— by Taylor Kennedy
CHARLESTON, W.Va — There is always drama, emotion, and confusion whenever George Washington and Capital face off.
Saturday’s meeting was no different, with the Patriots prevailing over the Cougars, 42-40.
The win by George Washington (15-4) solidifies its spot in next Saturday’s Mountain State Athletic Conference championship game against the Cougars, who fell 11-4.
Both meetings this season between the Kanawha County rivals have been decided by a combined three points. GW won the first meeting 56-55 on January 29.
“That was a typical GW and Capital game,” said veteran Patriots’ head coach Rick Greene. “People think it was ugly because of the score, but it was physical and hard play by both teams. I think Capital plays extremely hard. We had to have it for the MSAC.”
“They are a tough team to play, especially it being a crosstown rival,” added GW junior forward Ben Nicol. “They came out aggressive, as they always do. I thought we handled it well. We did not get all our shots to fall, but I thought we played well defensively.”
The game’s final minute left those on hand scratching their heads.
GW senior Taran Fitzpatrick got tied up with several Cougars with 49.7 seconds left. An official blew the play dead, then threw up the jump ball signal, but Patriots’ junior Brendan Hoffman had also called for a timeout before the whistle.
The officials gave the timeout to the Patriots after a brief discussion and the possession arrow remained with George Washington. Still, after GW’s Hunter Castleberry missed the front end of a 1-and-1, the Cougars cut a four-point deficit to 39-37 on Anthony Hersh’s layup with 15 seconds remaining.
The earlier awarding of a timeout for GW proved to be a big factor because after Nicol received an inbound pass from Fitzpatrick, two Capital players swarmed and grabbed the ball, resulting in a jump ball with 12.2 seconds left. Cougars’ players and coaches waved their arms to signal that it was their ball, but the possession arrow was still with GW.
Hoffman followed by making a pair of free throws with 7 seconds left, and the Patriots eventually held a five-point lead before Hersh’s 3-pointer as time expired.
Greene still saw his team battle through confusion and emotion against a quality opponent.
“It builds your confidence,” Greene noted. “You had to do things when you were tired. Obviously, winning is a great thing for us coming out of this, but even if you lose this game, it pushes you to the max, and it will make you better later on.”
The Patriots controlled the glass throughout the game and out-rebounded Capital 36-16, including 19 offensive rebounds.
“We have been rebounding much better,” Greene stated. “Taran probably had ten of those because every time I looked up, he was getting his hands on the ball. I thought we were blocking out better, and we are rebounding better.”
Nicol led the charge for the Patriots piling in 15 points, including 11 points after a slow first half. He also grabbed five rebounds.
“You have to keep going,” Nicol said. “You have to realize that shots will fall eventually. Getting a high percentage looks more likely it will go in.”
Hoffman also contributed eight points, but Greene was impressed that he allowed the game to come to him.
“He just plays,” Greene stated. “You would think he was shooting for horse in the auxiliary gym. That is his temperament. He has great intensity but plays with relaxed intensity, which I think all great ones do to a certain extent. He has been great for us this season.”
Both Greene and Nicol know the third matchup with the Cougars will again be a tough challenge.
“We will see them next Saturday, and it will be a tough game,” Nicol said. “We have to keep moving forward day-by-day.”
“It is going to be intense next Saturday at the [South Charleston] Rec Center,” Greene added.
Hersh led the way for Capital with 15 points and made 6-of-6 free throws.