# 2016–17 George Washington Colonials men's basketball team

The 2016–17 George Washington Colonials men's basketball team represented George Washington University during the 2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Colonials were led by interim head coach Maurice Joseph. They played their home games at the Charles E. Smith Center in Washington, D.C. as members of the Atlantic 10 Conference.
Head coach Mike Lonergan was fired on September 17, 2016, after the school concluded a two-month investigation into alleged emotional abuse against his players. Maurice Joseph was named interim head coach on September 27.
They finished the regular season 20–15, 10–8 in A-10 play to finish in sixth place. They defeated Saint Louis in the second round of the A-10 tournament before losing in the quarterfinals to Richmond. They were invited to the College Basketball Invitational where they defeated Toledo in the first round before losing in the quarterfinals to UIC.
On March 27, 2017, the school removed the interim tag and named Joseph full-time head coach.

## Previous season

The Colonials finished the 2015–16 season with a record of 28–10, 11–7 in A–10 play to finish in fifth place. In the A–10 Tournament, the Colonials defeated Saint Louis before losing to Saint Joseph's in the quarterfinals. The Colonials received a bid to the National Invitation Tournament and defeated Hofstra, Monmouth, and Florida to advance to the NIT semifinals at Madison Square Garden. There, they defeated San Diego State by 20 points to advance to the championship game. In the championships game, the Colonials defeated Valparaiso 76–60 to win the NIT Championship.

## Offseason
### Departures

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Notes |
| Matt Cimino | 45 | F | 6'10" | 213 | Sophomore | Falmouth, ME | Transferred to American |
| Patricio Garino | 13 | G | 6'6" | 208 | Senior | Mar del Plata, Argentina | Graduated |
| Paul Jorgensen | 3 | G | 6'2" | 183 | Sophomore | New York, NY | Transferred to Butler |
| Kevin Larsen | 21 | F | 6'10" | 260 | Senior | Copenhagen, Denmark | Graduated |
| Joe McDonald | 22 | G | 6'1" | 194 | Senior | Lorton, VA | Graduated |
| Alex Mitola | 1 | G | 5'11" | 170 | GS Senior | Florham Park, NJ | Graduated |
| Anthony Swan | 4 | G | 6'7" | 190 | Sophomore | Los Angeles, CA | Transferred to Cal State Northridge |

### Incoming transfers

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Previous School |
| Patrick Steeves | 10 | F | 6'7" | 220 | Senior | Montreal, QE | Transferred from Harvard. Will be eligible to play immediately since Steeves graduated from Harvard. |

### 2016 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Kevin Marfo C | Oradell, NJ | Worcester Academy | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | 235 lb (107 kg) | Oct 9, 2015 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 78 ||||||
| Darnell Rogers PG | Snellville, Georgia | Shiloh High School | 5 ft 3 in (1.60 m) | 145 lb (66 kg) | Oct 6, 2015 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 73 ||||||
| Jair Bolden CG | Brooklyn, NY | Westtown School | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | Oct 26, 2015 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 64 ||||||
| Arnaldo Toro PF/C | Newark, NJ | Saint Benedict's Prep | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | 235 lb (107 kg) | Nov 5, 2015 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 73 ||||||
| Collin Smith C | Jacksonville, FL | Bolles School | 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) | 225 lb (102 kg) | Jun 16, 2015 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: N/A ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Justin Williams SG | Severn, MD | Annapolis Area Christian School | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 197 lb (89 kg) | May 1, 2016 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN: N/A ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "George Washington 2016 Player Commits". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 2, 2016. "2016 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved April 2, 2016. ||||||

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Japanese exhibition tour |||||||||
| 8/13/16* 4:00 am | | vs. Japan national team | W 81–66 | | 27 – Cavanaugh | 9 – Tied | 4 – Sina | Fumin Kyosai Super Arena Osaka, Japan |
| 8/16/16* 7:00 am | | vs. Japan national team | W 77–71 | | 23 – Cavanaugh | 10 – Watanabe | 2 – Hart | Ryōgoku Kokugikan Sumida, Tokyo, Japan |
| 8/19/16* 6:00 am | | vs. Japan national team | W 75–47 | | 13 – Sina | 6 – Steeves | 2 – Tied | Hamamatsu Arena Hamamatsu, Japan |
| 8/21/16* 12:30 am | | at Ryukyu Golden Kings | W 82–58 | | 15 – Tied | 10 – Cavanaugh | 3 – Cavanaugh | Okinawa City Gymnasium Okinawa City, Japan |
| Exhibition |||||||||
| 11/05/16* 3:00 pm | | Bowie State | W 86–80 | | 19 – Watanabe | 13 – Cavanaugh | 5 – Cavanaugh | Charles E. Smith Center (2,238) Washington, D.C. |
| Non-conference regular season |||||||||
| 11/11/2016* 4:00 pm | | Maryland Eastern Shore | W 75–71 | 1–0 | 21 – Cavanaugh | 10 – Cavanaugh | 4 – Sina | Charles E. Smith Center (3,256) Washington, D.C. |
| 11/15/2016* 7:00 pm | | Siena CBE Hall of Fame Classic | W 77–75 | 2–0 | 16 – Sina | 12 – Watanabe | 5 – Cavanaugh | Charles E. Smith Center (2,224) Washington, D.C. |
| 11/17/2016* 7:00 pm | | Arkansas-Pine Bluff CBE Hall of Fame Classic | W 61–41 | 3–0 | 18 – Cavanaugh | 10 – Cavanaugh | 3 – Cavanaugh | Charles E. Smith Center (2,013) Washington, D.C. |
| 11/21/2016* 7:00 pm, ESPNU | | vs. Georgia CBE Hall of Fame Classic semifinals | L 73–81 | 3–1 | 21 – Cavanaugh | 6 – Cavanaugh | 5 – Sina | Sprint Center (3,527) Kansas City, MO |
| 11/22/2016* 7:30 pm, ESPN3 | | vs. UAB CBE Hall of Fame Classic third-place game | L 74–81 | 3–2 | 19 – Cavanaugh | 9 – Cavanaugh | 3 – Hart | Sprint Center (12,147) Kansas City, MO |
| 11/26/2016* 4:00 pm | | Penn State | L 68–74 | 3–3 | 15 – Cavanaugh | 5 – 3 Tied | 3 – 3 Tied | Charles E. Smith Center (2,378) Washington, D.C. |
| 11/29/2016* 7:00 pm | | at Harvard | W 77–74 | 4–3 | 20 – Cavanaugh | 10 – Toro | 3 – Cavanaugh | Lavietes Pavilion (1,406) Cambridge, MA |
| 12/03/2016* 2:00 pm | | South Florida | W 68–67 | 5–3 | 22 – Smith | 9 – Toro | 3 – Bolden | Charles E. Smith Center (2,288) Washington, D.C. |
| 12/04/2016* 4:00 pm, CBSSN | | vs. Florida State BB&T Classic | L 48–67 | 5–4 | 18 – Marfo | 9 – Tied | 2 – 3 Tied | Verizon Center (8,645) Washington, D.C. |
| 12/07/2016* 7:30 pm, CBSSN | | at Temple | W 66–63 | 6–4 | 20 – Cavanaugh | 9 – Toro | 6 – Sina | Liacouras Center (5,016) Philadelphia, PA |
| 12/10/2016* 4:00 pm | | Howard | W 79–62 | 7–4 | 20 – Sina | 13 – Cavanaugh | 6 – Cavanaugh | Charles E. Smith Center (4,338) Washington, D.C. |
| 12/15/2016* 7:00 pm | | UCF | W 74–59 | 8–4 | 27 – Roland | 8 – Smith | 3 – 4 Tied | Charles E. Smith Center (2,891) Washington, D.C. |
| 12/22/2016* 7:00 pm, ACCN Extra | | at Miami (FL) | L 64–72 | 8–5 | 15 – Watanabe | 10 – Toro | 3 – 3 Tied | BankUnited Center (6,871) Coral Gables, FL |
| Atlantic 10 regular season |||||||||
| 12/30/2016 7:00 pm | | at Saint Joseph's | L 63–68 | 8–6 (0–1) | 15 – Sina | 13 – Cavanaugh | 6 – Toro | Hagan Arena (4,200) Philadelphia, PA |
| 01/05/2017 7:00 pm | | Davidson | W 73–69 | 9–6 (1–1) | 20 – Cavanaugh | 7 – Sina | 5 – Sina | Charles E. Smith Center (2,823) Washington, D.C. |
| 01/08/2017 12:00 pm, NBCSN | | Richmond | L 70–77 | 9–7 (1–2) | 22 – Cavanaugh | 7 – Cavanaugh | 4 – Cavanaugh | Charles E. Smith Center (2,986) Washington, D.C. |
| 01/11/2017 6:00 pm, ESPN2 | | at VCU | L 55–85 | 9–8 (1–3) | 17 – Watanabe | 8 – Smith | 2 – Marfo | Siegel Center (7,637) Richmond, VA |
| 01/15/2017 4:30 pm, NBCSN | | at La Salle | L 69–79 | 9–9 (1–4) | 16 – Bolden | 8 – Watanabe | 5 – Sina | Tom Gola Arena (2,763) Philadelphia, PA |
| 01/18/2017 7:00 pm | | Duquesne | W 65–63 | 10–9 (2–4) | 15 – Watanabe | 10 – Cavanaugh | 5 – Watanabe | Charles E. Smith Center (2,653) Washington, D.C. |
| 01/25/2017 7:00 pm, ASN | | at George Mason | W 87–68 | 11–9 (3–4) | 20 – Tied | 8 – Watanabe | 5 – Sina | EagleBank Arena (4,070) Fairfax, VA |
| 01/28/2017 4:00 pm, ASN | | Saint Louis | W 63–55 | 12–9 (4–4) | 18 – Cavanaugh | 9 – Watanabe | 3 – Watanabe | Charles E. Smith Center (3,193) Washington, D.C. |
| 01/31/2017 7:00 pm, CBSSN | | at Rhode Island | L 70–82 | 12–10 (4–5) | 21 – Cavanaugh | 5 – Cavanaugh | 4 – Cavanaugh | Ryan Center (5,190) Kingston, RI |
| 02/04/2017 2:30 pm, NBCSN | | at Richmond | L 75–84 | 12–11 (4–6) | 23 – Cavanaugh | 10 – Cavanaugh | 3 – Sina | Robins Center (7,201) Richmond, VA |
| 02/08/2017 9:00 pm, CBSSN | | VCU | L 53–54 | 12–12 (4–7) | 13 – Cavanaugh | 17 – Cavanaugh | 4 – Sina | Charles E. Smith Center (4,012) Washington, D.C. |
| 02/11/2017 4:30 pm, NBCSN | | St. Bonaventure | W 76–70 | 13–12 (5–7) | 33 – Cavanaugh | 10 – Cavanaugh | 6 – Watanabe | Charles E. Smith Center (3,875) Washington, D.C. |
| 02/15/2017 7:00 pm, ASN | | at Davidson | L 63–74 | 13–13 (5–8) | 15 – Tied | 9 – Cavanaugh | 6 – Sina | John M. Belk Arena (3,715) Davidson, NC |
| 02/19/2017 12:00 pm, NBCSN | | at Duquesne | W 77–70 | 14–13 (6–8) | 19 – Cavanaugh | 7 – Cavanaugh | 5 – Bolden | Palumbo Center (1,746) Pittsburgh, PA |
| 02/23/2017 7:00 pm, ASN | | Massachusetts | W 83–67 | 15–13 (7–8) | 26 – Steeves | 13 – Cavanaugh | 5 – Steeves | Charles E. Smith Center (2,654) Washington, D.C. |
| 02/26/2017 2:00 pm | | George Mason | W 83–74 | 16–13 (8–8) | 22 – Cavanaugh | 7 – Cavanaugh | 6 – Sina | Charles E. Smith Center (3,352) Washington, D.C. |
| 03/01/2017 7:00 pm | | at Fordham | W 67–66 | 17–13 (9–8) | 20 – Cavanaugh | 10 – Cavanaugh | 4 – Sina | Rose Hill Gymnasium (2,153) Bronx, NY |
| 03/04/2017 8:00 pm | | Dayton | W 87–81 | 18–13 (10–8) | 30 – Cavanaugh | 8 – Cavanaugh | 5 – Sina | Charles E. Smith Center (4,143) Washington, D.C. |
| Atlantic 10 tournament |||||||||
| 03/09/2017 8:30 pm, NBCSN | (6) | vs. (13) Saint Louis Second round | W 53–46 | 19–13 | 18 – Watanabe | 16 – Cavanaugh | 5 – Sina | PPG Paints Arena (5,442) Pittsburgh, PA |
| 03/10/2017 8:30 pm, NBCSN | (6) | vs. (3) Richmond Quarterfinals | L 67–70 | 19–14 | 23 – Cavanaugh | 12 – Cavanaugh | 4 – Steeves | PPG Paints Arena (6,647) Pittsburgh, PA |
| College Basketball Invitational |||||||||
| 03/15/2017* 7:00 pm | | Toledo First round | W 73–69 | 20–14 | 29 – Cavanaugh | 7 – Tied | 3 – Tied | Charles E. Smith Center (1,016) Washington, DC |
| 03/20/2017* 8:00 pm | | at UIC Quarterfinals | L 71–80 | 20–15 | 24 – Cavanaugh | 9 – Cavanaugh | 5 – Bolden | UIC Pavilion (1,048) Chicago, IL |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||