Mason takes down Ohio

The Patriots never trailed and Cam Long and Dre Smith each finished with 15 points yesterday in Fairfax. After leading but as much as 19 Mason did see their lead shrink somewhat but ended the game hitting 9 of their last 10 free throws to seal the deal. The Patriot's defense once again stole the show as points off turnovers helped set the tone and maintain a lead. Freshman Ryan Pearson and Andre Cornelius each logged 24 minutes in this game scoring 13 and 12 respectively. Starter Louis Birdsong saw the least amount of action of the season and finished with 1 point after fouling out; while Vlad Moldoveanu and Isaiah Tate did not enter the game. I am not sure why Coach Larranaga played such few guys, especially when there were some streaks...

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ESPN tabs Mason recruiting class tops among Non-BCS schools

Some reading for you after a long day of Black Friday shopping.George Mason, Rice lead non-BCS schools"1. George Mason PatriotsCoach Jim Larranaga most certainly knows talent and is one of the best teachers in the business. This fall, Larranaga and his staff signed five excellent recruits who appear to have the talent to match that of the Patriots' 2005-06 dream team, which knocked off North Carolina and No. 1-rated Connecticut to advance to the 2006 NCAA Final Four. The chances that any team would repeat such a miraculous season are unlikely. But George Mason again should be one of the nation's elite mid-major programs and a dangerous team for high-majors to play.Prominent among the newcomers is powerful athlete C/F Johnnie Williams (Eads, Tenn./Briarcrest Christian), a player who has the...

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Second half surge leads Patriots to victory

The night did not start off as planned in this game as the Patriots came out flat. Shot selection was poor and Mason was just plain getting out hustled by Mount St. Mary's. Then Larranaga put in his star freshmen, Cornelius and Pearson, and the tide began to turn. The freshmen duo (still working on a nickname) provided a spark for the Patriots and instantly started hitting shots and making plays on both ends. Darryl Monroe on the other hand proved in this game that he doesn't need to be the leading scorer to be a huge factor for the Patriots. Monroe's low post passing was on point again last night setting up his teammates and doing all the little things necessary to get them back on track in the 2nd half. The low post scoring was greatly...

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Previewing Mount St. Mary's...

Mason faces their toughest out of conference opponent tomorrow night in Fairfax as they take on Mount St. Mary's. The Mountaineers return 4 starters from last year's NEC conference champions and NCAA tournament participant. They gave Virginia Tech a battle recently on the road and forced to Hokies to commit 20 turnovers. That was a week ago, so they have had a lot of down time, will that hurt them in this game? Mason on the other had has played twice since November 17th. The Mountaineers have a mix of seniors and juniors in their starting lineup but other than that they are a very young team depth wise. Guards Jeremy Goode and Jean Cajou (Fairfax, VA native) lead the way for Mount St. Mary's and have been shooting the ball well so far this season. Mason will have a significant size...

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Cornelius leads Patriots over Pirates

Mason earned it's second road win last night, which compared to last season at this time, is impressive enough on it's own. But factor in that freshman guard Andre Cornelius put on a show and Mason fans should be a little less worried about the upcoming season. Cornelius drained five three-pointers while he and Birdsong finished with 19. Birdsong has been leading the way in scoring two straight games, something we did not see last season. It was great to see Mason get this victory without Monroe having a great night. Although the big man did finish with 9 points and 9 rebounds but was less involved down the stretch. Mason's guards needed to show up and make shots after the Hampton game diaster. Not only did they shoot the ball much better...

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Previewing East Carolina...

The Patriots don't have time to sulk after their loss to Hampton because they hit the road again Saturday to play another Pirate team. East Carolina returns only one starter this season but has had no trouble scoring points in their first three games averaging over 83 a contest. This doesn't bode well for Mason who last night had trouble reaching 20 in the first half. But the Pirates are a young team like Mason, having 9 out of their 11 players in their first or second year. The team's only returning starter, Sam Hinnant, has been leading the squad so far averaging 17 ppg. Backcourt mate James Legan has been scoring 17.7 a night, while sophomore point guard Brock Young has been averaging over 7 assists. In the front court Chad Wynn (6'10" 240) will give Darryl Monroe his first challenge...

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About last night...

Just how poorly did the Patriots play last night?They did not score a FG for nearly 11 minutes to start the game23 turnovers to 4 assists (wow)33% FG2-17 from the 3-pt linethey only got to the free throw line for 7 attemptsAndre Cornelius (22 min) and Ryan Pearson (10 min) had a combined 2 pointsEven Gomason.com can't believe it: "To say that Mason's offense started off slowly would be like saying clowns wear a little makeup."Mason was able to spoil a great defensive effort by not being able to hit the broad side of a barn last night. The Patriots did not allow a Pirate player to reach double digits and held the team to under 40% shooting from the field. They did not give up three-pointers and out rebounded Hampton, but you know the night isn't going well when Louis Birdsong is your leading...

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Lamar Butler back in the states

Final Four alum and poster boy Lamar Butler is back in the states after a brief stint overseas. Apparently Butler has been invited to a training camp for the NBA Developmental League (D-League) team, the Colorado 14ers. In case your wondering what a 14er is, check here, because I didn't believe it either. Now I know this move isn't for money because you basically make more working the night shift at McDonalds than you do as a D-League player, so Lamar must still think he has a shot at the NBA. Each D-League team has two NBA affiliates and the 14ers are with the Denver Nuggets and the New Jersey Nets. Fellow CAA alum Jose Juan Barea, now with the Dallas Mavericks, took the D-League root to the NBA successfully so seeing Butler make it to...

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Previewing Hampton...

The Patriots travel down south this Thursday to face Hampton, a team that has lost a lot of scoring power since the fight they put up last December. They do however return Rashad West who scored 22 in that game last season and was All-MEAC but did not play in the first game this year. West, along with junior guard Vincent Simpson will provide most of the team's scoring, while getting little help. Hampton does have some size on it's roster, with three players standing 6-10, but none of them have any experience. Mason's athletic forwards should not have much trouble in this match-up but will have to be careful of the Pirates shot-blockers. Perimeter defense might not be the Patriots point of emphasis in this game, as Hampton only made one three-pointer in their first game against Iona which...

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Post Game Media from Brown game

Pictures from Flickr and Caazone....

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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...

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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...

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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 Pre...

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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...

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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...

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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 HancockThree of Mason's 2009 recruits are All-CAA per Rivals.comParis Bennett talks about his commitment to MasonLooks like your only option to watch the Vermont game on Saturday would be here (...

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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 7:00pmMon, 12/1/08 George Mason @ Liberty 7:00pmFri, 12/19/08 Radford @ George Mason 7:00pmSat, 1/3/09 UNC-Wilmington @ George Mason 7:00pmWed, 1/21/09 George Mason @ Northeastern 7:00pmWed, 2/25/09 George Mason @ UNC-Wilmington 7:00pmSat, 2/28/09 Towson @ George Mason 8:0...

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Gunston is done. Now what?

George Mason has officially closed the door on Gunston the mascot. Gomason.com has a short video stating he is "graduating" and to check back tomorrow for more details. So what exactly are the plans for Mason's new mascot? Dare I say an actual Patriot or Patriot-like character? Really I wouldn't mind seeing a contest where the student body was polled and ideas could be submitted, but it seems that something is already made up and will be revealed Monday the 17th at the first home game.*****************UPDATE: 11/11/08Check out the end of this video Mason has put out. Apparently this creature pictured is going to be the mascot going around doing all the community stuff, not the athletic mascot. Mason just can't get enough of furry green guys...

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Gunston on his way out?

Yes yes oh god yes. Gunston is on his way out. I don't have all the details but at the first home game (11/17) a new mascot will be revealed in some capacity. Long time readers of this blog know well of my hatred towards Gunston.Will the new mascot resemble actually resemble a Patriot and not a green blob? Stay tuned.UPDATE 11/10: New video on Gomason.com. Gunston is apparently "graduatin...

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About last night...

Really not much to read into about last night's exhibition game. Although the loss to Randolph-Macon has made D3hoops.com headlines! I mean really it's an exhibition game, it's doesn't count. It was a glorified scrimmage and you could see how serious Coach L was taking the outcome of the game when he inserted freshmen Andre Cornelius and Ryan Pearson late in the second half with the score close. Great to see those guys getting minutes. The rumor I posted yesterday about Kevin Foster redshirting seems to be true considering he didn't play last night nor did he participate in the pre-game warm-ups. The one thing that does upset me from last night was the poor defending around the perimeter. The Yellow Jackets shot over 45% from behind the...

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Freshman Kevin Foster to redshirt?

On the day of Mason's exhibition tune up against Randolph-Macon, there are some rumors floating around Mason nation that freshman Kevin Foster might be redshirted this season. I can't confirm this yet and it is difficult to speculate whether this would be because of academics, injury or player development. Keep in mind recruiting website Rivals.com had him tabbed as the best power forward enterting the CAA this season. Although this isn't too shocking considering the depth Mason has at forward and fellow freshman Michael Morrison is better developed physically and had a much better showing in the Kenner summer league. Redshirting freshmen is something more common with bigger programs, mostly because they have the luxury of letting a talented...

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