• Recap
• Bleachers
• Game Tracker

Evans' double-double lifts No. 18 Saint Louis over George Washington

Mar 3, 2013 - 6:54 AM Washington, DC (Sports Network) - Dwayne Evans had 22 points and 12 rebounds as the 18th-ranked Saint Louis Billikens continued their quest for the Atlantic 10 Conference regular-season title with a 66-58 victory over the George Washington Colonials.

Kwamain Mitchell added 18 points for the Billikens (23-5, 12-2 A-10), who have won 11 in a row and hold a one-game lead over VCU for first place in the conference standings. VCU beat Butler on Saturday.

Kevin Larsen and Lasan Kromah ended with 14 and 12 points, respectively, for the Colonials (12-15, 6-8), who have dropped three straight. Dwayne Smith donated 10 points.

The Billikens jumped out to a 19-11 lead with 12 1/2 minutes left in the first half. The Colonials, however, responded with a brief 5-0 spurt to keep it close. Patricio Garino's 3-pointer and Smith's layup cut the gap to three.

Saint Louis continued to hold a slim advantage and took a 32-26 margin into the locker room.

Trailing by seven, 39-32, with 16 1/2 minutes to play, George Washington went on a 16-6 run to take the lead. Kromah tallied eight points during the surge to give the Colonials a 48-45 edge.

"Up three with 7 minutes left, three timeouts left, I thought we were in great shape," George Washington coach Mike Lonergan said, "but we definitely had some costly turnovers, and we had trouble getting to the line and we had trouble scoring."

But the Billikens scored the next 10 points to take the lead back for good. Saint Louis made eight free throws during the burst to make it a 55-48 contest with 4:20 remaining.

The Billikens went 5-of-6 from the foul line in the final minute to secure the victory.

"They really attack you in so many different ways," Saint Louis interim coach Jim Crews said of the Colonials. "I'm very pleased with our guys. We kept hanging in there."

Game Notes

The all-time series between George Washington and Saint Louis is tied, 5-5 ... The Billikens went 21-of-24 from the foul line ... Evans also had four steals ... Jordair Jett had 11 points for Saint Louis.