HONOLULU (AP) _ Kethan Savage sparked a late rally and scored 12 points to lead George Washington to a 60-54 upset over No. 11 Wichita State in the final of the Diamond Head Classic on Thursday night.
The Colonials (9-3) won their first in-season tournament since they knocked off Michigan State and Maryland in 2004 in the BB&T Classic in Washington.
This took another big effort. They trailed 50-43 with just under 7 minutes remaining when Savage led them on a 16-2 run. Savage twice swatted away a pass down the court and recovered it for a layup.
Yuta Watanabe put the Colonials ahead for good with a 3-pointer with 3:32 remaining, and they stretched the lead to 59-52 when they worked the shot clock down and Joe McDonald drove the lane for a tough score.
Wichita State (10-2), which had to rally in the final minute of overtime to beat Hawaii in the semifinal, was too cold outside and couldn’t crack the Colonials’ zone. The Shockers shot 34 percent from the field for the game.
Fred VanVleet led the Shockers with 11 points, six of them in the first 4 minutes. He was 4 of 15 from the field. Ron Baker, their leading scorer, was held to nine points on 4-of-12 shooting. He made only one 3-pointer in six attempts.
This had all the trappings of an easy time for the Shockers when they raced out to a 16-9 lead behind a pair of 3s from VanVleet and careless play from the Colonials, who had seven turnovers just 9 minutes into the game. The Colonials warmed up from the 3-point line, however, to tie it at 28 at halftime.
The only time Wichita State has been warm all week was when it stepped outside into the tropical air. Even though Wichita State had 12 more attempts from the field in the opening half, it was only 11 of 31 from the field. George Washington went on a 12-3 run _ five players contributed _ until Zach Brown hit a pair of 3s for the Shockers.
Reserve guard Ria’n Holland appeared to send the Shockers on their way with three consecutive 3s for a 45-37 lead, and then Darius Carter hit a 3-pointer when the shot clock was about to expire for a 48-40 lead with 7:42 remaining. Carter had made the only 3-pointers he has attempted all season.
But after VanVleet drove for a score and a 50-43 lead, that was it for Wichita State. Savage took over with his defense, the hallmark of the Colonials.
TIP INS
Baker was 13 of 41 from the field for the Diamond Head Classic, and 5 of 22 from the 3-point range. He came into the tournament shooting 50 percent from the field, and 47 percent on 3s.
COLONIAL D
George Washington set a Diamond Head Classic record by giving up only 153 points in three games, breaking the record of 156 set by Southern California in 2009.
UP NEXT
Wichita State plays at Drake on New Year’s Eve.
George Washington plays VMI on Tuesday.
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