No. 6 GW keeps winning streak alive vs. Bonnies

OLEAN, N.Y. (AP) -- George Washington had no Pops, no jump and

was down six points in front of a loud crowd of St. Bonaventure

fans.

The Colonials (No. 6 ESPN/USA Today; No. 7 AP) came back from bigger deficits

seven times this season. They did it one more time.

Danilo Pinnock and Maureece Rice keyed a 13-point run in the

second half that helped George Washington beat the Bonnies 89-78

Wednesday night and extend the nation's longest winning streak to

17 games.

"We've been in a lot worse situations," said Pinnock, who

scored 15 points. "We know as long as we don't panic we'll have a

chance to win it at the end."

Rice scored eight of his 16 points in the decisive run and Omar

Williams finished with 18 for the Colonials (25-1, 15-0 Atlantic

10), who set a school record for most victories in a season.

The win against the Bonnies didn't come easy and it didn't help

that the Colonials were playing their second game without senior

forward Pops Mensah-Bonsu. George Washington's second-leading

scorer and rebounder had surgery on his left knee and is not

expected to return until the NCAA tournament.

"We really missed him today, particularly just trying to

establish an inside game to establish a tone," coach Karl Hobbs

said. "He's a hard guy to replace."

Michael Lee had 18 points for St. Bonaventure (8-18, 2-13),

which is guaranteed finishing no better than 13th in the 14-team

conference and was eliminated from competing in the A-10 tournament

next week. The Bonnies have lost 12 straight games against ranked

teams.

With No. 1 Duke (27-2) losing to Florida State on Wednesday, the

Colonials are the nation's only team with one loss.

George Washington needs only to beat Charlotte in its

regular-season finale on Saturday to become only the fourth A-10

school -- and first since Saint Joseph's in 2003-04 -- to go

undefeated in conference play.

Down 65-61 with 7:33 left, the Colonials responded with the

decisive 3-minute run that Rice started with a 3-pointer.

Pinnock then put George Washington ahead for good when he hit an

open 3. Rice followed a miss by Ahmad Smith with a pullup 3-pointer

and the run was on, bolstered by the Colonials' strong transition

game.

Pinnock hit a layin and Rice completed the run when he hit two

free throws after being fouled attempting to catch a long pass

beneath the Bonnies' basket.

"No way am I disappointed in the effort or our execution,"

Bonnies coach Anthony Solomon said. "We were going head to head

with one of the better teams in the country and we just didn't get

it down the stretch."

It was a gutsy effort by a Bonnies team that has still not fully

recovered from the effects of a 2003 recruiting scandal that led to

NCAA sanctions and the dismissal of coach Jan van Breda Kolff. This

was a team that two years ago didn't have enough scholarship

players to hold a full practice, and a team that won a school-worst

two games last season.

Hobbs gave the Bonnies full credit, too.

But he also credited his team's experience in having won tight

games and coming from behind.

The Colonials have overcome deficits of seven or more points

seven times this season. That includes their 89-85 win at Xavier in

which they trailed by 17 in the first half.

"No one wants to come down here for a nail-biter," Hobbs said.

"Yeah, we'd like to make the game easier. ... My life insurance

agent would like for them, too."

Hobbs is optimistic Mensah-Bonsu will return for the NCAA

tournament, but cautioned that it's not a guarantee. Believing

Mensah-Bonsu has a future in the NBA, Hobbs said he will not rush

his player back into the lineup unless he's 100 percent.

"If it's a decision where it looks like he's coming back a

little too early and I think it may jeopardize his long-term

ability to play in the NBA, then he won't come back," Hobbs said.