WASHINGTON -- Pops Mensah-Bonsu needed to see the scoreboard to appreciate No. 14 George Washington's eighth straight victory.
The senior forward had 17 points and 12 rebounds and the Colonials closed the game with a 29-8 run to beat Rhode Island 81-62 on Saturday.
"I didn't know how good our defense had played until I was taken out the game," Mensah-Bonsu said. "I looked up and they only had 58 then and they went into the half with 45. I was like `Wow.' We were just being unconscious and just playing like we know how to play."
Danilo Pinnock had 18 points for the Colonials (16-1, 6-0 Atlantic 10), who trailed by 11 points in the first half. Carl Elliott had 13 points and Omar Williams added 10 for George Washington.
"I thought we stepped up our intensity in the second half," Colonials coach Karl Hobbs said. "I thought our depth really came into play. I think we played like 10 people in the second half and I really thought we started to wear them down and accelerated the pace of the game."
Dawan Robinson lead the Rams (11-7, 5-2) with 15 points.
"You've got be ready to play that style for 40 minutes," Rhode Island coach Jim Baron said. "It wears you down. They got so many weapons they force you to turn the ball over and get you out of your game. I think it's a very unique style."
Trailing 54-52 with 10:27 left in the game, the Colonials turned up the defensive pressure and held the Rams to just one field goal the rest of the way and to 18 percent shooting in the second half.
The Colonials scored 23 points off 16 Rhode Island turnovers.
The Colonials, with Mensah-Bonsu scoring six points, jumped to a 23-11 lead with 12:09 left in the half and were already in the bonus. Their press seemed to rattle the Rams early, but they showed they weren't afraid of an uptempo pace and started a run of their own.
A stretch of five straight baskets in the paint brought the Rams within 27-26 and Kaheim Seawright's layin gave them their first lead of the day, 30-29 with 7 minutes left.
Robinson, the Rams' leading scorer, scored their next seven points. Jamaal Wise's reverse lauyp with 1:18 left in the half capped a 34-11 run that gave the Rams their largest lead, 45-34. The Colonials closed the half with five straight points to get within 45-39.
