Nov. 30, 2002
Box Score
FAIRFAX, Va. (AP) - Aaron Harper had 12 points, Derrick Allen added 11 and
David Sanders chipped in 10 as Mississippi defeated George Mason 56-49 Saturday
night.
The Rebels (2-1) never trailed, and the game was tied just once at 2-2.
Mississippi built leads of 15 points in the first half and 16 points in the
second half, but each time George Mason (0-3) came back.
Mississippi, which has played in five of the past six NCAA tournaments,
survived a late George Mason charge despite shoddy free-throw shooting. The
Rebels shot just 7-for-16 from the line. The Patriots didn't shoot much better,
11-for-23 from the line.
George Mason shot just 2-for-11 from 3-point range. in the first half, the
Patriots went on a 9-0 run to cut the lead to 27-21 with 2:28 to play. Emmanuel
Wade's layup gave Mississippi a 29-21 lead at the break.
After Jon Larranaga scored on a layup 26 seconds into the second half, the
Patriots trailed 29-23. A 13-4 run enabled Mississippi to take their biggest
lead, 49-33. The Patriots outscored Ole Miss 14-3 to make it 52-47 with 41.3
seconds left.
But Allen hit the second of two free throws, Trey Pearson the first of two
and Pearson a pair to secure the win. George Mason, which was playing its first
home game of the season, was led by Larranaga with 16 points. Jesse Young had
14 points and 13 rebounds.
