This post was written by Hatchet Staff Writer Daniel Wright.
Bowling Green, Ohio – With just 12 seconds to play in the second half of the Colonials’ matchup against Austin Peay, the Governors sprinted down the court trailing by two, looking for a chance at what appeared to be an easy layup.
But sprinting right behind was senior guard Tony Taylor.
Taylor cut off Austin Peay’s run, stealing the ball on the baseline, keeping his balance to stay inbounds and draw a foul. Although Taylor didn’t convert his free throw in the bonus, giving APSU another chance to tie it up before they ultimately missing a contested layup, the steal almost certainly kept the game from going into overtime.
“I was just thinking I need to stop the ball or create a turnover or get a charge or something,” Taylor said. “I saw the ball out, he held the ball out a little too loose. I felt that I could get it, and I got it.”
Taylor and the Colonials had an off night shooting the basketball, the team finishing at just 39.6 percent from the field, but GW (3-1) managed to escape the third round of the Progressive CBE Classic with a 54-52 win in Bowling Green, Ohio.
The victory, head coach Mike Lonergan said, was due to his team’s defensive presence- particularly Taylor’s direction from the point.
“He’s one of the best transition defenders,” Lonergan said. “We do fast break drills everyday and it’s incredible how he can stop guys in three-on-two and two-on-one situations. He’s got great hands and he does a great job stunting the guy with the ball and making them make bad decisions.”
Returning to the court after yesterday’s victory over Detroit where GW shot 53 percent in the first half, the Colonials struggled to make baskets early against Austin Peay, held to just 28.6 percent from the floor in the first half.
Stymied by a tough Austin Peay zone, Taylor, senior forward Aaron Ware and junior guard Bryan Bynes shot a collective 4 for 20 from the field in the first half. It was a marked change from the night before, when both Taylor and Ware hit double-digit points, pushing Taylor to his 1,000th career point as a Colonial.
GW also struggled with ball control, turning it over 16 times, compared to Austin Peay’s 10.
“They were a much better defensive team than we faced last night,” Lonergan said.” We didn’t really execute our offense and we missed some easy shots, but I thought they played tough. We had a lot of turnovers and a lot of silly mistakes.”
On the other side of the ball, Austin Peay shot just as poorly as the Colonials, going just nine for 31 from the field in the first half. GW benefited from a size advantage in the paint, limiting Austin Peay to four points in the paint in the first half as the Governors took repeated contested jump shots early in the shot clock. GW looked to establish its inside game offensively, but managed just six points in the paint in the first. With poor shooting from both sides, Austin Peay took a 24-23 lead into the half, neither team was able to find a consistent rhythm offensively.
But from the first possession of the second half, the Colonials succeeded in establishing outside-in game, with graduate student forward Jabari Edwards drawing a double-team and kicking the ball out to sophomore forward Nemanja Mikic for an open three-pointer to put GW ahead 26-24. The Colonials would not trail for the rest of the game.
“That was our mindset for the first half, but Austin Peay did a great job of taking that away,” Taylor said. “We had to work outside-in instead of inside-out. When we started driving the ball and getting a lot of fast breaks, it opened it up for our big guys.”
The Colonials went on to shoot 52 percent in the second half, with Ware finishing as GW’s top scorer with 12 points. Taylor finished just behind with 11 points, his first game scoring below 20 points on the season. Junior guard Lasan Kromah, who had a season-high 17 points against Detroit, posted just three Tuesday. Mikic added nine, and Edwards equaled his career-high of eight points, the third time he’s reached that benchmark this season.
While GW managed 20 points in the paint in the second half, the offense stalled over the last four minutes and 46 seconds, as GW did not add a single point to their tally. Back-to-back offensive fouls on the low post and a turnover allowed Austin Peay to close the gap to 54-52, when Taylor halted their comeback with his steal.
“I thought we were fine down one at the half and not playing well,” Lonergan said. “In the second half, it seemed like we had the lead at six, and three possessions in a row with a six point lead we turned the ball over. That kept them in the game.”
GW will wrap up play tomorrow in the Progressive CBE Classic with a game against host Bowling Green at 7:30 p.m., looking to complete a three-game sweep.
“Coming out here and winning three games would be great for our team,” Edwards said. “It would be huge, every win is very important. Everybody’s working hard and we’ve had a great week in practice.”
