GW wrapped its Italian tour with a victory over Oleggio’s Nazionale C team yesterday, finishing with a 93-58 win.
The Oleggio team, nicknamed the Magic, competes in Italy’s fifth division. Last summer, they lost to eventual NCAA Sweet Sixteen team Iowa State by 41 points.
The Colonials have been playing through heavy heat and little air conditioning in Italy, which forced freshman guard Joe McDonald to leave the team’s last game against Lega Due Fortitudo Bologna. But McDonald returned for Friday’s game, adding ten points and serving as the driving force behind many Colonial offensive salvos.
Senior forward Isaiah Armwood controlled the first half of play, tallying 14 of his eventual 16 points, including a “soaring tip dunk that helped ignite a game-changing run,” according to a University release. The Magic were within a point before a 17-6 run gave GW a 47-35 advantage at the break.
With just two minutes left to play in the third quarter, Oleggio returned to close within five points. But the Colonials embarked on another scoring run, this time pulling out to a 13-2 advantage to close the quarter with a sizable lead. From there, the game was solidly in GW’s hands, with the team outscoring the Magic 26-7 over the final ten minutes of play.
Freshman forward Patricio Garino paced GW with 18 points, followed by Armwood, and then McDonald and freshman forward Paris Maragkos, who each added ten, and senior guard Lasan Kromah and freshman guard Kethan Savage, who each added nine.
The Colonials are spending their last day in Italy today on Lake Como, before departing for an early flight to the District tomorrow.