ODU Men's Basketball Falls to George Washington, 78-70

By Harry Minium

NORFOLK, Va. – For most of the game Saturday afternoon the Old Dominion men’s basketball team played on even terms against an Atlantic 10 team with a much better record and resume.

But George Washington kicked its offense into gear in the final eight minutes, took a 13-point lead and held off an attempted ODU rally to defeat the Monarchs 78-70 at Chartway Arena Saturday afternoon.

ODU (3-7) was coming off its best victory of the season, an 88-83 win over William & Mary on Monday in which the team made strides defensively and in playing more cohesively.

ODU also played well against George Washington (8-2) one of the better teams on ODU’s non-conference schedule. But Mike Jones, ODU’s first year head coach, took no solace in coming close.

“None,” Jones answered when asked how much encouragement he took away from what was mostly a good effort.

“I truly believe that we are a team that is capable of winning basketball games.

“This is a tough one, a tough one to accept. This is a game where I really felt like we could have won. A game we should have one. The breakdowns we had, just the things we didn’t do that we needed to do, really cost us.”

The game was played on near-even terms through the first 32 minutes. ODU led by as many as seven points in the first half. There were 10 lead changes and eight ties.

ODU trailed by a point, 56-55, with 10:08 left when the wheels came apart. GW outscored the Monarchs 15-3 over the next five minutes and appeared to take control.

The Monarchs made just one of seven shots and had three turnovers during that stretch.

“We had a lack of focus, a lack of toughness,” point guard Jaden Johnson said.

“I feel like were right there. We just slacked in that moment and had a lack of focus and it cost us.”

Johnson, the true freshman from Waldorf, Maryland, continues to be a bright spot for the Monarchs. He had a career-high 16 points, seven assists, four rebounds and a steal, and came off the court for only 33 seconds.

Devin Ceaser finished with 16 points and Stephaun Walker had 13 points and 11 rebounds.  Sean Durugordon had nine points and 11 rebounds.

Darren Buchanan Jr. gave the Revolutionaries their 13-point lead when he picked off a pass and dunked.

The Monarchs briefly rallied and brought a crowd of 5,109 to its feet.

Ceaser made a three-pointer, and followed with two more baskets and with 4:06 left, the Monarchs trailed by seven, 72-65.

A minute later, Walker made one of two free throws to trim the lead to six.

But over the next three minutes the Monarchs missed four free throws and two shots. Forced to foul in the final seconds, GW made five of six free throws to salt away the victory.

With 7-foot center Caelum Swanton-Rodger on the bench in foul trouble, Ben Nacey, the 6-8 freshman from Virginia Beach’s Cox High School, saw some unexpected playing time. He had two points, two rebounds and two blocked shots in eight minutes.

“Ben is probably our most capable offensive post player because of his touch around the basket,” Jones said. “He hasn’t been fully healthy pretty much all year.

“He’s gone through a stretch now where he has been healthy. So tonight, we put him out there and see what’s going to happen. And he gets a bucket right away.”

ODU outrebounded GW, 40-36, and outscored the Revolutionaries in the paint, 32-30.  And while the Monarchs had 14 turnovers, GW scored 18 points off turnovers. The revolutionaries outscored the Monarchs, 16-7, in fast-break points.

Jones said ODU’s turnovers were critical.

“Our turnovers hurt,” he said. “We had a lot of live turnovers. Theirs went out of bounds.”  

“No offense to GW and the scoreboard says differently,” Jones added. “But I feel like we should have won tonight.”  

The Monarchs take a week off for exams before returning on Sunday, Dec. 15, to host Northeastern at Chartway Arena.

The 1 p.m. game is a doubleheader with the ODU women's basketball team, which hosts East Carolina at 3:30 p.m. in the annual Anne Donovan Classic.

The game is named for the late Anne Donovan who was an ODU All-American who helped lead the Monarchs to two national championships.