The SLU Billikens celebrate Robbie Avila’s game-winning three-pointer, Tuesday night at Chaifetz Arena. (Photo: Terrance Williams)
| NCAA Men’s Basketball | 1 | 2 | Final |
|---|---|---|---|
| George Washington (13-8, 4-4) | 43 | 33 | 76 |
| #21 SLU (20-1, 8-0) | 33 | 46 | 79 |
ST. LOUIS, MO — Robbie Avila sank a dramatic three-pointer with three seconds left to lift the No. 21-ranked Saint Louis University men’s basketball team to a 79-76 win over George Washington, Tuesday night at Chaifetz Arena.
GW led for most of the night, including a 15 point edge in the first half. But Saint Louis rallied strong and trimmed its deficit to eight points midway in the second half, before going on a 15-0 run that gave the Billikens a 70-63 with just under six minutes left to play.
The Revolutionaries answered with a 9-1 burst to retake the lead with 3:40 left, which led to a dramatic final three minutes, where the teams traded the lead four times.
GW tied the game at 76 with just over a minute to play and both teams missed shots in the final minute that could have given them the lead.
Those misses led to SLU’s final possession, with 21 seconds left, where junior Kellen Thames drive to the right of the lane and found Avila alone behind the three-point arc. The 6-foot-10 senior then drained his fourth three of the night (and third of the second half) to give the Billikens the final lead.
GW tried to inbound the ball fast and set up a final shot to tie, but Avila stole the pass and flung the ball high into the air to run out the clock.
The entire SLU bench raced onto the court to celebrate with Avila, as the Billikens pulled off an incredible come-from-behind victory.
SLU’s Kellen Thames lays in a basket during the Billikens’ win over George Washington, Tuesday night at Chaifetz Arena. (Photo: Terrance Williams)
Avila finished with a season-high 22 points and led the SLU with seven rebounds, five assists, and three steals. Teammate Trey Green led all scorers with a game- and career-high 23 points, including six three-points.
Thames came off the bench to add 15 points and six rebounds, as Saint Louis won its 14th game in a row and 17th straight at Chaifetz Arena.
The Billikens are now 20-1 on the season, which is the team’s best 21-game mark in program history. Saint Louis also remained unbeaten in Atlantic 10 Conference play, at 8-0, one game ahead of second place George Mason.
SLU will be home again on Friday, for one of its biggest home games of the season, when it hosts its annual “Billiken Blizzard” game against longtime rival Dayton.
Tip off at Chaifetz Arena that evening is set for 7 p.m., and the game will be televised nationally on the CBS Sports Network.
GEORGE WASHINGTON 76
| ## | Player | GS | MIN | FG | 3PT | FT | ORB-DRB | REB | PF | A | TO | BLK | STL | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 02 | Jones,Christian | * | 33 | 5-12 | 1-4 | 4-4 | 1-4 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 15 |
| 00 | Autry,Trey | * | 34 | 4-8 | 4-8 | 1-1 | 0-2 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 13 |
| 30 | Castro,Rafael | * | 33 | 5-9 | 0-0 | 2-5 | 5-13 | 18 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 12 |
| 09 | Johnson,Garrett | * | 23 | 3-8 | 1-4 | 0-0 | 1-1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 7 |
| 07 | Aranguren,Jean | * | 17 | 1-4 | 1-4 | 0-0 | 1-2 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| 24 | Marshall,Tyrone | 21 | 5-9 | 0-2 | 5-6 | 0-1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 15 | |
| 03 | Dinkins,Tre | 18 | 3-8 | 1-5 | 0-0 | 1-2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 7 | |
| 11 | Benjamin,Bubu | 14 | 1-3 | 0-2 | 2-4 | 1-4 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | |
| 33 | Hunger,Luke | 7 | 0-4 | 0-1 | 0-1 | 2-1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| TM | TEAM | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Totals | – | 200 | 27-65 | 8-30 | 14-21 | 12-30 | 42 | 21 | 10 | 14 | 6 | 10 | 76 |
#21 SLU 79
| ## | Player | GS | MIN | FG | 3PT | FT | ORB-DRB | REB | PF | A | TO | BLK | STL | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 03 | Green, Trey | * | 31 | 8-15 | 6-10 | 1-2 | 0-3 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 23 |
| 21 | Avila, Robbie | * | 32 | 7-13 | 4-8 | 4-5 | 1-6 | 7 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 22 |
| 01 | Jones, Quentin | * | 35 | 2-12 | 1-5 | 3-6 | 1-3 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| 04 | McCottry, Amari | * | 23 | 1-4 | 1-2 | 0-1 | 3-2 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 13 | Brown, Dion | * | 15 | 1-3 | 0-2 | 0-1 | 0-2 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 00 | Thames, Kellen | 24 | 7-9 | 0-1 | 1-5 | 1-5 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 15 | |
| 09 | Sharma, Ishan | 25 | 1-4 | 0-3 | 2-2 | 0-4 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | |
| 25 | Otieno, Paul | 15 | 1-3 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3-2 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |
| TM | TEAM | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 4-2 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Totals | – | 200 | 28-63 | 12-31 | 11-22 | 13-29 | 42 | 21 | 17 | 14 | 0 | 7 | 79 |
2025-26 SLU BILLIKENS MEN’S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE
| Date | Time | At | Opponent | Location | TV | Results |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| November 3, 2025 (Monday) | 7 pm | Home | SEMO | Chaifetz Arena |  | W, 92-67 (1-0) |
| November 6, 2025 (Thursday) | 7 pm | Home | Chicago State | Chaifetz Arena | | W, 108-86 (2-0) |
| November 10, 2025 (Monday) | 7 pm | Home | Lindenwood | Chaifetz Arena |  | W, 109-66 (3-0) |
| November 15, 2025 (Saturday) | 7 pm | Home | Grand Canyon | Chaifetz Arena |  | W, 78-64 (4-0) |
| November 21, 2025 (Friday) | 7 pm | Home | Purdue-Fort Wayne | Chaifetz Arena | | W, 91-60 (5-0) |
| November 27, 2025 (Thursday) | 6 pm | Neutral | Santa Clara | Palm Desert, Calif. |  | W, 71-70 (6-0) |
| November 28, 2025 (Friday) | TBA | Neutral | Minnesota or Stanford | Palm Desert, Calif. |  | L, 78-77 (6-1) |
| December 2, 2025 (Tuesday) | 9 pm | Away | Loyola Marymount | Los Angeles, Calif. | | W, 91-70 (7-1) |
| December 7, 2025 (Sunday) | 2 pm | Home | Central Michigan | Chaifetz Arena | | W, 107-65 (8-1) |
| December 13, 2025 (Saturday) | 7 pm | Home | San Francisco | Chaifetz Arena | | W, 85-75 (9-1) |
| December 17, 2025 (Wednesday) | 7 pm | Home | Bethune-Cookman | Chaifetz Arena | | W, 112-53 (10-1) |
| December 21, 2025 (Sunday) | 2 pm | Home | New Hampshire | Chaifetz Arena | | W, 93-79 (11-1)) |
| December 28, 2025 (Sunday) | 2 pm | Home | Principia | Chaifetz Arena | | W, 114-33 (12-1) |
| December 31, 2025 (Wednesday) | 3 pm | Home | Saint Joseph’s | Chaifetz Arena | | W, 102-79 (13-1) |
| January 7, 2026 (Wednesday) | 6 pm | Away | VCU | Richmond, Va. | | W, 71-62 (14-1) |
| January 10, 2026 (Saturday) | 3 pm | Away | La Salle | Philadelphia, Pa. |  | W, 84-72 (15-1) |
| January 14, 2026 (Wednesday) | 7 pm | Home | Fordham | Chaifetz Arena | | W, 78-56 (16-1) |
| January 17, 2026 (Saturday) | 3 pm | Home | Richmond | Chaifetz Arena | | W, 88-63 (17-1) |
| January 20, 2026 (Tuesday) | 6 pm | Away | Duquesne | Pittsburgh, Pa. | | W, 81-77 (18-1) |
| January 23, 2026 (Friday) | 4:30 pm | Away | St. Bonaventure | St. Bonaventure, N.Y. |  | W, 97-62 (19-1) |
| January 27, 2026 (Tuesday) | 7 pm | Home | George Washington | Chaifetz Arena | | W, 79-76 (20-1) |
| January 30, 2026 (Friday) | 7 pm | Home | Dayton | Chaifetz Arena | | |
| February 3, 2026 (Tuesday) | 8 pm | Away | Davidson | Davidson, N.C. | | |
| February 7, 2026 (Saturday) | 2 pm | Home | La Salle | Chaifetz Arena | | |
| February 13, 2026 (Friday) | 7:30 pm | Away | Loyola Chicago | Chicago, Ill. | | |
| February 17, 2026 (Tuesday) | 6 pm | Away | Rhode Island | Kingston, R.I. | | |
| February 20, 2026 (Friday) | 6 pm | Home | VCU | Chaifetz Arena | | |
| February 24, 2026 (Tuesday) | 6 pm | Away | Dayton | Dayton, Ohio | | |
| February 28, 2026 (Saturday) | 7 pm | Home | Duquesne | Chaifetz Arena | | |
| March 4, 2026 (Wednesday) | 7 pm | Home | Loyola Chicago | Chaifetz Arena | | |
| March 7, 2026 (Saturday) | 3 pm | Away | George Mason | Fairfax, Va. | | |
| March 11-15, 2026 | TBD | Neutral | TBD | Pittsburgh, Pa. |