Atlantic 10: Who Are Next Season’s Favorites?
By Rakesh Bi
5. George Washington Colonials
Feb 14, 2015; Washington, DC, USA; George Washington Colonials guard/forward Patricio Garino (13) shoots the ball in the second half against the Virginia Commonwealth Rams at Charles E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Amber Searls-USA TODAY Sports
GW came into the 2013-14 season as the possible surprise team in the Atlantic 10, thanks to promise from then-freshman Kethan Savage and incoming recruit Yuta Watanabe. Several experts, including Jon Rothstein of CBSSports.com, projected them to finish second and contend with VCU for the conference. Instead of meeting or even surpassing these expectations, coach Mike Lonergan and the Colonials finished sixth and were easily knocked out in the second round of the NIT by top seed Temple.
Without a doubt, the biggest change that George Washington will have to adjust to is the loss of Savage, who shocked his (former) fans when he announced that he would transfer to Butler in 2016-17, meaning that he won’t be eligible to compete in D.C. in the upcoming season. Fortunately, Lonergan was quick to act, successfully drawing Dartmouth sharpshooter Alex Mitola to GW for next fall. The Colonials have already convinced guards such as Seton Hall’s Jaren Sina to join their program, but they will be forced to wait another year.
Mitola may not match 6’3″ Savage as a rebounder or even as an individual player, but his addition will be key to deepening George Washington’s back court, which, with the transfers of Nick Griffin and Darian Bryant, has been frighteningly shallow outside of Joe McDonald and Patricio Garino. On the other end, Yuta Watanabe needs to shake off last season’s inconsistency in order to give Kevin Larsen a hand in filling in for the senior John Kopriva.
As Lonergan finds himself in front of a group of more matured players and two star seniors, things will only go up for his team in the upcoming season. He does not have all the weapons he wished for, but they will be more than enough to place in the top five.
Next: VCU Rams