Women's Basketball Back at Home to Face Mercer

Friday, December 21

Washington, D.C.

12 p.m.

George Washington University

Mercer

12/20/2018 9:54:00 AM | Women's Basketball

Colonials return to action Friday at noon after 11-day break

WASHINGTON - GW returns to action following an 11-day break for exams with a pre-holiday tilt against Mercer. Tip-off against the defending Southern Conference champion is scheduled for 12 p.m. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN+.

LAST TIME OUT: The Buff & Blue are looking to snap a three-game skid in the month of December following a 63-30 defeat at USF on Dec. 9. GW was unable to get much going on offense, shooting just 21.4 percent (12-for-56) from the floor in the game. The Colonials were just 1-of-14 from beyond the arc.

Defensively, GW held USF to 37.5 percent shooting through the first three quarters before the Bulls hit 7-of-11 (63.6 percent) shots in the fourth quarter to extend the margin. Sophomore Chyna Latimer was GW's top scorer with nine points, becoming the fifth different player this season to lead the Colonials in scoring in a game.

BALANCING THE LOAD: Balance has been a necessity for GW this season with seven different Colonials having scored double figures in at least one game. Six of the Buff & Blue's 10 players have either tied or set new career highs in scoring at some point this season. In addition to senior Mei-Lyn Bautista and sophomore Neila Luma, first-year Maddie Loder and redshirt-sophomore Olivia Gumbs, both of whom are in their first year in the program, have been the team's top scorer.

THE GOOD KIND OF D.C. SHUTDOWN: GW once again possesses a strong defensive unit, holding opponents to 60.0 ppg, the third-best mark in the A-10. The Colonials have held opponents to 60 points or less in five games and have limited eight of their 10 opponents to below their season average entering the game. The Buff & Blue boasted a top-50 defense nationally in 2017-18, allowing just 58.5 points per game. GW has finished among the top 50 in both years under head coach Jennifer Rizzotti. Dating back to her time at Hartford, Rizzotti's teams have allowed fewer than 60 points per game in four straight seasons.

SUMMING UP THE SCHEDULE: GW has faced the third-toughest schedule among A-10 teams, ranking 30th nationally in strength of schedule. Among conference foes, only Dayton (24) has seen a tougher slate. Based on the NCAA RPI report, GW has faced five teams (NC State - 3, Villanova - 33, Maryland - 43, Georgia Tech - 75, South Florida - 85) in the top 100 of the RPI. Mercer (94) is slated to become the sixth such opponent through the first 11 games.

A LOOK AT THE BEARS: Mercer wraps up its swing through D.C. after defeating Howard, 85-70, on Tuesday. The Bears have won two in a row and are coming off a season in which they finished 30-3 while claiming a perfect record in the SoCon. Mercer earned a No. 13 seed in the NCAA Tournament and fell to Georgia by just five. Led by SoCon Preseason Player of the Year KeKe Calloway, the Bears were projected to win their fourth straight SoCon regular season title in the preseason poll.

Calloway enters play Friday averaging 20.3 ppg and has already been named the SoCon Player of the Week twice and the Player of the Month for November. Fellow senior Amanda Thompson averages 10.9 ppg and a team-high 8.4 rpg after posting an impressive double-double of 21 points and 18 rebounds at Howard on Tuesday.