George Mason falls to Towson in OT, first loss to Tigers in 20-game span

Tell me if this sounds familiar, George Mason losses at home and the opposing team has a player record a career-high? The Patriots suffered their first ever loss to Towson since they joined the CAA in 2001 and snapped their 20-game overall win streak over them. Mason hasn't been this bad at home since the '06-'07 season. To put things in perspective their home record between the 2007-2008 and the 2011-2012 seasons was 67-7; their home record his year is 7-6. Also, their home record for CAA games this year is 4-5. The last time George Mason lost that many conference games at home was during Jim Larranaga's first year as head coach in 1997-1998 season.

Jerrelle Benimon destroyed the Patriots and got 22 of his career-high 31 points in the first half. Mason held him scoreless for a long period in the second and half and mounted their comeback, very similar to last Saturday's game against William & Mary. But this time they fell short in overtime. Erik Copes had a career night as well but Mason really could have used more of Sherrod Wright, especially late in the game. Copes' hard work was a big factor all night and he added 13 points to go along with his 15 rebounds. He and Jonathan Arledge gave the Patriots a good attack in the front court but it wasn't enough to make up for their poor efforts on defense. Benimon got way too much freedom in the first half and Towson was in control almost the entire game.

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Listen to Paul Hewitt's weekly CAA teleconference interview

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George Mason hosts Towson for final home game of the season

George Mason still has a chance to grab the #2 seed in the CAA tournament bracket, but they will have to win these next two games. Tonight they host Towson in their final home game of the year and are looking for their third straight win. Mason won at Towson back in late January by 10 points despite getting killed on the glass. The Tigers grabbed 21 offensive rebounds compared to the Patriots eight. For the most part they held forward Jerrelle Benimon in check and didn't let him take over. Erik Copes and Jonathan Arledge have been playing much better since that game and essentially the Patriots have a different look in the front court. Lately they hasn't been foul trouble issues and they will need to again be careful tonight. 

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Erik Copes sinks game-winner against William & Mary

Erik Copes was one of the last guys on the floor you want taking a game-winning shot with little time left. However, the big man found the ball in his hands with the seconds ticking away and connected to give Mason the much needed home victory. Minutes earlier Copes had air-balled a free-throw so the Patriots were a little lucky to come away with the win in this one. Patrick Holloway was another hero as his 15 points and three-pointers helped fill the void of an off day from the starters. Mason had trouble all day with William and Mary's shooters and Marcus Thornton hit six three-pointers. Late the game they put Anali Okoloji on Thornton and his size seemed to give him trouble. The Tribe went cold from the perimeter and the Patriots made a big comeback.

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George Mason looking to break home court skid

George Mason returns to their home floor Saturday afternoon against William & Mary. Not an ideal opponent for the Patriots, who are trying to avoid their first four-game home losing streak since the Paul Westhead years. The Tribe are on a three-game winning streak in which they have won by an average margin of 10 points. Their most recent win was over Georgia State and they had an exceptional night shooting the ball. A win Saturday for George Mason would be impressive given the type of defense we've seen from them lately. They got a break against Hofstra on Wednesday and didn't have to do much on defense as the Pride had an awful night shooting the ball. William & Mary on the other hand is on a hot shooting streak. Last time these two teams faced Sherrod Wright shredded the Tribe for 28 points but we haven't seen a performance like that from him in awhile. Overall, an improved performance on defense Saturday would show me that this team was embarrassed for how they played against Georgia State and are still believing in themselves for the CAA tournament. 

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Paul Hewitt does not want to be in this company

History beckons Saturday for George Mason. The last time the Patriots lost four straight CAA home games was 1994-95 under Paul Westhead.
— Kevin Dunleavy (@KDunleavy) February 21, 2013

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George Mason routs Hofstra

George Mason cruised past Hofstra last night 79-50, a game that was never in doubt for the Patriots and one where the Pride shot under 27% from the field. Hofstra came out of the gates going 0-for-10 and finished the first half with 4-27. The halftime would have been more lopsided if not for Mason's constant fouling. Erik Copes posted a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds and had an uncharacteristic 5-7 night from the free-throw line. Jonathan Arledge took advantage of the Hofstra missing their best inside man, Stephen Nwaukoni, and finished with 20 points. Arledge also went 3-for-3 from behind the three-point line. Prior to last night he had only made two three-pointers the whole season. This was Mason's fourth straight CAA road victory and now they will need to build off it. They now have their last three remaining games to try to move into that second or third seed in the conference tournament bracket.

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Don't expect a basketball practice facility anytime soon

More and more schools outside of the BCS are upgrading their facilities. Mid-major basketball teams especially with dedicated basketball practice facilities. VCU has a nice one planned and so does ODU, both are public Virginia schools like George Mason. Even Delaware has one. The student run media site, Connect2Mason, sheds some light on what happened to Mason's proposed plan for a basketball practice facility:

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Where does George Mason go from here?

As it sits now, George Mason doesn't look like the kind of team that is going to be favored to win the CAA championship in March. They have rarely put together winning streaks this season and the disarray on the court has been a huge letdown for fans to witness. There was not lofty expectations this season and most knew that a bid to the NCAA tournament was far from a lock but I would also say that few saw this type of season coming. Being run off their home floor last Saturday was a reflection of just how little this team has progressed from the beginning of the season.

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What George Mason basketball looked like after Homecoming loss

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If the CAA tournament started today...

George Mason's latest meltdown has now put them into probably the most unfavorable matchup section of the CAA tournament bracket. Not that the tournament really seems that winnable for this group but nevertheless they only have four more games to get into that #2-#3 side of the bracket.

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George Mason run out of Patriot Center on Homecoming

It has been rare to see George Mason never in the game on Homecoming Saturday but they were routed on their home floor against Georgia State yesterday. Mason hadn't lost a home CAA by this big of a margin in 11 years and have now lost their last three home conference games. The combination of Mason's poor perimeter defense, turnovers, and Georgia State's hot shooting led to this game unraveling quickly. The Panthers had 51 points at the half and Mason had nothing going on offense except for Sherrod Wright.

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2013 Homecoming Game versus Georgia State

George Mason will be looking to build some momentum after their impressive road win against Drexel Thursday night. This year's homecoming game won't be as exciting as prior years but remember the Patriots are still playing for a more favorable seed in the CAA tournament bracket. The Patriot Center hasn't been packed since the first game of the year against UVA and hopefully there will be a similar atmosphere Saturday. Mason hasn't played great at home lately but they fed off the crowd in that UVA game and will do the same in this one. Georgia State isn't eligible for this year's conference tourney but they have potential freshman of the year, RJ Hunter, who has the potential to light up the scoreboard on any given night.

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George Mason rallies past Drexel

The Patriots got an important road win last night at Drexel after being down by eight points. You never know where the bursts on offense are going to come from with this group and last night it happened to be Vertrail Vaughns. He poured on a season-high 14 points and Mason overcame their turnover prone first half to get the win. The Dragons ended up with 22 points off the Patriots 14 turnovers. However Mason rallied back in the second half by scoring 46 points and by getting to the free-throw line. They had only five free-throw attempts in the first half but got to the line for 20 attempts in the second, making 17 of them. Philadelphia native Erik Copes had one of his best games scoring 12 points and grabbing 8 rebounds along with two blocked shots. Sherrod Wright and Jonathan Alredge had a combined 19 points but with four players in double figures it was a good night for the Patriots offense. We even had a Vaughn Gray sighting, who hadn't seen the court since January 27 at Northeastern.

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George Mason travels to Drexel

On this day one year ago George Mason defeated VCU at the Patriot Center on a Sherrod Wright buzzer-beater. Fans were starting to feel a bit more confident in how the Paul Hewitt era would turn out. Fast forward to one year later and the Patriots are barely holding on to the 4th seed in the CAA tournament. And a loss at Drexel tonight would knock them into the 5th seed. Drexel has only won three games at home this season and Mason has played some good basketball in road conferences games this year. The last two times George Mason and Drexel has played the big story has been Dragon's swingman Damion Lee. The Patriots seem to bring out the best in this sophomore, who dropped 29 points on them two weeks ago.

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Listen to Paul Hewitt's weekly conference call

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George Mason's inconsistent play is driving Paul Hewitt "a little nutty"

It's been no secret this year that George Mason has had a lot of ups and downs. They just can't seem to play well together for a stretch of more than a couple of games. David Elfin from 106.7 The Fan relays a few quotes from Paul Hewitt on this frustrating season:

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Paul Hewitt picture captions

Photo by John Powell

Yesterday I posted this photo of Paul Hewitt from Saturday's game against Delaware and asked followers to caption the photo. Here are the results:

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George Mason drops another home CAA game, losses to Delaware

George Mason never led on their home court against Delaware on Saturday and suffered their third conference home loss of the season. The Patriots last lost to the Blue Hens on their home court 11 years ago. Foul trouble was a big problem in this one and there was some very questionable officiating but the fact remains that Delaware hit their shots and Mason didn't. It was also another home game where the Patriots fell asleep on defense for stretches and yielded a ton of open looks. The offense reverted back to what we saw a lot during this season, a lot of sputtering and disarray. Essentially, Sherrod Wright had a terrible shooting day from the field and Mason just couldn't get anything going as a result. Jon Arledge started off hot but cooled down a lot in the second when play seemed to get even more choppy.

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George Mason hosts Delaware Saturday with a chance to climb the CAA standings

George Mason is back in action Saturday against Delaware after playing three games in five days. They went  2-1 during that stretch and won the two road games. This game against the Blue Hens is important because a win can put the Patriots in second place in the conference standings. After watching ODU beat Drexel last night, it's obvious anything is possible and the final standings are anything but set at this point. With Jonathan Arledge in the starting lineup, Mason has looked more fluid on offense. They need that to continue and hopefully these last few games have helped solidify the ideal rotation for this group. Rebounding has been a big key lately, and they will be facing the CAA's second leader in that category in Jamelle Hagins (10.6 RPG). Delaware also has the conference's leading scorer, Devon Saddler. While they haven't played the best team basketball this season, the Blue Hens still have some guys who can hurt you. With the amount of individual performances that have beaten Mason's defense this year, those two names will be something to keep on eye on.

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If the CAA tournament started today...

A lot of CAA basketball still left to play,  but if the conference tournament were to start today this is roughly what the bracket would look like. Some teams have played more games than others and there are various tiebreakers I'm not factoring in yet but you get the picture. As you can see with only seven eligible teams and Northeastern looking pretty locked in that #1 spot, it would be in George Mason's best interest to at least earn the #2 or #3 seed. Doing so would allow them to avoid Northeastern, whom they have lost twice to, until the championship game. Try to hold back your excitement as this year's winner will be awarded with that coveted #16 seed in the NCAA tournament!

George Mason needs Jonathan Arledge to continue being their second scoring option

George Mason has gone through most of the season without a consistent scorer other than Sherrod Wright. Wright has done some incredible things this season and has carried this team on his shoulders at times. On any given night the second scorer could have been Johnny Williams, Marko Gujanicic, Patrick Holloway, or Bryon Allen. Now with only seven conference games left it appears junior forward Jonathan Arledge is emerging as the team's second go-to scoring option. After the ODU win on Monday he became the only other Mason player besides Wright to score 10 or more points in three consecutive games this season. Starting in place of Johnny Williams, who has been out with a concussion, the offense has run a bit smoother and the team is getting to the free-throw line more.

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George Mason handles ODU for the last time as a CAA foe

Jonathan Arledge posted another career-high last night, 21 points, and helped George Mason complete the season sweep of Old Dominion. With the Monarchs headed to Conference USA next year this was the last meeting of the two programs as CAA opponents, although I imagine they will keep the series alive. The Patriots won this one by dominating the boards and their efforts since the disaster against Drexel have been much improved. As bad as ODU has been this season it was still very encouraging to see Mason's sometimes choppy offense build a big lead in the second half without much of anything from Sherrod Wright. And while Wright didn't reach double digits for only the third time this season, Mason may have found their prime second scoring option in Arledge. Last night Arledge became the only other Mason player besides Wright this season to score 10 or more points in three consecutive games. He can be tough to defend when he gets going, his long arms allow him to score from multiple sports on the floor and in transition. He's also one of the reasons for the Patriots big success from the foul line recently. Over the last three games Mason has gone 57 for 68 from the line (83.8%), with Arledge going a perfect 17-17 from there in that span. I've been saying all season that their biggest strength on offense is getting to the line often and converting and they will need to keep this up to have any chance of winning the CAA this season.

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George Mason bounces back with road win at JMU

George Mason bounced back from an awful game versus Drexel to continue their winning streak over James Madison. They have now beaten JMU nine straight times, so at least that hasn't changed in the Paul Hewitt era so far. A pleasant surprise for the Patriots was the play late in the game from Jon Arledge, who scored a career-high 19 points. Arledge also hit two clutch free-throws down the stretch when Sherrod Wright was shook up after a flagrant foul and couldn't take the shots himself. Mason rebounded the ball much better and got a ton of second chance opportunities. I'm guessing the team made this a focal point of their practices after their poor efforts against Drexel. It turned out to be the difference in the game as the Dukes were making a serious run in the second half.

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George Mason blows 20 point lead in loss to Drexel

George Mason has lived and died by the play of Sherrod Wright this season. When he was shut out of the second half last night against Drexel, the outcome was inevitable. The Patriots blew a 20 point lead on their home court and for the second year in a row got torched by Drexel's Damion Lee. Lee scored 20 of his 29 points in the second half, while Sherrod Wright disappeared after scoring 13 in the first half. All this after shooting 54% from the field in the first half. They didn't allow a Dragons field goal in the first seven minutes either. However rebounding and a scoring drought was a the big killer for the Patriots in this one. The Dragons dominated the glass and got numerous second chance points on offense. Johnny Williams being out with a concussion certainly didn't help but I doubt him being in the lineup would have done much different as Mason was simply outworked. The offense just couldn't get anything going without Sherrod Wright and if not for Jon Arledge probably wouldn't even have been in the game late.

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