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Contributor

Dan Greene

The Hatchet's sports editor is a senior from Fairfield, Conn. majoring in journalism. He has written for The Hatchet since the fall of 2007, covering a wide variety of GW's sports teams including both men's and women's basketball. He also loves candy corn.
dgreene@gwhatchet.com

GW’s athletic programs have once again earned high NCAA marks, with 13 of 19 teams earning perfect Graduation Success Rate Report scores, up two from a year ago.

The teams earning the marks are women’s basketball, men’s and women’s soccer, women’s volleyball, men’s and women’s cross country, women’s rowing, women’s lacrosse, men’s and women’s swimming, men’s and women’s water polo and softball. Men’s water polo, men’s cross country and softball are new to the group of teams receiving perfect scores, with women’s tennis earning a 100-percent score in 2008 but earning a 75-percent score this year.

The report indicates that every student-athlete on those teams that enrolled between 1999 and 2002 graduated within six years or transferred in good academic standing.

No GW team had a GSR percentage below 75 in the report.

Eleven of the 13 teams earning perfect scores – all besides men’s and women’s water polo – are members of the Atlantic 10, which put GW first in the conference.

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As Coppin State closed what had been a nine-point gap against the GW women’s basketball team in the second half of Thursday’s game, there was one and only one collective memory GW head coach Mike Bozeman could cite as a rallying point for his young team: Tuesday’s season-opening win at North Texas.

“The only thing I could draw off of was the last game we just played,” Bozeman said with a laugh before explaining that he told his 10 underclassmen, “Okay, we’ve been here before. Just relax.”

Though there was little experience from which to draw, the young Colonials did not seem daunted in the face of a blown lead and a hot-shooting Eagles team, matching them bucket for bucket before pulling ahead and securing a 68-64 win to move to 2-0 on the season.

The teams were tied at 64 when freshman Megan Nipe knocked down a jumper for her first and only field goal to break the tie in the Colonials’ favor. Freshman Danni Jackson found sophomore Sara Mostafa for a short jumper just under a minute later to give GW a four-point lead that they held for the final 24 seconds.

Sophomore Tiana Myers led the Colonials with a career-high 18 points, with Mostafa adding 14 points to go with seven rebounds and four blocks.

Mostafa, who set career highs in all three categories Tuesday at North Texas after averaging just six minutes per game as a freshman last season, has quickly grown into an increased role and is quick to attribute her success to the play of her teammates.

“It helps a lot getting amazing passes from Danni,” Mostafa said. “She just makes it easy.”

Bozeman had similarly high praise for the 5-foot-3 freshman guard after the game.

“I like eight assists and one turnover,” he said, referring to Jackson’s statistics in the win when asked what he liked about her play. “I don’t have to say anything else.”

The Colonials enjoyed an 18-0 scoring advantage on fast breaks in the game, with Myers adding a handful of transition layups to arrive at her career-best point total.

“We just ran and they didn’t really get back on defense and then we capitalized on their mistakes,” Myers explained.

Bozeman said the team’s squandering of its large first-half lead was both an example of the team’s talent level and inexperience, but that he was ultimately satisfied with the game’s result.

“You’d rather learn your lessons through winning than learn lessons in losses, so I’ll take this close win,” he said.

GW’s season continues Sunday with a 1 p.m. game at Ohio.

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8:56 p.m. Booker intercepts the inbound pass and that’s all, folks. The Colonials hang on to win 68-64 to move to 2-0 on the season. Check back at www.gwhatchet.com later for more.

8:54 p.m. Jackson dribbles out about 15 seconds’ worth of clock and then drives and dishes to Mostafa, who knocks down a short jumper from the baseline to put GW ahead 68-64. Coppin State misses a three – a rarity tonight – on the other end and Shipp ends up with the ball, getting fouled. She misses both shots and Coppin State calls a timeout with 3.3 seconds on the clock, the same amount of time that remained when Shipp hit the game-winning shot Tuesday at North Texas.

8:52 p.m. Manley bounces the ball off of a foot – someone’s foot – and it goes out of bounds. Manley thought the ball hit Mostafa; the referee disagreed and said it hit Manley. It will be GW ball with 48.9 seconds left.

8:50 p.m. The Colonials grab a defensive rebound on the next possession, but Shipp loses her handle while bringing the ball up court and it goes out of bounds for a turnover with 58.6 seconds to go. It will be Coppin State ball after a timeout.

8:49 p.m. Nipe hits a jumper and GW has the lead, 66-64 with just over a minute to go.

8:47 p.m. Mostafa heads to the line and makes one of two to tie the game at 64 as we enter the final two minutes of regulation.

8:45 p.m. Jackson pulls up from mid-range and knocks down a jumper to regain the lead, but Downing answers with a jumper from the left wing to put the Eagles back ahead 64-63 with 2:10 to go.

8:43 p.m. Manley knocks down her shot to put Coppin State up 62-61.

8:41 p.m. Manley sneaks in the backdoor for a layup and is hacked from behind by Myers. Manley will head to the line for a free throw after an official timeout with the score tied at 61 and 3:56 on the clock.

8:39 p.m. Shipp gets a steal at the top of the key and then finds a streaking Jackson, who scores a breakaway layup to tie the game at 59. On GW’s next possession, Mostafa is fouled while shooting and makes both shots to put the Colonials up 61-59 with 4:28 to go.

8:37 p.m. The tie is short-lived, as Manley scores on the other end to put the Eagles ahead 59-57. There is now 5:40 left in regulation.

8:36 p.m. After Chanelle Downing connects on a long jumper for Coppin State, Mostafa answers with a mid-range shot from the baseline. The Colonials get a defensive stop and Myers makes two free throws on the other end to tie the game at 57 with 6:22 to play.

8:30 p.m. Shawntae Payne hits a long jumper and then a three for Coppin State and suddenly they lead 55-53 with just over eight minutes to go. Coppin State is putting on a shooting clinic, having now made eight of 10 three-pointers.

8:27 p.m. Cummings three; 51-50 GW; 10:18 to go. Coppin State has made seven of nine three-point attempts, with Cummings account for five makes on six tries.

8:24 p.m. Out of the timeout, Allums hits a straightaway three to make it a 51-47 GW lead, then Coppin State’s Crystal Whittington is whistled for traveling. There’s 11:02 left in the game.

8:22 p.m. Cummings with another three and GW’s lead has shrunk to one point with 11:37 left in the game. Bozeman has called a timeout to talk things over; he can’t be too satisfied with the team’s play this half. Since the break, the Colonials have been outscored 19-11.

8:18 p.m. Shante Cummings connects from deep to cut GW’s lead to four, but Mostafa responds with a layup on the other end. GW leads 48-42 with 13:21 on the clock.

8:16 p.m. Mostafa makes the second of two free throws and the Colonials lead 45-39 inside the final 15 minutes. GW is just eight of 14 from the foul line tonight.

8:14 p.m. H to the ippo dancing to “H to the Izzo” during a timeout.

8:12 p.m. Shipp enters the game and on her first offensive possession drives baseline for a layup, then finds Myers for a basket in transition to put GW ahead 44-37 with 15:30 to play.

8:09 p.m. On a basketball note, the Eagles are staging a surge, scoring on two straight possessions to cut the Colonials’ lead to four points approximately two minutes into the second half.

8:07 p.m. On a related note, Coppin State head coach Derek Brown is wearing his security credential around his neck.

8:07 p.m. The second half is underway and I would be remiss if I didn’t mention head coach Mike Bozeman’s suit, featuring a black blazer and pants with a navy shirt and navy-and-sky-blue striped tie. Also, Coppin State hit a three and Myers answered with a mid-range jumper. GW leads 39-31.

7:50 p.m. We head into halftime with the Colonials ahead 37-28 after Shipp scores in transition shortly before the break. GW is shooting well thus far, making 14 of 29 shots from the floor including three of eight from beyond the arc. Myers leads all scorers with 10 points and Booker is second on the team with eight points, six of which came on a pair of three-pointers. The team has registered 11 assists on its 14 baskets, with Jackson, Booker and Allums tied for the team lead with two apiece. Eight of the 10 Colonials in action have recorded assists. Mostafa has had another well-rounded game through one half, tallying four points, four rebounds and three blocks.

Also, the First Ladies just performed a routine in sparkling gold dresses, their third outfit of the night already.

7:42 p.m. According to the Tonic trivia question, Mostafa’s favorite band is Fall Out Boy. Just so you know.

7:40 p.m. Not much scoring of late from either team – there’s been just one basket in nearly four minutes – and Bozeman looks displeased as he calls timeout. Coppin State is shooting just 28.6 percent from the floor, while the Colonials have made 12 of 25 shots.

7:39 p.m. The Colonials are cold from the line. Jackson and Shipp each missed a pair of free throws, but GW still leads 32-20 with 4:18 left in the half.

7:31 p.m. Another nice play from Myers, who grabs a loose ball in the backcourt and, in one off-balance motion, tosses it underhanded with both hands to Jackson, who puts it off the glass for two. There’s an official timeout shortly thereafter and GW is up 32-18 with 7:08 on the clock.

7:30 p.m. Shortly after re-entering the game, Myers scores her second and third breakaway layups in transition off feeds from Nipe and Mostafa, respectively. Myers is leading all scorers with 10 points and the Colonials are up 30-18 with 7:39 to go before halftime.

7:26 p.m. Mostafa records her first block of the night after tallying eight at North Texas Tuesday and then Coppin State is whistled for traveling in the form of shuffling feet and sort of hopping without dribbling. The ref mimicked the act while signaling his call.

7:25 p.m. Jeanine Manley hits both and GW’s lead is cut to 22-16.

7:22 p.m. We’ve got an official timeout at the 10:06 mark and GW leads 22-14. Booker hit a three from the corner, but the Eagles scored on the next two possessions while Booker missed a second three-point try in between. They’ll also be getting a pair of foul shots on the other end of this First Ladies dance routine.

7:19 p.m. The Eagles’ Leola Spotwood hits a three to cut GW’s lead in half, but freshman Janine Davis immediately answers on the other end with a three of her own and classmate Shi-Heria Shipp adds a layup. GW leads 19-10 with 12 minutes left in the half.

7:14 p.m. A layup from Booker pushes the Colonials’ lead to 14-4 just inside of the 14-minute mark and prompts a Coppin State timeout. A few minutes earlier, sophomore Kay-Kay Allums – sporting some sweet black leg sleeves – came into the game and immediately buried a jumper, then fed Myers in transition for a fast break basket.

7:10 p.m. Mostafa hits a short jumper after draining a pair of free throws and GW leads 6-2 at the 16:38 mark. The game has already seen six turnovers, three from each team.

7:06 p.m. A quick start: Myers grabs the ball off the tip and buries a 15-foot jumper to give the Colonials a 2-0 lead.

7:02 p.m. The GW starters are being announced with ceiling lights out and a spotlight on the players. Pretty cool new perk of the renovations. The lineup: redshirt freshman Brooke Wilson, freshman Megan Nipe, sophomore Sara Mostafa, freshman Danni Jackson and sophomore Tiana Myers.

Sophomore Tara Booker is the noticeable absence from the starting lineup; I would imagine it’s due to the same meniscus troubles that limited her to 18 minutes Tuesday. She still managed 10 points and five rebounds in the win.

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Good evening and welcome to the live blog for the women’s basketball team’s first home game of the season against Coppin State. The extremely young Colonials started their season on the right foot Tuesday at North Texas with a dramatic two-point win on a basket from freshman Shi-Heria Shipp. Sophomore center Sara Mostafa, who averaged only six minutes per game last year, dominated the low post with 17 points, 11 rebounds and eight blocks, all team-highs and career-bests. With the Adair twins graduating after last season, Mostafa’s emergence in the season opener has to be encouraging for head coach Mike Bozeman and promising for the team’s future.

The visiting Eagles are 2-0 so far, having beaten a pair of Division II opponents – West Virginia State and St. Augustine’s – at home over the weekend. Coppin State, like GW, played in the WNIT last March and has appeared in five consecutive postseasons. They also reached the WNIT in 2007 and played in the 2005, 2006 and 2008 NCAA tournaments.

Having begun on the road after not having a preseason game, tonight will be the first opportunity many fans have to see the Colonials in action. With so many new faces among the team’s young roster – all 10 healthy players are underclassmen – it will be interesting to see them play without so many of the familiar faces GW observers have grown accustomed to seeing over the past few seasons.

The stands are pretty empty right now on both sides of the floor, but there are still more than 10 minutes until the opening tip. We’ll be back with the Colonials’ starting lineup once it is announced and updates throughout the game.

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9:24 p.m. GW wins 69-59. Check out Thursday’s Hatchet for more.

9:22 p.m. Twelve ticks to go and Bynes heads to the line for two as the fans start filing out.

9:21 p.m. Holland with a crazy layup in traffic; Ware fouled on the ensuing possession. The sophomore makes both for an eight-point lead with 35 seconds left.

9:20 p.m. Hollis makes both, giving GW a 65-57 advantage with 45 ticks to go. Also of note: BU has no timeouts left.

9:17 p.m. Holland has a trey rim in-and-out and Bynes gets fouled, hitting both, but Pellom is whistled for a foul on a three-point shot fake, sending Holland to the line for three. Holland hits two of three and Hollis is fouled after grabbing the rebound. He’ll shoot two with 46.3 to go and a 63-57 lead.

9:16 p.m. And we’re at everyone’s favorite point in a basketball game: intentional fouling. Hollis hits one of two and then Ware can’t handle the rebound, so the Terriers have the ball down six with a minute to go.

9:14 p.m. After Taylor hits both free throws, the Colonials take a 60-53 lead into the game’s final 70 seconds.

9:05 p.m. The fouling has begun, with Lowe nonchalantly grabbing a piece of Ware’s jersey with 2:06 on the clock and the Colonials leading 55-45. Ware will head to the line after a media timeout.

9:02 p.m. Taylor comes up big with a pair of buckets – the first on a mid-range jumper, the second on a layup in traffic – with a Bynes defensive rebound sandwiched in the middle to put GW ahead 55-43 with 3:21 on the clock.

9:00 p.m. Kromah with a very impressive up-and-under move through the lane pushes GW’s lead back to eight points. Kromah now has a game-high 17 points and GW leads with 4:30 left.

8:59 p.m. Strong misses both foul shots for BU.

8:55 p.m. Things are starting to come a bit unhinged for GW with 5:10 on the clock, as they’ve turned the ball over, picked up fouls, and missed shots, allowing BU to cut their lead to 49-43 as they head to the line for a pair of foul shots after Opoku picked up the team’s 10th foul of the half away from the ball while getting back on defense. The crowd is back into it, which can’t be good for this young Colonials team down the stretch.

8:47 p.m. With 7:54 left in the game, the Colonials are enjoying a 49-39 lead as Katuka gets ready to head to the line after an official timeout.

8:39 p.m. Kiss Cam! I don’t know what their deal is, but these two people refuse to kiss even after being put on the screen three times. Siblings? Friends with an awkward personal history? I guess we’ll never know.

8:37 p.m. With a hand in his face, Kromah hits a three – his fourth of the game – and GW leads 46-35 with 10:49 to go.

8:35 p.m. After extensive bouncing, Taylor’s foul shot falls, but Lowe answers with a lefty circus layup on the other end.

8:32 p.m. And we’re back! The Colonials now lead 42-33 with 11:50 to go, with Taylor heading to the line for a free throw following an official timeout after he was fouled while driving and scoring. Redshirt junior Travis King also hit a three-pointer a few minutes ago as the shot clock expired, much to the chagrin of the Terrier faithful. The Colonials are holding steady with their lead, staying aggressive and responding to BU baskets when they need to.

8:18 p.m. Ware hits a pair from the line to give GW a 33-25 lead after Bynes missed two on the last possesion. The Colonials are 9 of 11 from the line after shooting under 50 percent from the charity stripe in the opener on Sunday. We’ve got 15:43 left on the clock and I’m going to go see if I can figure out this whole photography thing.

8:15 p.m. All of a sudden everyone’s scoring, as the teams trade twos and threes (Kromah from three, Hollis from two for the Colonials) to make it a 31-25 GW lead with 17 minutes to play.

8:03 p.m. It hasn’t been particularly polished basketball thus far, with cumulative 30-percent shooting, 24 total turnovers and more collisions and loose-ball scrambles than I care to count, but all told the Colonials must be fairly happy with their 26-20 lead. After shooting just six three-pointers (two of which they made) against UNC-Wilmington Sunday, GW opened their scoring with a pair of treys and added a third from Kromah heading into the break.

They have played very aggressive, pesky defense, forcing a number of turnovers in the backcourt and stripping the ball inside on a couple of occasions. They already have six steals and four blocks, with Taylor having a team-high three takeaways. Kromah leads the team in scoring with seven points while Taylor and Ware are tied with four rebounds each. The Colonials have used their guards’ ability to grab long rebounds to push the ball in transition, which we should expect to see more of after halftime. The Terriers are unlikely to stay this cold from the floor, so the Colonials will likely need to continue to force turnovers and tempo if they want to maintain their advantage. I’ll be back with more after halftime.

7:55 p.m. The Colonials end the first half with four freshmen and Opoku on the floor and Bryan Bynes finds Kromah in the corner for a three-pointer as time expires to head into the break with a 26-20 GW lead.

7:52 p.m. Are these rims regulation size or what? Both teams are shooting under 35 percent from the field, a rate of success BU’s top three scorers exceed on average – from three-point distance. Opoku just hit a pair of free throws and GW leads 23-20 in the final minute of the first half.

7:47 p.m. Sorry for my absence; I was trying to take photos. Luckily not all that much happened, with the teams combining for just seven points in the past five minutes. The most noteworthy thing to occur was probably when BU completely lost control of the ball, only to have it hit one of the officials in the stomach and stay in play. The Terriers maintained possession and ended up drawing a foul to be sent to the line on the possession. The Colonials lead 21-20 with 2:10 remaining before halftime.

7:34 p.m. Carlos Strong connects from three for BU – who had been ice cold from beyond the arc – and then freshman Dwayne Smith drives and scores on a left-handed layup for the Colonials. 18-16 GW with 7:18 left in the half.

7:28 p.m. Kromah turns it over trying to force a pass inside to senior Hermann Opoku, then pokes it free from a BU player and causes a scrum for the ball that ends up in GW’s favor. A very nice recovery from the freshman on the play, who has been very aggressive on defense tonight along with the rest of the Colonials. They lead 16-11 midway through the first half.

7:24 p.m. After the teams trade turnovers and high-speed collisions, Holland throws down a big breakaway dunk that gets the BU crowd energized. It’s 12-9 Colonials just inside the first half’s 12-minute mark.

7:21 p.m. Edwards forces a five-second violation while defending Lowe as he tries to inbound the ball but cannot find anybody. On the other end, freshman David Pellom goes under the basket and comes out on the other side for a right-handed layup to put GW ahead 12-7. On the other end, Pellom takes a hard fall into the first row of seats going for a loose ball that is called out of bounds off the Terriers. There is 12:40 left in the first half.

7:17 p.m. Ware, who had a team-high 16 points at UNC-Wilmington, hits both shots. 8-5 GW with 15:15 left in the half.

7:15 p.m. We’ve got our first media timeout after Hollis and redshirt sophomore Jabari Edwards stop Pelage under the basket and GW pushes the ball in transition, resulting in sophomore Aaron Ware being fouled under the basket on a shot attempt. He’ll be going to the line after the break.

7:12 p.m. Katuka had a nice block inside on Jeff Pelage but BU’s O’Brien hit a three on the same possession, though Johnson answered on the other end. It’s 6-5 GW roughly four minutes into the game.

7:10 p.m. The Colonials have now thrown the ball away on two straight possessions, first when Johnson couldn’t find Katuka underneath and then just now when Hollis overthrew a lob to Kromah. GW is in a full-court press on defense and has been very aggressive in the half-court set as well. The Colonials still lead 3-2 with 17:38 on the clock.

7:08 p.m. Johnson blocks Lowe in the corner on a three, but BU recovers and scores. On the other end, Hollis finds Kromah who connects from three on GW’s first possession.

7:04 p.m. The lights are out for the BU intros as they play a team video set to a remix of “Lux Aeterna” from Requiem for a Dream fame. The lights came back on for the player introductions, however.

7:02 p.m. Your starting Colonials: sophomore Tony Taylor and freshmen Lasan Kromah and Tim Johnson at guard; senior Damian Hollis at forward; and junior Joseph Katuka at center. Same as the opener.

6:44 p.m. Layup lines to Wu Tang’s “Gravel Pit.” I like it. Also, senior Damian Hollis has been particularly vocal during warmups, smiling and welcoming the boos from the crowd as the Colonials took the court. He seems pretty loose and ready to go.

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Good evening and welcome to the very nice Agganis Arena on the campus of Boston University for tonight’s live blog of the men’s basketball game between the visiting Colonials and host Terriers. GW began their season with wins in this arena in 2006 and 2008 and opened up this year with a comeback win at UNC-Wilmington Sunday. The Colonials have beaten the Terriers in all six meetings since head coach Karl Hobbs took over in 2001, including wins in each of the last four seasons. GW leads the all-time series, which dates back to the 1958-59 season, 16-1. The lone loss came in the 1978-79 season.

BU, which was unanimously tabbed as the preseason conference favorite and lost its opening game at Iona Friday, features four returning starters from last season. Senior guard Corey Lowe, a product of nearby Newton North High School, and junior swingman John Holland were both unanimously voted to the America East Preseason All-Conference Team this year and sophomore forward Jake O’Brien was named the conference’s top rookie last year. All three of them average more than 36-percent shooting from beyond the arc, meaning GW will need to defend the perimeter if they’re going to have success tonight.

There was a relatively busy table set up at one of the entrances selling GW T-shirts, so there should be some support for the Colonials in Agganis tonight. Both teams are currently in the locker room, but I’ll be back with updates when starting lineups are announced and throughout the game. Also, just a note, if you don’t hear from me for a little while at some point, I may be taking photos. That’s right, it’s another double-duty night for me.

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While there hasn’t been much of a rivalry between GW and George Mason’s men’s basketball teams in recent years – this year’s meeting will be their first since 1998 – it would seem as though GW is really pushing to make the Dec. 2 home game against the Patriots a special one, recently launching a Web site devoted to drumming up support.

On the site, the game is billed as the “Battle of the Orange Line” in reference to the school’s shared Metro line and fans are encouraged to wear buff-colored clothing as part of a “Buff Out.” The main feature of the page is a well-done video hyping the game and the renewal of a rivalry between the two teams, encouraging fans to attend.

There is also a countdown to the game and a tally of how many tickets remain, as well as a link to purchase them. At the bottom, fans are provided with different ways to “spread the word” via Facebook, Twitter and an e-mail form. The athletic department has taken some criticism over the years for not marketing the team in general or games specifically, but this would seem to be part of a continued effort to be more proactive on the whole.

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6:51 p.m. Ware makes the second of two, UNCW’s Johnny Wolf misses a three, and Pellom is fouled with 2.1 seconds to go. Pellom misses both, but the clock runs out on the Seahawks’ last-minute hopes and GW wins nonetheless by a score of 76-71. Check out tomorrow’s issue of The Hatchet and www.gwhatchet.com for full coverage.

6:49 p.m. Interesting. Taylor misses both shots and Grant hits a three, cutting GW’s lead to 75-71 with 10 seconds left. Ware is going to the line for two. (Before Grant’s shot, Edwards had a strong block of a three-point attempt from Rendleman.)

6:47 p.m. Kromah makes just one of four foul shots over two possessions and the Colonials lead 75-68 after the Seahawks answer with a three. There are 21 seconds left.

6:45 p.m. Hollis fouls out while battling Downey for a rebound. Downey hits both and GW leads 74-65 with 50.1 seconds remaining. Hobbs calls a timeout before the ball is inbounded to talk things over.

6:43 p.m. Taylor connects with Edwards for a nifty alley-oop and the Colonials lead by nine with 1:07 left.

6:39 p.m. Edwards grabs a loose ball in the paint, finds Johnson at the perimeter, and the first-year guard beats Tomko down the court to score a layup. Taylor adds a short jumper on the next possession and GW leads 72-63 with 1:49 to play. UNCW calls a timeout and the Colonials look pretty happy heading into their huddle.

6:37 p.m. Tomko can’t catch up to a pass in the backcourt, which Johnson corrals and puts in for a three in transition to put the Colonials ahead 68-63 just inside of the three-minute mark.

6:35 p.m. Ware with a reverse layup, Hollis with a jumper near the top of the key, and GW leads 66-63 with 3:19 on the clock. This has become one heck of a game and Hollis, relegated to the bench for most of the game due to foul trouble, has really made his minutes count thus far down the stretch.

6:32 p.m. UNCW’s Ahmad Grant answers with a three of his own to regain the lead, but Hollis is fouled and hits one of two shots to tie it with 4:35 left.

6:30 p.m. Johnson drains a three, the Seahawks travel, and Hollis adds a trey of his own to give GW a 61-59 lead with 5:20 to play.

6:29 p.m. Hollis misses a pair of free throws but grabs a loose ball after Ware loses possession following the rebound. Hollis calls timeout while on the floor and the Colonials retain possession with 6:23 to play.

6:27 p.m. Pellom pins a Rendleman shot against the glass in transition, but is called for a foul during the put-back. Rendleman misses the first but hits the second. Hollis then replaced Pellom in the lineup and Opoku comes in for Edwards. UNCW leads 59-55 with 6:30 to go.

6:25 p.m. A very impressive defensive stand from Edwards just now, who altered a shot with his hands in the air and then swatted a ball out of the key and toward the perimeter. UNCW still leads 58-55 with 7:06 left.

6:18 p.m. While Rendleman sets up for a pair of free throws, Bynes is sternly warned by an official not to speak and seemed pretty surprised by the reprimand. Rendleman hits the first and misses the second, then Bynes is called for an offensive push while setting up the offense. No more than 10 seconds later, King is whistled for a non-shooting foul in the backcourt while defending the dribbler with his hands in the air.

6:16 p.m. With 9:02 to play and GW down by one basket, a four-foul Hollis returns to the court.

6:12 p.m. Pellom tips in a missed free throw from Ware (who had hit the first) and suddenly the Colonials trail by just two inside of the 11-minute mark.

6:08 p.m. Bynes hits it and the Seahawks call a timeout while trying to inbound the ball.

6:05 p.m. On the other end, Bynes drains a floater over a defender and is fouled in the process. He’ll shoot a free throw after a break at the 11:23 mark.

6:04 p.m. Freshman Bryan Bynes is whistled for two fouls on one possession, the second of which sends Downey to the line, where he misses the front end of a one-and-one. UNCW leads 51-43 with 12:22 to play.

5:59 p.m. Kromah and Pellom run a two-on-one break off an Edwards block of Tomko. Pellom’s dunk attempts misses, but he is fouled and hits both shots. The hometown boy now has eight points.

5:55 p.m. A whistle is blown during a loose-ball scramble and the foul is on… Hobbs. Tomko hits one of two free throws, then gets a traditional three-point play when he is fouled by King on a breakaway layup.

5:51 p.m. Hollis re-enters the game and about 30 seconds later, as he and Ware trap a Seahawk ballhandler, he is whistled for his fourth personal foul and removed from the game. He’s now got four fouls in four minutes and UNCW leads 45-38 with 15:56 left in the game.

5:46 p.m. Kromah sneaks around his man to steal the ball in the backcourt and then dishes to Taylor, who is fouled while shooting. Taylor banked in the first free throw and had the second rattle out one minute into the second half of play.

5:32 p.m. The Seahawks add a buzzer-beating put-back to head into the break up 41-32, answering GW’s small scoring surge with enough points for a relatively cushy lead at the break. Taylor and Kromah lead the Colonials with seven points apiece with seven GW players tied for the rebounding lead with two. Taylor is the only Colonial with more than one steal and assist, having two of each.

All told, it was not as bad of a half as it might have been considering Hollis and Opoku were reduced to complete non-factors by getting in early foul trouble. Some of the freshmen – Kromah in particular – stepped up to key a small comeback that kept the Colonials within range and Edwards held his own in the post for the most part. If GW’s big men can stay on the court and the Colonials can stop leaving Seahawks open on the perimeter for three-pointers, they have a chance to get right back in it and make a push in the second half.

5:23 p.m. Wholesale changes for GW, as Taylor, Bynes, Kromah, Pellom, and Katuka enter the game together. Interesting.

5:19 p.m. We’ve got a game. The pace and intensity seems to have picked up on the GW side and the Colonials now trail 30-25 with 3:03 to play in the half. Freshman Dwayne Smith had a very nice lay-in off the glass after driving from the three-point line on the last possession.

5:15 p.m. Kromah scores twice more, first cleaning up a miss by Katuka and then on a layup off a high post screen, and GW is now only trailing 27-21. There are five minutes left before the break.

5:12 p.m. Kromah is fouled while shooting from mid-range, but makes the shot nonetheless for the first field goal in what felt like weeks. He hits the free throw as well to make it 24-17 UNCW with 6:30 to play in the half.

5:08 p.m. Hey, look! Another foul, Taylor’s second and GW’s tenth. There was an odd non-reaction to this by everyone in attendance and those on the floor, as it seemed like everybody just kind of looked around in confusion as to which team it was on and why. Then some students came out to ride bikes and shoot layups during a timeout.

5:07 p.m. The foul tally, once 6-2 in UNCW’s favor, is now even at nine apiece after GW draws consecutive charges (King and then Pellom) and Kromah is fouled while driving. The fans are not happy with the calls and are likening them to bovine waste. The Seahawks lead 23-14 with 7:48 left until halftime.

4:59 p.m. Official timeout after another foul – the first, surprisingly, in almost two minutes – that will send Ware to the line when the break is done. The Colonials trail 23-12 now, with their last two baskets coming when Taylor bounced a pass to Johnson for a backdoor layup and Taylor got a steal near midcourt and broke away for an uncontested layup. There’s 10:18 remaining in the first half.

4:56 p.m. Downey drives, scores, and is fouled, missing the free throw; on the other end, GW is called for a travel. There have been 14 fouls and I don’t know how many other whistles in the game’s first eight minutes.

4:53 p.m. It gets worse. Hollis re-entered the game, drove to the basket, collided with a defender, and was called for his third personal foul of the game. He went back to the bench with 13:12 left in the first.

4:51 p.m. Not a good trio of possessions for GW there. Tomko, dribbling idly as the shot clock was about to expire, chucked up a long three and hit it, then Edwards was whistled for a three-second violation on the other end. Downey hit a third three on the ensuing possession and the Sehawks lead 17-6 with 13:45 to play in the half.

4:46 p.m. Senior Hermann Opoku picks up his second personal foul – GW’s sixth – at the 16:17 mark and is replaced by redshirt sophomore Jabari Edwards. Hollis and Opoku are now both out of the game with two fouls apiece. Twenty-one seconds later Montez Downey drains his second straight three to put the Seahawks ahead 11-4. GW head coach Karl Hobbs took a timeout in response.

4:40 p.m. Freshman David Pellom, a Wilmington native, subs into the game and the crowd gives a pretty big cheer, some of them standing. I thought it was because of him at first but Tomko just came into the game for the Seahawks at the same time, so that probably explains it. UNCW leads 5-4 with 16:48 to play in the half.

4:38 p.m. Timeout GW after the Seahawks take a 5-2 lead on a put-back dunk from freshman Keith Rendleman. Hollis is on the bench now, having been replaced by sophomore Aaron Ware.

4:36 p.m. Hollis, who scored on GW’s opening possession, picks up his second foul of the game at the 18:18 mark in the first half. The game has already featured five personal fouls and a traveling call. UNCW leads 3-2.

4:32 p.m. The Seahawks lineup is indeed Tomko-less, so it would appear they will be without the services of arguably their two best players this afternoon.

4:30 p.m. Starters: sophomore Tony Taylor, freshman Lasan Kromah, senior Damian Hollis, freshman Tim Johnson, and junior Joseph Katuka.

4:26 p.m. Still a few minutes from the tip, but injured freshman center Daymon Warren is in uniform and participating fully in layup lines. Last I heard he was still expected to miss some time after injuring his finger about six weeks ago – at last week’s media day, Hobbs said he still wasn’t involved in drills – but he’s at least healthy enough to shoot around with everyone.

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So here we are. It’s a beautifully warm afternoon here in Wilmington, N.C., which is irrelevant to those not here and the basketball about to be played. The Colonials and host Seahawks are both sooting around with just under 14 minutes until opening tip.

This will be the Seahawks’ first home game after dropping their season-opener 79-68 at Appalachian State Friday. Preseason all-conference second team pick Chad Tomko missed the game due to injury and 6-foot-9 center John Fields, who led the team with 21 points and seven rebounds in the game, earned a flagrant foul call and was automatically suspended for today’s contest per Colonial Athletic Association rules. If Tomko is still too injured to play, it would certainly appear to be a favorable matchup for GW.

This game is being played under slightly different circumstances than the last time these two teams met, when a nationally-ranked GW team made a huge second-half comeback to knock off the Seahawks in the first round of the 2006 NCAA tournament. Now UNC-Wilmington is coming off of a seven-win season and was picked last in its conference while GW has won 19 games over the past two years.

I’ll have your starting lineups as soon as they’re announced and be back with updates throughout the game – and maybe warmups and halftime too.

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In addition to today’s story on the men’s basketball program’s rebuilding process, here are a few interesting quotes that were left on the cutting room floor:

Head coach Karl Hobbs

On what he learned the past two seasons:
“That was the biggest lesson, to maintain the character first and then the player second.”

On whether he is out to prove himself this season:
“I think every year you have to prove yourself because we’re in the business of what have you done for me lately. It is what it is. People don’t want to know what you did yesterday. They want to know, what are you gonna do today? They want to know how you’re gonna bring these ships in. They don’t care how rocky the water is. They don’t care about how bad the storm is. They just want to know how you’re gonna bring those ships in today.”

On looking back at the team’s success from 2004 through 2007:
“When we went through that run, people always said, ‘Oh, can you maintain it?’ I always felt like hey, you know, clearly we were overachieving. Those were milestones… When you’re going through it, you’re working so hard, you’re exerting so much energy, and you’re so into preparing for the next game, you don’t realize what you have accomplished along the way. When you look back and you look at all those things, you go, ‘Really?’ We lost one game that year in the regular season. We went undefeated in the Atlantic 10.”

On his general goals for the program:
“Just to consistently be a team every year that puts itself to be in the position to be in the NCAA tournament every year. And that’s a hefty dream to have. That’s gonna keep you working your tail off every year. You’re gonna have to not make many mistakes in recruiting. You gotta almost do everything right and you gotta do it consistently and that’s a hard thing to do, but that doesn’t mean that every year you can’t give 100 percent effort to try to make sure that happens.”

On the outside pressure and discontent last season:
“When you’re a basketball coach, you’re in the public eye. And so you can’t go around tossing bricks back at everybody that tosses bricks at you. If someone raises an issue that’s legitimate, you listen, you take it in, and you make the change. If it isn’t, then you move on. So I don’t waste a lot of time focusing on that and tossing the bricks back and forth. That comes with the business of being a coach. That’s what we do… Everybody’s got answers. Every coach will tell you that. Everybody has coached a better game than we did, but that’s part of it and that’s what makes sports a great thing. Everybody has an opinion.”

On whether the outside pressure and discontent bothered him:
“What bothered me is not rebounding the basketball. What bothered me is us turning the ball over. What bothered me is us not finishing plays. What bothered me is us not finishing plays down the stretch when you had an opportunity to win, that’s what bothers me.”

On the goals and expectations for this year:
“It’s not where we’re picked, it’s not any of those things. Stay focused on the process. Don’t look to the left; don’t look to the right. Just stay focused on what we need to do as a team. Try to get back to developing a consistent system, that’s the key. Get back to a consistent system based on sound fundamentals.”

On the team’s perspective entering this season:
“I always joke with the players that hey man, we are a team that, once the season starts, once we get on the boat, we are taking off. Once we get to the other side of the island, we are burning the boat. That means you can’t go back. Once we start, you can’t go back. So that means at that point, it’s either we conquer or we perish. That’s it.”

Director of Athletics Jack Kvancz

On the decision to retain Hobbs:
“I have seen no change in Karl from when I hired him nine years ago and today in terms of being a person… If he was okay then, let’s get some players and see what happens.”

On the importance of players to good basketball teams:
“On a Sunday afternoon in a park, the best players stay on. Who’s coaching them?”

On the importance of building through freshmen, rather than transfers or junior college players:
“If I’m building a house, I don’t want to build it on sand. I want to build it on concrete. I want to have a nice foundation.”

On the basic solution to the problems:
“Get some players and win some games and then we’ll put this to bed.”

On how he thinks Hobbs will do in the rebuilding process:
“I’m optimistic. I do trust, because he’s done it, that he can do it again.”

Senior Vice President of Student and Academic Support Services Chernak

On Hobbs’s energy and demeanor entering this season:
“I think that he realizes that it’s time to turn over a new leaf.”

On comparing this current situation to that inherited by Hobbs in 2001:
“It was a similar situation I guess, but not quite as bad. This one with Karl is, so to speak, a little more self-imposed. It wasn’t another coach that left the cupboard bare; he left the cupboard bare.”

On the new hot dogs at the Smith Center concession stands:
“I had a tasting. Mo, you know, from Sodexo, the manager? He’s been researching on hot dogs. You know, what kind of hot dogs to have at the games, and he wanted it to be a great hot dog. He said to me, ‘Look, even if it’s a terrible game and you lose, I want people leaving the Smith Center saying wow, that’s one of the best hot dogs I’ve ever had.’ I go, ‘Wow, I’m glad you feel that way, Mo.’

“So he goes, he does this research and now he’s discovered this hot dog, it’s by Nathan’s – but it’s a special Nathan’s hot dog. It’s skinless, it’s all-beef, no preservatives, it’s bigger and we’re gonna grill them and then serve them, so they’re actually gonna be, you know, on the barbecue. So none of this like boiled crap that’s sitting in water for like five hours. Fresh, from the grill, into the package, and then he does research on the package to make sure that it can have the condiments in it and all that so you just get it and everything’s there.

“It was delicious… Really good – I mean, this is like a great hot dog. So the moral of the story is every single aspect of what we want to do is have a better experience at the games. That’s part of the change.”

On why John Kuester wasn’t fired after going 1-27 in 1988-89:
“We weren’t just going to make a termination unless we knew we were going end up with an improved situation. Just to make a change to make a change, unless you end up with someone that you feel has the competency to correct what the problems were that got you to the losing state, then it doesn’t make sense. You’ve got to actually know those solutions before you make a decision.”

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Wednesday, Nov. 11, 2009 6:45 p.m.

Stadler named to A-10 first team

Men’s soccer senior Andy Stadler, who scored 13 goals in 13 matches this season, was named to the Atlantic 10 All-Conference first team, the conference announced today.

Stadler’s 13 goals led the A-10 in the regular season and pushed him to fourth on GW’s all-time list, with his 1.00 per-game average being the best in NCAA Division I. The Wisconsin native can add the honor to a list that already includes being named to the first team last season, the second team in 2007 and the all-rookie team in 2006. This year he was also one of 38 preseason nominees for the prestigious Hermann Trophy, which is given to the nation’s top player.

Also earning conference honors was freshman teammate Seth Rudolph, who was named to the league’s all-rookie team after tallying four goals and an assist in 17 matches. His four scores tied him with redshirt senior Mike Rollings and sophomore Yoni Berhanu for second on the team.

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Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2009 5:45 p.m.

Basketball Media Day!

This afternoon the GW men’s and women’s basketball teams both held their media day events, which meant that each team had three or four players sit at tables as reporters walked around to each one before everyone sat down for the big press conference from the head coach. Not very much news typically comes out of these things, but they’re good for getting a pulse on things heading into the season (general update: everyone is excited, everyone is working hard, everyone is ready for the season to start) and getting to know some of the players.

But before we get into all of that, people had some questions they wanted asked. Here are your answers:

  • Redshirt junior Travis King was, unfortunately, not made available to the media. But! At the open practice event a few weeks ago, King said he is “100 percent, ready to go.”
  • Junior Joseph Katuka was the only of the three big men at the event, but he said his role hasn’t changed, it’s just that he will be playing more. He said that the things being asked of him, specifically rebounding, are the same as before and that having senior Hermann Opoku and redshirt sophomore Jabari Edwards helps because they are all sharing the burden of low-post production.
  • I asked sophomore Tony Taylor about what the players do to foster support and turnout. Besides organized events like the Colonials Run, Taylor said that he and his teammates are all very social and that they try to get friends and other students that they meet to turn out and support the team. As a personal aside, this year’s men’s team does seem to be more extroverted and outgoing than any I have seen before. They should be plenty visible on campus, the freshman class especially.
  • To be honest I forgot to ask about the towel thing, but I’m about 99-percent sure they do it to keep track of who is subbing in and out so that every person entering the court has a corresponding teammate leaving it. It’s not a unique practice and, well, it’s not always foolproof either.

For the men, Katuka, Taylor, senior Damian Hollis and sophomore Aaron Ware were made available, in addition to head coach Karl Hobbs; for the women, it was sophomores Tiana Myers and Tara Booker and freshman Danni Jackson, as well as head coach Mike Bozeman. Because the players weren’t there the whole time, I didn’t get a chance to speak with Ware, Hollis, or Booker.

I had a good conversation with Myers, however, who told me about what it was like growing up as a left-handed basketball player when everyone is first taught how to defend righties and being a self-described “military baby,” born in at a U.S. Air Force base in Japan and bouncing around the states until her family settled down in Maryland when she was six.

I met Jackson, who seems like the team’s most-hyped newcomer, for the first time and she seemed pretty comfortable in the media setting despite being new to college basketball. She said she looks to Chris Paul and Dwyane Wade as inspirations for her playing style, explaining that both have the ability to score and shoulder the offensive load but also excel at setting up teammates for buckets. She said she’s looking forward to doing the former for GW this season.

During the men’s time, Katuka told me about how he is heeding the coaching staff’s advice to slow his offensive game down in order to keep it under control and not rush things. He also said he worked on his strength and put on some weight this offseason, laughing when he pointed out that we could look at the media guide and see the increase in his listed weight.

Taylor’s excitement for this season was very apparent as soon as we started talking. He said he has taken on more of a leadership role in his second season and that all of the Colonials have been leaders, making sure the team’s half-dozen freshmen get acclimated to the school and team. He also said he is looking forward to playing in the team’s up-tempo offense this season and that they will have the roster depth to wear opposing teams down.

As far as news goes, that’s pretty much it. There were some other things of interest here or there, but most of that will be covered in Thursday’s Basketball Preview, a six-page section with seven stories and comprehensive coverage of both teams to prepare you for their upcoming seasons. I’m excited to run it, so I hope you’re excited to read it too.

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This post was written by Hatchet Reporter Neil Sharma.

The GW men’s basketball team definitely seemed to take care of business with a convincing 78-44 win over Division II West Georgia in Saturday afternoon’s preseason exhibition, but while head coach Karl Hobbs said he is happy with the victory, he still thinks there are things his team needs to work on.

“A concern that I have is our shot selection, particularly from three-point range,” said Hobbs. “Also understanding what’s a good three. I think we’re a very good shooting team, we have good shooters; but I think we had some good shooters taking bad shots today.”

GW took a number of threes early on in the game, making only three of twelve in the first half. They were not much better in the second half, connecting on two of eight attempts to finish 5-for-20 overall. Luckily for GW, West Georgia was worse, making four of their 20 three-pointers for the game.

Hobbs also said he was not happy about his team’s turnovers. They had 18 in the game.

“I think we gotta do a little bit better job at taking care of the ball,” he said. “We’ve gotta focus a little better on our half-court execution.”

Despite forcing 27 turnovers themselves on defense and winning the turnover battle, Hobbs said he thought the Colonials’ defense could improve.

“(I) wasn’t too pleased about our man-to-man defense in the first half,” Hobbs said. “That’s gonna be a real challenge for us because we’re young and we’re playing so many young guys who are playing college basketball for the first time. Being able to read screens and talk their way through it is gonna take some time.”

In the end, it was a win for the Colonials, one that included signs of promise before the regular season begins.

“Overall, I thought the young guys played well and once we settled in during the second half, we were fine,” Hobbs said.

For a young team with six freshman and only two seniors, mistakes will inevitably happen. The challenge for GW this year will be to learn how to eliminate those mistakes in a short amount of time with players who are not overly experienced. But with a team like GW, one with a lot of raw talent that plays an exciting brand of basketball, you never know what could happen.

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