George Mason travel to Northern Iowa for ESPN Bracketbusters

The Patriots were selected to play Northern Iowa of the MVC on Saturday February 19th at 7 p.m. on ESPN2. Northern Iowa has an RPI of 52 right now so not a selection you can complain about for George Mason. However I'm sure most fans wanted a higher RPI team but keep in mind how good the MVC is and UNI's really has a chance to improve as are on a 7-game winning streak right now. They have also already beaten Wichita St. once and still play them again before the regular season is over.Here is  ESPN's Andy Katz's take:"GMU assistant coach Chris Caputo called me out for not having Mason in my original televised game list. Since then, the Patriots have come on strong and look like a real challenger for the CAA title. They also have a...

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Lamar Butler will be on this week's Lunch with Lindsay on NBC4

The school just announced that former Patriot Lamar Butler and his father will be on this week's Lunch with Lindsay segment on NBC4 tomorrow at 5 pm.  If you remember Coach Larranaga had lunch with Lindsay in November of 2009. Set those DV...

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George Mason takes down William & Mary for 7th straight win

The Patriots strong play in the CAA continued with a 85-69 win yesterday over William & Mary.  They now have moved into sole possession of 2nd place in the conference with this being their 7th straight victory.  They shot 53.6% from the field and 86.4% from the free-throw line which continues to improve.  The Patriots look like they are firing on all cylinders lately and continue to tear apart the bottom of the CAA rankings. They have some tough test coming up this week against Hofstra and ODU at home.  Mason's big three got it done again including this in-bounds-off-the-back-of-a-defender-dunk from Luke Hancock as he uses his "sneaky athleticism":Now that was sneaky!The only thing I think this team is currently lacking is consistent production from the bench....

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George Mason hammers Towson, continues to blow out bottom of CAA

Photo via TBDSo far this season George Mason has played 5 of the bottom 6 teams in the CAA and so far they have beaten them by an average of 23.8 points. The latest of these blow outs came last night against Towson in an 84-58 victory. Towson who was publicly reprimanded by the CAA for their poor travel planning efforts on Wednesday looked like a team that was probably on a bus for 12 hours the previous day. The Patriots used runs of 23-0 and 17-0 sparked by Luke Hancock (19 points) and Andre Cornelius (15 points). Cornelius ended up with five three-pointers and Cam Long recorded five steals on the night. Towson has never beaten George Mason since joining the CAA in 2001-02.  It was one of those games where the whole bench got...

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George Mason vs Towson will now be today at 4 pm because for some reason they left Baltimore at 3 pm yesterday

I'll admit that the weather predictions for yesterday weren't exactly spot on and but Towson leaving Baltimore at 3 p.m. for a 7 p.m. tip with a possible snow storm on the horizon is just dumb. So today the game will be played at 4 p.m. and will be free admission to all. Also if you can't make it or don't want to venture on the dumpster fire parking lots at Mason right now the game will be streamed free on GoMason.com.  Shout out to best pep band in the country, the Green Machine, who gave the few hundred fans that were there a show despite the games postponement.UPDATE: The CAA has issued a public reprimand for Towson:TOWSON UNIVERSITY ISSUED PUBLIC REPRIMAND BY CAARICHMOND, Va. (January 27, 2011) – Colonial Athletic Association...

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Who will George Mason face in their ESPN BracketBuster game?

The Patriots still have work to do in the CAA as they will face Hofstra and ODU at home and VCU on the road next month. How they fare in those games could be the difference between whether or not we can talk about any "at-large" hopes. Tonight they take on Towson at home, hopefully the snow won't cause any issues as they are currently 20-point favorites. Mason hasn't lost to Towson since 1993 and the Tigers have never won at the Patriot Center. So far Towson is yet to win a CAA this season.I still believe and others seems to agree that even with a good bracketbuster win the Patriots still wouldn't have enough good wins (top RPI 50) to be considered. However who could forget that every single expert said the same thing in 2006 and look what happened, so you never know.  It's always fun...

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Highlights from George Mason vs Delaware

Some highlights from last night's rout of Delaware. Luke Hancock's alley-oop lay-up off the in-bounds is a thing of beau...

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George Mason blows out Delaware, takes sole possession of 3rd place in CAA

The Patriots had another explosive 2nd half last night en route their 7th conference win and fifth in a row.  They now are in sole possession of third place in the CAA only one game behind VCU and Hofstra, both of whom had close calls last night. This game almost seemed like it had potential to go down to the wire as Mason led by only 3 with 3:35 remaining before halftime. But then Mason went on a 9-0 run to close out the half and dominated Delaware in the 2nd half on both ends. That 9 point run turned into a 23-3 run after the start of the 2nd half and Mason never looked back. Both teams didn't have great shooting nights and some of that was a credit to Mason's defense that held the Blue Hens to a season-low 30.4% from the field. The Patriots also held Jawan Carter, the CAA's 4th leading...

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New commenting system

In an effort to make discussions and commenting here easier and reduce how much spam I have to sift through, I have implemented a new system using Disqus. You can now reply to other users comments and post media (e.g. a YouTube link).  Also you can login to make comments using your Facebook or Twitter accounts.  The goal here is urge more discussions and move to a more powerful system. Email me any questions or concerns you may ha...

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Highlights from George Mason vs James Madison

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George Mason escapes Harrisonburg with the win off Cam Long's career day

Cam Long set a new career-high for points with 30 against JMU today as the Patriots won a tough one on the road 75-73 in Harrisonburg.  JMU's Denzel Bowles gave Mason all they could handle with 21 points, 14 rebounds and 6 blocks but they were again able to capitalize off another whistle happy game at the free-throw line.  Isaiah Tate was huge in the 2nd half scoring 7 straight points for Mason on their 12-0 run that dictated the pace for the rest of the game. JMU battled back making shot after shot and hitting the offensive boards but in the end they had no answer for Cam Long.  Prior to Mason's big run in the 2nd half Larranaga gambled on putting in Mike Morrison back in the game with 4 fouls.  Morrison rewarded...

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George Mason heads down to Harrisonburg for showdown with James Madison

Mason travels to Harrisonburg for a Saturday morning ESPNU game against JMU at the ripe ol hour of 11 a.m. JMU, like Mason, is undefeated at home this year and has been averaging 79 points there in their CAA wins.  The Dukes pose a different type of challenge for the Patriots, they can be very tough up front with Denzel Bowles (6-10, 250) and Rayshawn Goins (6-6, 250) but they also shoot the ball very well from the outside as they are 2nd in the CAA in field goal and three-point percentage. Mason doesn't have the usual big advantage in the shooting department here and they are also undersized.  Statistically JMU isn't really much better in rebounding but Denzel Bowles almost averages as many a contest as Mike Morrison and Ryan Pearson...

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Friday Links

Couple of George Mason basketball stories circling around the interwebs this week:For Mason's Whack, the future has arrived [InsideNova.com]Is George Mason D.C.'s best hope for an NCAA Tournament run? [TBD]UConn fans still haven't gotten over 2006 [UConnFan.com]CAA Basketball's formula for "smart scheduling" [Daily Press]Colonial X: Week 2 by Brian Mull George Mason's RPI is currently at 40, only team higher in the CAA is ODU (25)If you know Mason men's basketball, you should know these three names [GoMason]The CAA, five years later [College Chalkta...

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Highlights from George Mason vs Drexel

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George Mason's big second half overwhelms Drexel 71-47

It was an ugly game at certain points of the night with 51 fouls being called and three Drexel players fouling out but George Mason just overpowered the struggling Dragons. With all the fouls being called the Patriots attempted more free-throws (21) than field goals (20) in the 2nd half.  Luke Hancock led all scorers with 16 but it was Mason's defense holding Drexel to a season low 47 points that was the real story. In the 2nd half the Dragons went 5-for-27 from the field after halftime and came out so flat on offense it was practically game over with 10 minutes remaining. On offense the Patriots excelled in transition and the Dragons had no answer for that as they were unable to slow down the game. Drexel by the way hasn't...

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Listen to Ryan Pearson on the CAA Basketball Radio show

CAA Player of the Week Ryan Pearson was on the CAA Basketball radio show down in Richmond yesterday with caahoops.com's Michael Lit...

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Previewing George Mason vs Drexel

The Patriots return to action tonight at 9 p.m. against the Drexel Dragons looking to win their 3rd straight CAA match. I know the game is at 9 p.m. because of the TV deal with MASN but it's still going to suck for attendance coupled with the fact that students do not return from winter break until the 24th. Home games in the CAA are an important advantage as the Patriots haven't lost many of them in the past couple of years. Drexel is a strong team despite some ups and downs and Mason needs this victory heading into a tough match-up at JMU this Saturday.  I think the big question is can Cam Long and Ryan Pearson continue to keep rolling like they have been on offense lately.  Drexel is had an interesting season already, they beat a ranked Louisville squad in an ugly game back in...

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Listen to Coach Larranaga's weekly teleconference audio

Check the audio from today's CAA weekly teleconference.Also, Ryan Pearson was named CAA player of the we...

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Watch future Patriot Corey Edwards today on ESPNU at 11 a.m.

TheMasonBench posted this a few days ago and just wanted to make sure others knew that Corey Edwards of Jim Larranaga's 2011 recruiting class, will be playing on ESPNU today at 11 a.m. Edward's Christ the King high school team will be taking on Bishop Gorman from Nevada in the Spalding Hoophall Classic.UPDATE: Well looks like he is not playing today due to an illness. Too b...

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George Mason uses good free-throw shooting to defeat Georgia State, really

It's amazing how many different ways George Mason has won games this season. They have not had a secret recipe they use for each match up.  It might be smothering defense, it might be lights out three-point shooting, it might be fast break points off turnovers you just don't know.  Yesterday afternoon's 66-51 victory over Georgia State added another method of winning for the Patriots, dominating at the free-throw line. I've been complaining about this team's free-throw shooting for some time, most notably last season, so a game like this really makes me happy. The statsheet chart at the bottom of this post really drives home how effectively Mason got to the free-throw line and made the Panthers pay. Towards the end of this game the...

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Patriots look to get back on track in the CAA this weekend against Georgia State

Mason looks to get back on track in the CAA this weekend at home against Georgia State.  The Patriots are coming off a dominating performance against under-matched Northeastern and the Panthers lost to JMU last night by 12. Georgia State seems to be a much improved team over last season as they have already beaten JMU and VCU earlier this season. In some ways they are very similar to Mason as they shoot the ball well and don't have a lot of size up front, also they are terrible at free-throws. The Panthers are also sharp on defense and currently are 2nd in the CAA in FG defense allowing teams to only average around 40% from the field on the season.  I don't think there is any way they can keep the Patriots from shooting under that percentage in the Patriot Center however.  The...

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George Mason dominates Northeastern in 86-60 win

George Mason ended their three-game road trip with a win last night in snowy Boston over Northeastern 86-60.  The Patriots dominated the Huskies right from the start shooting nearly 70% from the field in the 1st half. Ryan Pearson had a career night scoring 24 points and started things off with a three pointer to open the game and then quickly picked up a technical for saying something to the NU bench. All this happened in about 40 seconds and I'm sure Pearson wasn't asking them "how about this snow huh?". Bone-headed and unnecessary but I'm sure most fans won't think much of it because of the blow out victory that followed. Up front the Patriots dominated the Huskies' post players and for the first time this season we saw them dominate on the boards. Mason set season-highs for points,...

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Listen to Coach Larranaga's Weekly Teleconference

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Old Dominion out-muscles George Mason

The Patriots were undersized in this one and I thought it was going to doom them all game long. But Mason didn't back down after ODU's relentless inside game was thriving early. They would counter the Monarchs tough inside possessions by hitting a three-pointer or driving to the basket.  In the end the difference was really ODU's ability to grab an offensive rebound with ease that led to enough second chance points to put away the game late and sealed the 69-65 win. The Monarchs finished with 23 second chance points, had to win when you give up that on the defensive end. The Patriots also had no answer for Frank Hassell who really hurt them in the 2nd half.  Cam Long and Luke Hancock paced Mason in the first half and saw Ryan Pearson score all of his 13 points in the 2nd giving Mason...

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George Mason heads to ODU for their toughest test of the season

Photo by John TatumI'm sure it's not ideal for any coaching staff to suffer your worst loss of the season right before your facing the conference's best team on the road but that's where this George Mason team is right now.  Historically  Jim Larranaga's teams have faired pretty well after suffering a conference loss. However I doubt many Mason fans are confident in this team's ability to go into Norfolk and take down the Monarchs considering they have not done so since 2004. Perhaps the loss at Hofstra was a result of the team's soft out of conference schedule that didn't feature much of any road challenges outside of playing in Dayton.  The loss on Wednesday night should be a wake up call that they can't always pull out a victory...

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Highlights from George Mason vs Hofstra

GoMason.com posted some highlights from last night's loss at Hofstra, careful the frame rate isn't easy on the ey...

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George Mason suffers first CAA loss to Hofstra

The Patriots lost on their first CAA road trip of the season to Hofstra 87-74 and you can tell from the final score there was plenty of breakdowns on defense.  They let Charles Jenkins go off in the 2nd half and ended up finishing with 32 points on the night.  Hofstra is a one-man show with Jenkins and the fact that Patriots couldn't even slow him down gave them no shot in the 2nd half. If you bet on sports at Betus like I used to you'd know Mason was still favored in this one. This game was very much like the one against NC State as play-by-play man Bill Rohland mentioned where the Patriots gave up  a ton of transition points and allowed too many open looks and easy lay-ups. In the first half Mason switched to a zone defense and Hofstra started to drain three-pointers. Add...

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Basic Basketball Offensive Skills

Basic basketball skills are essential to your success on the court.  Skill #1) Body Balance Your overall balance is controlled by your head, feet and hands. Keep your head directly above the midpoint between your feet with your chin up. Do not lean. This helps keep control because the weight of your head alone can throw you off balance.Basketb...

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George Mason holds off Delaware with clutch play from Isaiah Tate

The Patriots looked a little rusty to start off 2011 but used some hot shooting (not from the free-throw line) and some clutch play by Isaiah Tate to hold off Delaware for their second CAA victory.  His three-pointer with about eight minutes ago gave Mason the room they needed to close out the win.  Tate's 12 points off the bench was something the Patriots needed and could have used in their loss to Dayton.  Luke Hancock and Ryan Pearson again had great box score numbers while Mike Morrison continues to not know be much of a factor on offense.  Mason shot the ball very well on the night going 56.5% from the field but really could have ran away with the game if they just sank a few more free-throws. It is something we have...

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