Garino said. "Not getting into the NCAA hurt us and we were very disappointed, but at the same time we knew we had a great opportunity ahead of us. This is not just any other tournament. This is a very prestigious tournament and it's an honor to play it."
George Washington survived its opener against Hofstra when graduate student Alex Mitola's jumper with 2.8 seconds left gave the Colonials an 82-80 victory. That seemed to relieve any lingering frustration, and George Washington then went to Monmouth and handled the Metro Atlantic's regular season champs 87-71.
"It's the second-best tournament in America, and we wanted to win," Larsen said. "Nobody wanted to go out and lose in the first round or the second round. We wanted to win the whole thing."
After dispatching Florida 82-77 in the quarterfinals, George Washington turned in two of its best showings of the season. It hammered regular season Mountain West winner San Diego State 65-46 before smothering Horizon champ Valparaiso in the title game.
"Over the years, we just got better with those type of games --- those must-win types," McDonald said. "I just know our focus was at an all-time high, especially during this NIT tournament. We just saw it increase and I couldn't be more proud right now."
The season-ending trip to New York was a fitting bookend to an adventure that started with a trip to Italy the summer before Garino, Larsen and McDonald began their freshman seasons. Garino scored in double figures in every game of the NIT as the Colonials knocked off four teams seeded ahead of them. McDonald had 10 assists and one turnover in his last two games.
And Larsen, Thursday's top scorer with 18 points, made eye contact with McDonald in the way teammates who completely know each others' abilities and proceeded to thread the late-game pass through the paint.
"Playing with players for four years, it means they're family to you," Garino said. "It gave us a little advantage. We know each other, on and off the court, very, very well, and you can see that."
After four years, George Washington knows this senior class as well. In the years to come, they'll return to the Smith Center and see a banner heralding their first-in-program-history accomplishment. It will serve as a reminder both of a great postseason run capped Thursday in New York and how far they brought their school during the span of their careers.
"It's definitely in the right direction and I think it will continue to grow," McDonald said. "Tonight was a perfect ending to the season."
Added Larsen: "We're champions. You can't leave on a better note than that."
