For the first time since 1995 when Bill Clinton saw George Washington upset No. 1 UMass at the Smith Center, the school named for the nation's first president hosted the current commander-in-chief for a basketball game.

Barack Obama attended the Colonials' game Saturday against Oregon State, which is coached by Craig Robinson, the brother of first lady Michelle Obama. She also was in attendance along with her mother, the Obamas' two daughters and Robinson's daughter

The Beavers defeated George Washington 64-57, but during a late Colonial rally GW fans chanted "Yes we can," an Obama campaign slogan.

"It was very exciting for us to find out he was going to be attending the basketball game," Colonial freshman guard Bryan Bynes told the Washington Post.

"I think it was just the excitement, the atmosphere. We just came out like we were in a rush. We were rushing everything."

The players shook the president's hand after the game.

"He told us good game, great effort," Bynes told the Post. "Personally, I felt like ... I can't even explain the words right now. I was very excited to shake his hand. Even with the loss, that was a bright spot of the day."

STRUGGLING FLYERS

- When Dayton was ranked in the preseason and picked to win the Atlantic 10, it seemed like the Flyers would naturally take over the league's banner-carrying role.

When it opened the season with wins over perennially good Creighton and then No. 19 Georgia Tech in Puerto Rico, Dayton seemed to be off to a good start. But after an expected loss to Villanova, the Flyers fell to Kansas State and needed a big second-half comeback to erase an 18-point deficit against a Towson team that lost to Navy earlier this season.

"Obviously, you consider yourself lucky right now," coach Brian Gregory told the Dayton Daily News. "For 32 minutes Towson outplayed us. We didn't defend the way we're capable of defending. We did a pretty good job on the glass in the first half (a 21-14 edge), but we're just not completely there defensively yet."

The Flyers have a chance to string some success together now with a soft run of mid-majors marking their slate into January. It's a schedule that will fatten up their record but leave them untested when March arrives.

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK - Andrew Nicholson of St. Bonaventure is picking up where he left off after his strong freshman season. The sophomore big man averaged 22 points and 13 rebounds last week to earn the Atlantic 10 co-player of the week honors.

He shared the award with Shamari Spears of Charlotte, the former Boston College forward who has played well for the 49ers after sitting out last year under NCAA transfer rules.

He made 22 of 28 shots last week and averaged 27 points and five rebounds in Charlotte's two victories.

Spears leads the conference in scoring at 24.3 points per game.

Rhode Island guard Akeem Richmond averaged 10.3 points per game in three wins last week to earn the league's rookie of the week honors.

GAMES OF THE WEEK:Pittsburgh vs. Duquesne, Mellon Arena, 7 p.m., Wednesday - In theory, Pitt is rebuilding this year although the Panthers started 5-1 with the only loss coming to Texas.

In theory, Duquesne is supposed to be on the rise, but the Dukes barely beat Arkansas-Monticello and lost to Western Carolina.

But still the two Steel City teams are closer talent wise than they've been in years and a win would be a huge step for Duquesne.

Charlotte at Louisville, 7 p.m. Saturday - The Cardinals certainly look vulnerable after losing to UNLV and other than getting pounded by Duke, the 49ers have played pretty well.

QUOTABLE - "Twenty-one (points) and 19 (rebounds) ... If he would have played eight more minutes, then he would have had 40 and 25." - Marquette coach Buzz Williams on Xavier big man Jason Love's 21-point, 19-rebound performance in 32 minutes against his team on Thursday. The Golden Eagles won 71-61.

RICHMOND RISING - When the Spiders lost to William & Mary 78-71 on Nov. 19, it looked like the preseason hype surrounding Richmond could have been a bit premature.

But since then, the Tribe upset Wake Forest making that loss more palatable, and the Spiders themselves have won four straight games, including upset wins over Mississippi State and Missouri to capture the South Padre Island Invitational.

Information from personal interviews, newspaper articles and sports information releases was used in this report.

Matt Vautour can be reached at mvautour@gazettenet.com. Follow UMass coverage on Twitter at twitter.com/GazetteUMass. Get UMass coverage delivered in your Facebook news feed at http://www.facebook.com/GazetteUMassCoverage.