The No.1-seeded Monmouth Hawks take on the No.4-seeded George Washington Colonials in the second round of the NIT tournament at Multipurpose Activity Center. The game begins at 7:00 pm ET on Monday, Mar. 21 and can be seen on ESP and ES3.
The Hawks come into this game on a high note after topping Bucknell 90-80 in the 1. Justin Robinson led all scorers with 23 points on 8-for-14 shooting. The Colonials, meanwhile, are coming off an 82-80 win over Hofstra in the 1. Kevin Larsen played well for George Washington, accumulating 16 points, seven rebounds, and seven assists.
Points could be at a premium in this matchup between two of the nation’s best defenses. Monmouth ranks fifth in the nation in defensive efficiency (97.4), while George Washington is 23rd (102.4). Also, the Colonials commit the 16th-fewest errors in the nation (TO% of 16.9%), while the disruptive defense of the Hawks causes the seventh-most (opponents’ TO% of 20.4%).
The Hawks have gone 28-7 Straight Up (SU) and 21-12 Against The Spread (ATS). The Hawks are one of the best in Division I in terms of free throw percentage, shooting a stellar .767 from the free throw line. Crossing over to the defensive side of the court, opposing offenses have been stifled by the Hawks, allowing a field goal percentage of only .392.
As for their opponent, the Colonials have 24-10 SU and 14-17-1 ATS records. The Colonials are shooting lights out from the foul line so far, with a .756 free throw percentage that ranks 15th in Division I. Switching gears to the George Washington defense, the Colonials have one of the best opponent field-goal percentages in the nation at .436.
Monmouth and George Washington will be facing off for their first head-to-head game in recent seasons.
Predictions: SU Winner – GW, ATS Winner – GW
Notes
“Monmouth is 5-2 ATS in its last 7 games “.
“Monmouth is 14-2 SU in its last 16 games “.
“The total has gone UNDER in 12 of Monmouth’s last 17 games “.
“Monmouth is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games at home”.
“Monmouth is 17-2 SU in its last 19 games at home”.
In its last game, George Washington won by a margin of two points. Monmouth is 3-2 in games decided by a margin of three points or less. George Washington has a 3-1 record in close games.
The Monmouth Hawks have the best defense in the country, giving up just 97.4 points per 100 possessions. The George Washington Colonials rank 49th in offense, scoring 112.4 points in the same number of possessions.
The George Washington Colonials average a field goal percentage of 44.4% this season. The Monmouth Hawks have a winning 6-3 record in games where opponents have a FG% of 44.4% or greater.
On average, Monmouth attempts 21.0 three pointers and George Washington attempts 18.0. Both teams have winning records when they have 20 or more three point attempts. The Monmouth Hawks sit at 17-3 and the George Washington Colonials are 10-6.
Monmouth ranks 54th in rebounds per game with 38.9 and George Washington ranks 90th with 37.7 rebounds per game.
The Monmouth Hawks rank 15th in steals this season, with an average of 8.3 per game. When the George Washington Colonials allow at least 8 steals, they have a solid 5-3 record.
