Women’s basketball suffered its second consecutive loss in A-10 conference play against George Mason in Virginia Monday 67-57, tainting their conference record.
The Colonials (11-8, 3-3) whittled a 20-point deficit down to just 8 points, but a second-quarter, game-low 28 percent shooting from the field kept GW from taking control of the game in the final frame. The Patriots were met with little resistance from GW, connecting on more than 50 percent of shots from the floor and shooting at a .667 percent clip from behind the 3-point line.
The Colonials held their lowest 3-point shooting percentage in 19 games, only hitting four of their 25 shots, a stark reminder of last season’s jarring beyond-the-arc average that amounted to .343 percent.
Three Colonials scored in double digits, led by graduate student guard Mia Lakstigala who netted 14 points for a spectacular showing off the bench. Senior guard Nya Lok chipped in 12 points and five boards while redshirt senior forward Mayowa Taiwo scored 10 points.
GW opened the game with a quick 8-4 scoring run while the Patriots faced a two-minute scoring drought as the Colonials’ defense kept them from taking possession with frequent turnovers that turned into points in the paint for GW. A layup by Patriots senior forward Nalani Kaysia ended the dry spell and kickstarted a 9-point run that tied the game 17-17 heading to the second quarter.
Lakstigala made her mark early in the game, scoring 4 points to go along with a turnover prior to the first stoppage on her way to a 14-point, five-rebound performance that suffocated George Mason’s interior offense.
The second quarter was a back-and-forth battle with five lead changes in just the first six minutes, but the Patriots took advantage of the 3-point line to establish a 9-point differential. The Colonials were only able to shave 4 points off the Patriots’ lead with a jumper from graduate student guard Jayla Thorton and two layups from Taiwo.
Junior guard Asjah Inniss dished out one assist and picked up a steal in the second quarter to help the GW offense settle back into the game. The Patriots finished the half off with a layup, extending the lead to 35-30 while the Colonials continued to fall behind on both sides of the court.
The Patriots stifled the Colonials’ offense in the third quarter, recording a 21-12 run after missing eight 3-pointers throughout the quarter that cost them any chances of regaining their lead. George Mason took advantage of their defense to increase their turnover ratio by five after multiple missed attempts at the arc from GW.
In the fourth quarter, the Colonials set a 12-6 run looking to gather a final boost to outscore the Patriots as Lakstigala netted in 6 points from the paint. GW kept the Patriots from entering their paint by taking advantage of offensive rebounds and blocking shots from the 3-point line.
The Colonials were only able to net in 2 points in the final minute of the game leading to the 67-57 loss since they could only cut down the differential by 10 points.
The team’s shooting average was due in large part to the team’s shot selection in addition to quick, steady ball movement that found open players in the paint that helped them keep the 12-point run in the fourth quarter.
The Colonials will take on VCU at the Smith Center Jan. 22 at noon.