Patriots need to slay the Dragons

There have been a lot of ups and downs in this young season so far. The Patriots have started to show some consistency of late and it could not have come at a better time. The team will travel to Philadelphia on Thursday to take on Drexel who have been knocking over big name schools. The Dragons are on a six game winning streak in which they have beaten two Big East schools, Syracuse and Villanova, on the road. In November they beat a strong Vermont team by 13 points in a game where none of their starters scored in double digits. Drexel is very balanced, much like last years Mason squad; and they are beating more talented teams by playing better as a team. Their RPI is up to #7 right now, making this conference game very important to Mason. Mason's RPI is #103 and beating Drexel on the...

Read more »

Patriots Take Down Holy Cross

Its always good to see more wins before the conference play gets into gear, but scoring less than 60 points and turning over the ball 19 times to Holy Cross is not good to see. And Will Thomas had three points in 36 minutes? But there were a lot of positives that came out of this game such as Louis Birdsong pulling down a game high 11 rebounds. Birdsong should be starting from here on out, hes improved every week while Urbina and Monroe have been struggling and inconsistent. Another positive from this game was that the team played well on defense for a change. And they will definitely need to play defense like that again if they want to have a chance against Drexel. Drexel is best team left on our schedule after they took down Villanova, Syracuse, and Temple. They currently have a very...

Read more »

Whats wrong with the Patriots?

Since my last post the Patriots have lost to Bucknell, defeated Radford by two, and got man handled by one of Duke's worst teams in years. The fact that we are losing these games shouldn't really be a cause for concern but its how we are losing that is really frustrating. I know I know, we were a Final Four team and are not a Final Four program, but come on everyone expected more than this. And maybe saying that is unfair to them but nevertheless the team looks in a disarray on offense and just plain pathetic on defense. Add that to the inconsistent production from the bench players, that is when there actually is production from any of them. During the Radford game Dre Smith scored the first basket, Urbina scored the last, and no one else...

Read more »

Smith Shines In Blow Out

What a relief it was to witness the Patriots finally beat down on someone even if it was the Florida International Golden Panthers. Remember them; the school whose football team got in a melee with Miami earlier in the year resulting in about 30 players being suspended. No brawl in this game but Mason sure had their way with them. I still don't understand how Will Thomas didn't have 30 points in this game considering the caliber of players guarding him, but I won't complain since we won. 10 Patriots scored in this game and Dre Smith was the only one in double digits scoring 20. I was waiting for when this kid was finally gonna get some more playing time. I hope this is a sign of things to come. Smith has great shooting touch and created a lot of shots for himself, something I have not...

Read more »

Patriots come up short

The scoreboard might have said it was a two point victory for the Creighton Blue Jays but it really wasn't that close as it would seem. The Patriots forced three quick turnovers in the final two minutes to narrow the gap but came up short in the closing seconds. The Patriots were 6-22 from the 3-point line, ok I can deal with that. They also attempted 7 foul shots. I can't understand this. Folarin Campbell drove the lane twice and was fouled twice; so why do you stop doing it? And why did the Patriots keep forcing up 3-pointers? I really like our mid-range shooting against other teams but I rarely see it. The game was frustrating to watch mostly because Creighton's best player, Nate Funk, was kept in the check and the blue jays still...

Read more »

Shockers Get Revenge

The Wichita State Shockers came to Fairfax on Saturday in front of a sell out crowd and national TV cameras. Something the majority of their players are used to from last season. The Shockers looked like a team determined to put the Patriots away right from the tip off and they followed through. It also didn't hurt that Sean Ogirri (pictured above) got hot in the 2nd half where he scored all of his 19 points including clutch three pointers late in the game. Theres not much you can do when a guy gets hot at the right time. Shockers played great defense and forced the Patriots to take a lot of shots they weren't comfortable with. Although the Patriots were leading at the half, they were not playing their game. They were not going down low...

Read more »

Mid-Major Showdown in Fairfax

Do I smell a rivalry brewing here? You bet. The George Mason Patriots have got to love the Wichita State Shockers though. Not only did they beat the Shockers on the road, giving them a solid out of conference win on their resume, but then beat them in the third round of the NCAA tournament to advance to UConn in the Elite Eight. Oh how sweet it was. Wichita State would like nothing more than to come into the Patriot Center, watch our fans cheer at the revealing of the Final Four banner, then beat us and move up in the poll rankings. Sweet revenge right? I don't think so. The Patriots are going to beat the Shockers this Saturday and heres why:1. Will Thomas. Thomas was a monster down in the low post last season and had a coming out party in...

Read more »

Patriots get a scare in Cleveland

The Patriots opened the season with a come from behind victory against the Cleveland State Vikings. It hurts me to say that. Cleveland State is the worse team in the Horizon League. Why did the Patriots have trouble against these guys? Easy; Patriots had bull eyes on their backs and the didn't really think it was necessary to defend the three point shot until the second half. From the start of the game the Vikings came out firing with high energy and successfully converting Mason turnovers to points. The Patriots come out flat; a Final Four hang over perhaps; and turned the ball over five times in the games first three minutes. Folarin Campbell turned the ball over eight times in the game, and looked out of place during certain moments. The first half was dreadful at certain points and the...

Read more »

Buzz in Fairfax Continues.....

After the annual beat down of a local DII or DIII team in the Patriots pre-season exhibition game, it is was evident how the buzz from last March is still flowing through Fairfax. More people attended that exhibition game then half of the regular season games last year at the Patriot Center. For the first time in my four years at Mason the bookstore is actually carrying worthwhile basketball apparell, including jerseys, commemorative basketballs, banners, and even a gameday shirt for the Wichita St. vs. GMU home opener. Simply amazing. I always thought that a way to build a stronger fan base at Mason was to promote from the selling of Mason athletic apparell. But thats for another post. The school has also made a huge marketing effort to sell more tickets for this year including buying ad...

Read more »

Another local stand out commits to Mason

Coach L's recruiting class of 2007 rounds out with another local product in Vlad Moldoveanu. Moldoveanu is a 6-foot-11 native of Romania playing for St. John's high school in DC, where he has made a name for himself with his outside shooting touch and rebounding. Vlad also had offers from West Virginia and Kentucky, which shows that you should not mess with Coach L when he is trying to recruit in his own backyard. West Virginia has often recruited big men who can shoot from long range, remember Kevin Pittsnogle last season? He was a 6-foot-10, 255 pound center who shot better than 40% from three point land. Thats better than most shooting guards. Vlad will most likely play small forward and create mismatche problems for the rest of the CAA;...

Read more »

Midnight Madness

Another Midnight Madness passes in Fairfax bringing the with it the highest expectations ever for the Patriots. A lot has changed in one season and ESPN broadcasting our Midnight Madness festivities is more proof of that then ever. This is the time of year when all the talk starts and pre-season rankings start pouring in. Will Mason be in the pre-season Top 25 coaches/AP poll? No. Thats the way I like it for now, were we ranked last pre-season? Pre-season rankings are garbage, remember when Maryland was ranked #24 in last years pre-season poll, and they lost to Manhattan in the NIT. Yeah they thats right, Manhattan, and NIT. It's the time of the year where everyone is undefeated and everyone thinks they will be the next George Mason. Sure the Patriots will have a huge bulleye on their backs...

Read more »

When Being Politically Correct is Incorrect...

Gunston: what is it? Good question. Ever since I have been a student at Mason that has been the mystery around campus. Aren't we the George Mason Patriots? Apparently GMU's verison of a patriot is a furry green blob, who looks like a poorly constructed Sesame Street character. I guess this is supposed to better represent our campus and its vast diversity? Our school just made it to the Final Four, its time for a real mascot.Let me just start off by saying that I hate Gunston and think that "it" is an embarassment to our school and most notably our basketball team. And believe me I am not alone. As a poster on the CAAZone.com I communicate with fellow alumni and students on our shared hatred of Gunston. The hatred of Gunston is so wide spread...

Read more »

Mason gets commitment from another local standout

Cameron Long, a 6'3" guard from Woodbridge, VA has verbally commited to George Mason and is the Patriots second recruit from the 2007 class. Long plays under one of Jim Larranaga's former players, Ahmad Dorsett, who now coachs at Freedom High School. With this commitment Larranaga again has showed his ability to work with players who are under the radar in the DC area. Although George Washington was next on Long's visit schedule, he commited to George Mason shortly after his visit to the campus this past weekend. Long is said to be a versatile defender who can play both guard spots. He should be a great fit in Coach L's system with his ball handling and three-point shooting skills. The 2006-2007 is almost upon us, but with Long and Tate coming...

Read more »

Patriots schedule three nationally televised games. Pinch me.

The George Mason Patriots 2006-2007 schedule is finally released and is highlighted with three nationally televised games which include the home opener against Wichita State, a trip to Duke in December and an important CAA conference match up against Hofstra in February. The Patriots could see the national stage for a fourth time if their bracketbuster matchup is chosen as one of the showcase games. Last season the ESPN bracketbuster game against Wichita State almost single handling got the Patriots into the big dance. These televised games will do wonders for the GMU recruiting and give the Patriots a chance to keep the post-Cinderella story buzz alive. Look for the Patriot Center to frequently be standing room only at times this season, something...

Read more »

Isaiah Tate first commitment for 2007

Although we won't see him for the 2006-2007 season, Isaiah Tate will be making noise for GMU in 2007. Tate was a standout at the Adidas Superstar Camp this past July, which led to offers from fellow CAA teams such as Delaware, VCU, and ODU. In addition Penn State, Fordam , and Richmond were tracking Tate.The 6-2 wing scorer shot 44% from the 3-point range in his last season at Dematha Catholic High School in Maryland. Dematha is well known for producing top college recruits and a few NBA players. His high school coach has stated that Tate is one of the best shooters hes seen in nearly 10 years.Currently the Patriots do not have a pure shooter on the roster for the 2006-2007 season, so Tate coming in the future is a great fit. Coach L historically...

Read more »

Recruiting Class of 2006

Andre Smith - PG, 6'0", (Cohise CC): Averaged 25 points a game which ranked him #4 nationwide in JUCO scoring. Final Four run had a part in helping Smith to choose the Patriots over Creighton and Mississippi State. A pure scorer who can create and should help fill the void left by Tony Skinn.Louis Birdsong - F, 6'6", 195 lbs (Mount St. Joseph HS): Very athletic, strong mid major prospect and was Baltimore Sun player of the year. Ranked #40 in the nation for his position by Scout.com. Birdsong is a tough inside scorer who also has a mid-range shot.Darryl Monroe - F/C, 6'7", 235 lbs (Central Florida CC): Another top JUCO recruit with great hands and passing ability. Averaged 15 points and 9 rebounds a game as a freshman. Has the size to play...

Read more »

Season Outlook

George Mason enters next season as one of the most successful mid-majors in college basketball history. A Final Four run that will be remembered forever. But now Mason enters the 2006-2007 season losing three key players that inspired that run in the post season. Jai Lewis, Tony Skinn, and Lamar Butler were all 1,000+ point scorers in their careers at GMU. That is something that is difficult for any program to replace. Coach Larranaga has proven that he can find great players right in our own back yard. Skinn, Butler, and Lewis are all from Maryland, and all were overlooked by bigger programs in the area such as Maryland and Georgetown. Jai Lewis for instance was viewed by many schools as a fat, slow, and undersized center. Three years later...

Read more »