Freshmen shine as Mason routs Brown

It was a great night. Not just because Mason won big but because they have a new mascot. Who apparently doesn't have a name yet, and Mason is opening it up to suggestions. Really a work of art compared to his predecessor.

Now about the game. Mason took control early, creating steals and opportunities for their guards. Darryl Monroe was big in the low post but not needed much. John Vaughan (18pts) , Dre Smith, and even big Vlad shot the ball well from behind the arc. Even walk-on Jimmy Nolan nailed a three-pointer. But the most exciting thing to watch was freshman Mike Morrison (15 pts), who like Ryan Pearson on Saturday looked very comfortable for a freshmane forward. Morrison is long, very long; and can move well for his size. It was encouraging to see Vlad and Birdsong play well after a poor showing in Vermont. But really the difference in talent level from the new freshmen and the current role players on Mason is already starting to show. Mike Morrison's emphatic dunk on a pass from Andre Cornelius is a sign of things to come. It is really going to be exciting seeing this kind of young talent play against the CAA's best. I can't wait.

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Previewing Brown...

Big night for Mason basketball, first home game, CAA champions banner to be raised, and the unveiling of a new athletic mascot. All this after coming off an impressive down the wire road victory to start off the new season. Fans should be glowing with excitement to see such a road victory when thinking back to how terrible some away games have been the last two seasons. Fans should also be gitty over the play so far from freshman Andre Cornelius and Ryan Pearson, who were inserted into the lineup early on Saturday and didn't look like they were playing their first Division I game. Darryl Monroe's play was probably the most exciting thing for Mason fans to see as he gives reason to think the front court won't be a glaring weakness this year.

Now on to Brown. This Ivy league team is not something to overlook, really no team can be who runs the Princeton offense and plays a lot of man-to-man defense. Brown was picked to finish fifth in the Ivy and on paper they don't look like much, especially in their front court. But for whatever it's worth the Bears lost to Rhode Island by 2 on Friday, the same Rhode Island team that nearly upset Duke last night. The Bears have a decent amount of size on their roster and they can roll out a starting five with players from 6-5 to 6-9. Look for Brown to stay mostly on the perimeter because of their lack of post players and try to take advantage like Randolph-Macon did. Darryl Monroe should have another big night, which will open things up for Mason's guards to hopefully have a better night from behind the three-point line.

Mason will win this game because:

...Darryl Monroe and Ryan Pearson should have their way down in the posts, which will take the pressure off guards John Vaughan and Dre Smith. Depth is another issue that will help the Patriots in this game, especially with the strong play from the freshmen.

Brown can upset Mason if:

...they play a very disciplined, up-tempo, Princeton style of offense and create confusion for the younger inexperienced Mason players. If ran the right way, the Princeton style of offense can help a team like Brown hide their front court weakness and make a team play out of their realm.

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Vermont Post Game Media

Here are two videos, one with some game highlights and the other is a post game interview with Vermont Coach Mike Lonergan.




Pictures from the Burlington Free Press:

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Clutch free throws by Monroe seal the deal for Mason

Darryl Monroe had ice water in his veins and knocked down two free throws to tie and then win the game for the Patriots with .7 seconds to go in overtime. Mason's defense proved to be the difference maker as they forced a 5 second rule inbounds turnover to set up Monroe's final two free-throws. What a way to end it. Monroe finished the game with 16 points and 13 rebounds while playing 38 minutes. Andre Cornelius (9 pts) and Ryan Pearson (13 pts) were stellar in their debuts while Dre Smith and Louis Birdsong struggled. The game opened up very sloppy with both teams turning over the ball and lot and taking fouls. The three-point shooting was awful for both squads and the shot selection left most fans head scratching, but at the end of the 1st half Isaiah Tate nailed a three-pointer to give the Patriots their first lead. From that point on you knew it was going to be a dog fight.

The escape from Vermont with a win could not have happened without the exceptional play from Mason's prized freshmen. Cornelius and Pearson were inserted into the game early and contributed right away not showing their inexperience. John Vaughan had wrist problems from last weeks scrimmage at Georgetown that carried over into this game. Vaughan, Long, Cornelius, and Smith were featured in a four guard lineup often, something similar to what Larranaga was running at the end of last season. The lineup proved to be pretty effective and Mason was still able to out rebound Vermont. Marqus Blakely had his 20 and 10 but John Vaughan's defense on Mike Trimboli proved to be the difference down the stretch. I had stated yesterday that Blakely was going to have a big game and there was no stopping him and for the Patriots to win they would have to contain the rest of Vermont's perimeter players. Mason did just that and held the Catamounts offense in check when it mattered.

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Previewing Vermont...

So finally we are only a mere 27 hours away from the start of another George Mason basketball season. Expectations might not be as high this year and there certainly are a lot of question marks on this squad, but doesn't that just make it more fun to watch? First up for Mason on the road will be the Vermont Catamounts from the American East conference. A mid-major team usually in contention for the American East auto-bid stumbled a little last season due to injuries and basically had a different starting lineup each week. This season they expected to be back atop of their conference and it all starts with junior forward standout Marqus Blakely. Blakely was conference and defensive player of the year (19 ppg, 11 rpg, 2.7 bpg) despite being hobbled with ankle problems all season. Blakely dominated the frontcourt of UNCW last season with 19 points and 19 rebounds and could pose serious trouble for Darryl Monroe and Louis Birdsong. Hopefully the Patriots will prevent him doing this. Another player to watch for the Catamounts is Michigan State transfer Maurice Joseph who is returning from offseason shoulder surgery and could be an excellent complement to Blakely. Point guard Mike Trimboli was second on the team in scoring last season but struggled with turnovers, something Larranaga will be looking to exploit. The Patriots didn't look to hot exploiting anything against Randolph-Macon and their lack of perimeter defense was well, awful.

The Patriots will win the game if:

...they limit everyone else besides Blakely and create turnovers for their faster, more athletic backcourt. I don't see the Patriots stopping Blakely in the low-post. It's questionable how recovered and in shape Monroe is from missing all of last season, while Birdsong and Fleming are prone to foul trouble against players like Blakely. The speed and athletisim of guards John Vaughan, Dre Smith and Cam Long will be Mason's strength all season long and these guys need to get going early.

The game will get ugly for the Patriots if:

...their forwards get into early foul trouble and give up too many uncontested three-pointers. Blakely is probably going to have a big game, but the Patriots can't make his day easier by letting his teammates drain three's all day. Also it will be important to keep what little experienced forwards the team has in the game and not fouled out on the bench. Monroe is the best rebounder on the team and will have a difficult time vying against Blakely on the boards, it's very important he stays out of foul trouble late.

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Thursday Bullets

• Mason Basketball achieves Legendary Status! The legend of the 2006 Final Four squad can live in your Xbox for all eternity!
• Will the new 3-point line affect Mason's style?
• Mason's new uniforms are mentioned on ESPN's Page 2 "Uni Watch"
• Rivals.com ranks all 343 DI teams (Mason #128)
• Interview with class of 2009 recruit Luke Hancock
• Three of Mason's 2009 recruits are All-CAA per Rivals.com
• Paris Bennett talks about his commitment to Mason
• Looks like your only option to watch the Vermont game on Saturday would be here ($7)
  

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MASN releases it's schedule

MASN released it's college basketball schedule for the upcoming season, and it looks like they have the Patriots slated for 7 games. Not too bad, although I wish more road games were televised.

Tue, 11/25/08 Mt. St. Mary's @ George Mason 7:00pm
Mon, 12/1/08 George Mason @ Liberty 7:00pm
Fri, 12/19/08 Radford @ George Mason 7:00pm
Sat, 1/3/09 UNC-Wilmington @ George Mason 7:00pm
Wed, 1/21/09 George Mason @ Northeastern 7:00pm
Wed, 2/25/09 George Mason @ UNC-Wilmington 7:00pm
Sat, 2/28/09 Towson @ George Mason 8:00pm

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