Jan. 28, 2006

Stats

WASHINGTON (AP) - Pops Mensah-Bonsu had 17 points and 12 rebounds and No. 14 George Washington closed the game with a 29-8 run to beat Rhode Island 81-62 on Saturday.

Danilo Pinnock had 18 points for the Colonials (16-1, 6-0 Atlantic 10), who trailed by 11 points in the first half. Carl Elliott had 13 points and Omar Williams added 10 for George Washington.

Dawan Robinson lead the Rams (11-7, 5-2) with 15 points.

Trailing 54-52 with 10:27 left in the game, the Colonials turned up the defensive pressure and held the Rams to just one field goal the rest of the way and to 18 percent shooting in the second half.

The Colonials scored 23 points off turnovers.

The Colonials, with Mensah-Bonsu scoring six points, jumped to a 23-11 lead with 12:09 left in the half and were already in the bonus. Their press seemed to rattle the Rams early, but they showed they weren't afraid of an uptempo pace and started a run of their own.

A stretch of five straight baskets in the paint brought the Rams within 27-26 and Kaheim Seawright's layin gave them their first lead of the day, 30-29 with 7 minutes left.

Robinson, the Rams' leading scorer, scored their next seven points. Jamaal Wise's reverse lauyp with 1:18 left in the half capped a 34-11 run that gave the Rams their largest lead, 45-34. The Colonials closed the half with five straight points to get within 45-39.