LaSalle comes off a gut wrenching overtime loss to VCU on Saturday. They held a substantial lead late into the game and just could not hold on down the stretch in regulation.
Having three days off will help their cause as they are a team that lacks ideal depth, but going down to D.C. will be a challenge as they get ready for the Colonials of GW.
George Washington comes in on a four game win streak and they have defeated quality opponents during that run They were able to come from behind in beating George Mason on Saturday desire not having the services of lead guard Kethan Savage.
6’1 sophomore point Joe McDonald did an excellent job filling in for the talented Savage, and he is a reminder of the depth this team has when compared to a season ago. McDonald had 14 points in 30 minutes during the win. he went 2-3 from deep and had five assists to go with only one turnover.
This game will be more of a challenge for the GW back court as LaSalle’s group of guards has more talent and depth than they do. But the Explorers do lack ideal bodies at the small forward position, and that in turn could come into play here.
Both Maurice Creek and Patricio Garino are talented players for the Colonials and they figure to give the Explorers problems in this game. Both players are capable of getting to the low block in addition to having sound mid range games, and I’d expect to see some zone out of John Giannini’s club tonight.
Rohan Brown and D.J. Peterson are decent options off the bench, but neither is in the same ballpark as the GW forwards when looking at overall skill set. More importantly, I’m interested to see how LaSalle handles Isaiah Armwood in this game.
Armwood is a very active 6’9 presence for GW who loves to operate in the foul line area with the ball. He has been more active on the glass in the last month and a half, and he will be a bit of a match-up issue for LaSalle.
6’8 junior Jerrell Wright is an athletic player, but he got into foul trouble the first time these two met. In that game, Armwood had fifteen points to go along with 12 rebounds. Creek was held in check, but Garino did have a good outing.
The real issue for Gw came down to their ability to defend the LaSalle guards as mentioned previously. Tyrone Garland, Sam Mills and Tyreek Duran combined for 45 pints and 10 assists. They all played extensive minutes and their quickness regularly created trouble.
GW enters as a public darling with over 70% of the action on them tonight. This is an important rematch for them and they have no doubt been thinking about his since they lost up in Philadelphia back on January 9th.
I like the Colonials to rebound from that game and get the win, but covering the current spread of 5.5/6 could be a challenge. Situationally, it is a great benefit that LaSalle comes off the VCU game as they enter this one, but having Savage out hurts their cause as it makes their depth at the guard spot even more problematic.
