George Washington University Athletics
Men's Basketball Celebrates Senior Night Saturday
3/2/2017 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
| George Washington (17-13, 9-8 A-10) vs. Dayton (24-5, 15-2 A-10) | |
| Date, Time | Saturday, March 4 | 8:00 p.m. ET |
| Location | Charles E. Smith Center | Washington, DC |
| Coverage | CBSSN | AM 1500, TuneIn, WFED.com |
| Additional Information | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Notes |
TIPPING OFF: Riding a four-game winning streak which is its longest of the season, the GW men's basketball team will celebrate the careers of Tyler Cavanaugh and Matt Hart on Senior Night Saturday vs. regular season conference Champion Dayton at 8 p.m. on CBSSN.
LAST TIME OUT: In thrilling fashion, GW stormed back from an 18-point deficit to take a 67-66 victory at Fordham on Wednesday. Cavanaugh calmly sunk three free throws with 0.9 seconds remaining, after being fouled on a three-point attempt, to overcome a two-point deficit. Jordan Roland also proved clutch, scoring eight points in the final 3:21, while Yuta Watanabe was 6-of-6 from the field in the second half.
ABOUT DAYTON: The Flyers clinched the A-10 regular season crown following a 79-72 home win over VCU Wednesday night, their ninth-straight victory, which moved their record to 24-5 overall and 15-2 in conference. The senior-laden squad is led by fifth-year guard Charles Cooke, who averages 16.4 points, and backcourt mate Scoochie Smith who averages 13.6 points and has a team-high 125 assists. In the frontcourt, Kendall Pollard averages 13.7 ppg.
SERIES HISTORY: GW owns a narrow 17-16 edge and has won 12 of 15 meetings at home. The last two games in the Smith Center have been thrillers, with the Colonials coming out on top in overtime in each meeting. In 2013, GW won 81-80 on Isaiah Armwood's putback slam with 2.4 seconds left, and in 2015 the Colonials won 65-64 on Joe McDonald's buzzer-beating putback.
SENIOR NIGHT: Fans are encouraged to be in their seats early as GW honors the careers of Cavanaugh and Hart in a pregame ceremony. An All A-10 selection and the NIT Most Outstanding Player last year, Cavanaugh has scored 1,163 points in his two years with GW and has led the Colonials to 45 total wins. Hart has provided GW a long-range specialist in his two seasons, shooting 42 percent from three-point range and playing a key role this year and in GW's NIT Championship last season.
POTY CANDIDATE: Cavanaugh has proven himself as an A-10 Player of the Year candidate, taking his play to another level in conference games where he ranks 4th in rebounding (8.6 rpg) and sixth in scoring (18.1 ppg). In the last 11 games, he's averaging 20.5 points and 9.2 boards, with seven 20-point games and five double-doubles in that span.
FOUR IN A ROW: GW is on its longest winning streak of the season and its best in conference play since 2015 with victories over Duquesne, Massachusetts, George Mason and Fordham. A win over the Flyers would give the Colonials their longest A-10 winning streak since the 2014 NCAA Tournament team.
PROTECTING HOME COURT: Since 2013-14, GW has been one of the best teams in the Atlantic 10 at protecting home court. The Colonials own a 54-9 record, including 12-3 this year, for a .857 winning percentage, which is third-best in the conference. Only VCU (56-7, .889) and Dayton (58-8, .879) have a better home winning percentage in that stretch.
COMING THROUGH IN CRUNCH TIME: GW is 8-2 in games decided by five points or less, and has won three within the final 10 seconds. Cavanaugh hit a game-winning three with 8.2 seconds left at Temple, and Collin Smith erased a two-point deficit with a three-pointer with 3.5 seconds left that gave the Colonials a 68-67 win over USF on Dec. 3. Most recently, Cavanaugh knocked down three free throws with 0.9 seconds remaining to hand GW a 67-66 defeat of Fordham.
