George Washington University Athletics
George Washington University
Massachusetts (A-10 First Round)
Men’s Basketball Opens A-10 Tournament vs. Massachusetts
3/12/2019 8:38:00 AM | Men's Basketball
The Colonials and Minutemen tip-off at 1 p.m. Wednesday in Brooklyn
TIPPING OFF: After wrapping the regular season the GW men's basketball team resets for postseason play as the #12 seed in the Atlantic 10 Championship, facing #13 seed Massachusetts on Wednesday. The Colonials are playing in the first round for the second time since the tournament switched to its current format, having defeated Fordham on the opening day last year.
SERIES HISTORY: GW has won six straight in the series and owns a 42-29 advantage all-time. In the only meeting this season, the Colonials shot their way to a 79-61 victory with .551 accuracy from the field, a high-water mark in conference play. Behind the marksmanship and steady play of starting guards Maceo Jack (game-high 20 points), Armel Potter (19 points, team-high four assists, 0 turnovers), DJ Williams (15 points) and Justin Mazzulla (12 points, 6-of-6 FT), the Buff and Blue backcourt dominated the action. GW and UMass last met in the A-10 Championship in 2014, when the Colonials won an 85-77 quarterfinals matchup.
AT THE A-10 CHAMPIONSHIP: The Colonials have won their opening game five straight years, and won the Championship in 2005 and 2007.
MACEO'S MARK: After averaging 2.8 points as a freshman, Maceo Jack has made a big jump in production as a sophomore, averaging 11.3 points on the season. Jack's increase in scoring is the second largest in the league. The Buffalo, New York, native leads the team in 3-point field goal percentage (.355) and 3-pointers made (61). Jack has been at his best in A-10 play, averaging 13.5 points which is second on the team and 20th in the conference. He's hit double figures in scoring in 18 of the last 22 games, which tops the team in that stretch. His five games with 20 or more points are also tied for the team lead with DJ Williams.
JAVI'S JUMP: Since being inserted into the starting lineup in December in the place of injured captain Arnaldo Toro, sophomore Spaniard Javier Langarica has shown steady growth. He's proven to be a fast learner on the court, now leading the team in rebounding and double-figure rebounding games (7). He's brought his best in the last four games, nearly averaging a double-double with 9.0 points and 11.8 rebounds. In addition to speaking the language of basketball, he's tri-lingual in Spanish, French and English, making his case to be the Most Interesting Man on the GW roster. An excellent student in the classroom, Langarica is majoring in systems engineering and holds a 3.288 GPA.
TIP-INS: Justin Williams has set new career highs in scoring in each of the last two games, first scoring 11 at Fordham before registering 18 in the regular season finale vs. George Mason … described as an "energetic ball of muscle" by the good doctor John Giannini, Williams has become the Colonials' top option off the bench … leading scorer DJ Williams will look to snap out of a mini-slump when the Colonials arrive in Brooklyn; the Chicago native has failed to hit double figures scoring in the last four games, after scoring 10 or more in the previous 11 straight.
