George Washington beats Fordham 78-72 in A10 Tournament

WASHINGTON -- Jair Bolden scored 22 points and George Washington beat Fordham 78-72 on Wednesday night in the first round of the Atlantic 10 Conference Tournament.

No. 11 seed George Washington advances to the second round to meet sixth-seeded Saint Louis on Thursday night.

Bo Zeigler added 16 points and seven rebounds for the Colonials (15-17). Yuta Watanabe had 12 points, Arnaldo Toro had 11 points and led the team with 14 rebounds, and Maceo Jack chipped in 10 points.

The Colonials led by one at the break and the teams battled through six lead changes and eight tied scores in the second half before a Zeigler layup gave them a 71-68 edge with 2:52 to play. Fordham made just two field goals after that as Watanabe and Bolden combined for six free throws to help seal the win.

Joseph Chartouny led No. 14 seed Fordham (9-22) with 18 points, eight assists and four steals. Prokop Slanina and Ivan Raut added 15 points apiece.