JMU can't keep up with George Mason, Patriots tie longest winning streak in school history

After watching this game yesterday I think it's safe to say that these guys just flat out know how to win.  We haven't seen the Patriots have to deal with much adversity lately but they had to overcome some in this game.  JMU came to play and taking advantage early of Mason's sloppiness on defense. Steven Goff reminds us in his article recap that the Patriots haven't trailed for more than a few minutes here and there in long time so I am sure most fans were eager to see how they would react.  Coach Larranaga made the right move by benching starters Ryan Pearson and Mike Morrison for some early sloppiness on both ends and reserve players Vertrail Vaughns and Johnny Williams gave the Patriots the spark they needed.  After ending the 1st half up one and erasing a 12 point deficit it was a heavy dose of suffocating defense and Ryan Pearson in the 2nd half. Pearson had 12 of his 15 in the 2nd half and he and the Patriots kept All-CAA Denzel Bowles a non-factor late in the game.

With this victory George Mason has now tied the school record for consecutive wins (11) and with Ohio State losing yesterday the Patriots also have the 2nd longest winning streak in the country.  This was another game where the Patriots started off slow and then picked up the tempo in the 2nd half.  It's not secret at this point that the Patriots are more deadly as the pace of the game picks up. If it is a high possession game your not going to be able to stop these guys once they start rolling. This team just doesn't seem to get rattled no matter what is happening on the court and that is a quality you need to have to be a contender in March.

Now the Patriots gear up for a CAA showdown in Richmond to face VCU, who didn't look all the good yesterday in their loss to ODU.  Regardless this could be Mason's toughest challenge of the season as they haven't won at the Siegel Center since 2006.

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