George Washington University
Harvard
Men's Basketball Hosts Harvard in Saturday Matinee
12/19/2019 3:28:00 PM | Men's Basketball
THE MORE YOU KNOW: With a win against Harvard, the Colonials would pull over .500 for the first time since being 8-7 on Jan. 3, 2017.
LAST TIME OUT: A strong second half led GW over then-undefeated Delaware, 66-56, on Dec. 7 at the Smith Center. Armel Potter led the Colonials with 19 points, and big man Arnaldo Toro had 12 points and a team-best 17 rebounds for his third double-double of the season.
ABOUT HARVARD: The Crimson enter Saturday's contest as winners of three of their last five games. Harvard had an opportunity earlier this season to play in Toronto as part of the James Naismith Classic and then headed to Orlando to compete in the Orlando Invitational. In Orlando, the Crimson knocked off Texas A&M before falling to Maryland and USC. Like GW, the Crimson have sat idle since an 89-55 win over UMass on Dec. 7. Bryce Aiken leads the Crimson with 18.2 points and 1.5 steals per game. Aiken missed the first four games of the season but went on a tear with a 32-point outing against Holy Cross and 30 points against Maryland. Fellow guard Noah Kirkwood is second on the team averaging 11.2 points per contest and a team-best 3.4 assists per game.
SERIES HISTORY: Did you know that it took about 100 years after GW and Harvard started their basketball programs for them to face each other in 2008?… Since then, the Colonials and Crimson have met eight times in the past 11 seasons. Harvard holds a slight edge over the Buff & Blue, 4-3, after defeating GW last season in Boston. Head coach Jamion Christian is 1-0 all-time against Harvard after a 67-64 win while at Siena.
AP STYLE GUIDE: Potter has turned into one of the most consistent offensive threats for GW over the last six games. Since heading to the Bahamas, Potter has reached double figures in all six games and reached 20 or more points four times. Potter has also been a mainstay at the free throw line during the stretch connecting on 81.3 percent of attempts. Since switching over to become the team's primary ball-handler against Morgan State, Potter has recorded at least three assists in all seven games.
BATTLE LINES: Rookie Jamison Battle has already made a name for himself in Foggy Bottom in several ways. He became the first Colonial under Christian to earn an Atlantic 10 weekly award when he was named the conference's Rookie of the Week award after a terrific weekend at the Islands of the Bahamas Showcase. Second, he is the first GW rookie in more than two decades to hit at least one 3-pointer in each of his first 10 games. In the 1999-2000 season, SirValiant Brown made at least one triple in 10 straight games to start his collegiate career and finished the campaign with a long ball in 29 of 30 contests. Finally, Battle is tied as the nation's best newcomer averaging 3.20 three-point field goals per game.
DEFEND THY THREE: The Colonials are sixth in the NCAA in 3-point defense (24.6%), a staple of Jamion Christian's defensive style of play. Last season, the Colonials finished the season 257th while allowing the opposition to shoot 35.6 percent from behind the line.
