Colonials (5-1) Derail Patriots (3-4) in Battle of The Orange Line

The much-hyped “Battle of The Orange Line” turned out to be a huge success for the Colonial basketball team. Led by a career high 25 points by senior Damian Hollis and a fired up Smith Center crowd, the George Washington Colonials beat the George Mason Patriots 66-49 and improved their record to 5 and 1 on the season. Following a disappointing loss to Oregon State on Saturday, the Colonials scored the first 5 points and never lost the lead throughout the night as they clearly dominated George Mason in all facets of the game.

The Patriots were led by freshman Luke Hancock who scored a game high 15 points for the Patriots. The team was devastated by a first half injury to junior point Cam Long, who did not perform well after the injury. In addition, forward Mark Morrison was plagued by foul trouble and played just 17 minutes of the game. The Patriots only managed to shoot 36 percent from the field and were out-rebounded 43 to 30 by the Colonials

The Patriots only trailed 35-27 at the half, but the Colonials opened the half with a 22-4 run and led by as great a margin as 26 throughout the course of the game. The Colonials got a dominating performance by senior forward Damian Hollis, who scored a career high 25 points and pulled down 8 rebounds as well. Also chipping in for GW were Lasan Kromah with 8 points and Joesph Katuka, who scored 7 points in only 8 minutes of play. Senior Hermann Opoku also pulled down 8 rebounds, while Kromah and freshman guard Bryan Bynes grabbed 3 steals a a piece.

On the season, the Colonials improve to 5-1 overall and 3-1 in the newly renovated Charles E. Smith Center. George Washington had a clear home court advantage tonight as a fired up crowd led by the Colonial Army provided the team with the energy and support needed to ensure the victory. The Colonials will next take on the Midshipmen of Navy at the Verizon Center in the BB&T Classic this Sunday at 5 p.m. As always, you can hear the game live by tuning into WRGW at www.gwradio.com