Home Stand

Mason beat the Monarchs Saturday afternoon to remain unbeaten in CAA play and continued one of the school best starts in school history. Darryl Monore had his third straight double-double (14 and 14) to lead the Patriots who collectively shot 50% for the game. Mason capitalized early off the Monarchs flat start and went up by as much as 12 in the early minutes with the freshmen lineup providing the spark. Dre Smith's early three-point air-ball may have made some Mason fans feeling uneasy but he finished with 10 points and played some exceptional defense. Long, Smith, and Vaughan all hit big three-pointers in the 2nd half when the Patriots needed them after the Monarchs started to crawl back into the game. Some questionable fouls and late turnovers down the stretch didn't help Mason but they did not give ODU any easy shots which helped seal the deal. Gerald Lee of ODU got his fourth foul with 10 minutes to go in the 2nd which really hurt the Monarchs. Important thing to take away from this game and some of their other close wins this season is that late in the game when the opposition was mounting a comeback Mason had an answer to every score. That killer instinct is what it's going to take to win some road games in the CAA this year (the Patriots are on the road for 4 of their next 6). Turnovers were in an issue in this one but besides that everything else seem to be clicking for Mason at one point or another. The three-point shooting was on target but too often I feel like they go to it too soon and abandon the low-post even when it's working. Ryan Pearson and Louis Birdsong can find ways to score and the team not runnning plays for either of them is still a mystery to me. Too often these guys only get baskets because they are getting second opportunities with offensive rebounds. But as long as Mason 's guards keep shooting like they have been that argument is a moot point.

Next up for the Patriots is a visit to William & Mary on Wednesday for a rematch of last year's CAA conference championship.


pictures from caazone.com

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Previewing ODU...

Old Dominion visits the Patriot Center this Saturday fresh off a disappointing home loss to James Madison. Although JMU is an improving team on the rise, it's still going to leave the Monarchs hungry in their next CAA match-up. The experience of head coach Blaine Taylor always keeps the Monarchs fighting but this year he is definitely lacking the team unity of which his past teams used to thrive on. Blogger Rich Radford seems to think this year's squad is lacking a killer instinct. I think it's lack of toughness on defense. Against JMU they allowed the Dukes to shoot over 60% from the field despite creating many turnovers. Another area the team is lacking is guard play and outside shooting. They really don't have a do it all point guard running the show despite leading the conference in assists per game as a team. Mason has this with Cam Long and it's been hurting the Monarchs this season to be without it. Despite that, ODU's strength remains in the front court with their size and leader Gerald Lee shooting over 60% on the season. Lee is capable of going 20 and 10 on any given night but his inconsistency keeps him from being a go-to guy late in the game. Monroe will have his hands full with Lee in this game but I think Mason's balanced attack and guard play will be the major difference in this one. The Monarchs won't have an answer for the Patriots if they can hit outside shots early.

Sidenote: Did you know Mason is off to it's best start in 25 seasons?

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Mason takes down Towson

The Patriots improved to 4-0 in CAA play after beating Towson on the road last night and are victorious in six of their last seven games. Mason's offense was in rhythmn right from the start in this one. Dre Smith quickly knocked down two three-pointers in the opening minutes and they never really were challenged after that. Darryl Monroe dominated down low picking up his fourth double-double of the year with 16 points and 10 rebounds (8 offensive). Mason's defense again was the real difference maker late in the game as they held another team under 40% FG shooting. Michael Morrison had another authoritative shot block and Isaiah Tate somehow managed two points, three assists, and a steal in five minutes off the bench. The team would really profit off having another regular contributor off the bench outside of Cornelius and Pearson. After playing three games in five days the Patriots don't look tired and in fact they seem to be playing their best basketball yet this year. Saturdays showdown with Old Dominion should be interesting after watching the Monarchs fall to James Madision last night. ODU is one of the few CAA teams that seem to play well at the Patriot Center.

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The Washington Post is reporting that Vlad Moldoveanu might be going to American University:

"Patriots Notes: Vlad Moldoveanu, a 6-foot-10 sophomore forward from Romania who left the program two weeks ago, might end up at American University"

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Georgia State post game media

Photos taken by Allen Clark (offwing.com)

Video from caazone.com

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Mason holds on against GSU

Mason rallied late in the 2nd half last night to defeat Georgia State and remain at the top of the CAA standings. Cam Long had a stellar game scoring 18 points and grabbing 9 rebounds while Darryl Monroe picked up his third double-double of the season. The game was a defensive battle and forwards Louis Birdsong and Ryan Pearson had trouble creating any kind of scoring opportunities. The Patriots limited their turnovers and seniors Dre Smith and J0hn Vaughan made some key baskets down the stretch to keep the Patriots unbeaten at home. Larranaga used a four-guard line up which sparked a 13-2 run late in the second, after which the Patriots never looked back. I think we will see more four-guard lineups as the CAA schedule continues, especially against the smaller more athletic teams.

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Monday morning with Coach L

Over at caasports.com you will find the CAA basketball weekly teleconference interviews with all the coaches around the conference. See what Coach Larranaga had to say this morning about the Patriots play so far with the link below:

Coach L audio


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Video feed for the Georgia State game tonight (5 pm) if you don't have Verizon Fios.

http://www.channelsurfing.net/asx/georgemason.asx

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Mason dominates UNCW

Wow, we certainly have seen it all this season. Last night the Patriots dominated the UNCW Seahawks and reached the century mark for the first time since 2005. It is definitely a rare spectacle to see Larranaga's guys put up 100 points. Dre Smith had another good showing shooting wise and John Vaughan led all scorers with 20 while going 5-for-6 from the three-point line. The Patriots had many runs in this game but the 18-0 run in the second half sealed the deal. UNCW's front court was abysmal and basically got abused the entire game. Mason owned the boards and got a lot of their early baskets off second chance opportunities. If Monroe and Birdsong logged more minutes they each could have put up 20. But instead we saw freshmen Ryan Pearson and Michael Morrison develop in the low post (13 points each). Morrison seems to have a better touch than I had thought. More post moves to follow? Everyone looked good in this game and we saw a lot less erratic shooting than we have in previous games. Seniors John Vaughan and Dre Smith are started to lead the way on offense, which is how it should be. Monroe and Birdsong were consistant again in this one although they were not needed much .

Mason now moves to 2-0 in the conference and that might not seem like much now but a lot of teams moved to 1-1 in the CAA last night leaving only Mason, Georgia State, and Northeastern unbeaten so far. It's definitely going to be an interesting season in the CAA this year. Next up for the Patriots is Georgia State at home this Monday, with a 5pm start time. Thanks CAA, is having another TV game really worth putting out the loyal fans that attend games after a workday?

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