Nov. 12, 2003
FAIRFAX, Va. - The George Mason men's basketball team will host the One on One All-Stars Thursday at 7 p.m. in the Patriots lone exhibition game before the start of the regular season, which begins Friday, Nov. 21.
George Mason returns three starters and seven lettermen from last season's 16-12 squad. The Patriots finished in fourth place in the Colonial Athletic Association regular season with an 11-7 mark. Senior guard/forward Mark Davis (Springfield, VA/R.E. Lee/Palm Beach CC), a preseason first-team All-CAA selection by both the league's 10 head coaches and the media and a preseason Mid-Major all-America honoree by CollegeInsider.com, returns along with senior guard Raoul Heinen (Bunschoten Holland) (11.0 ppg, 3.4 apg) and senior guard/forward Richard Tynes (Washington, DC/Hargrave [VA] Military Academy) (4.8 ppg, 4.4 rpg). Davis, a second-team All-CAA pick a year ago, led Mason last year in scoring (15.5 ppg), steals (54) and three-pointers made (50). As a team last season, the Patriots set a school record for scoring defense (60.5 ppg), ranking 15th nationally.
The Patriots enter the year as the preseason favorite to win the conference in voting conducted by the league's 10 head coaches as well as the media. Mason grabbed seven of 10 first-place votes in the coaches' poll for a total of 79 points, and earned nine first-place votes for 169 points in the media poll. The Patriots are ranked 13th in the Preseason Mid-Major Top 25 poll recently released by CollegeInsider.com.
The One on One All-Stars are a group of former collegiate players based in the Washington, DC area. They are coached by former American University head coach Chris Knoche. Former George Mason players Tremaine Price ('01), Eric Herring ('01), Terrance Nixon ('01), Keith Holdan ('00) and Rob Anderson ('02) highlight the roster. The One on One All-Stars dropped an exhibition contest at Boston University Saturday evening by a score of 70-52. Herring led all scorers in the contest with 24 points and collected eight rebounds. Holden paced the squad with nine boards. The All-Stars visit Hampton tonight before facing the Patriots Thursday.
