Feb. 8, 2003

Box Score

RICHMOND, Va. (Feb. 8, 2003) ? Five George Mason players posted double figures, but it wasn't enough as Virginia Commonwealth guard Emanuel Mathis scored a career-high 26 points, and forward Willie Taylor added 20, to lead the Rams to a 78-62 win over the Patriots Saturday night in Colonial Athletic Association action in front of a season-high 6,669 fans at the ALLTEL Pavilion at the Stuart C. Siegel Center.

Junior guard Richard Tynes (Washington, DC/St. John's/Hargrave Military Academy) led George Mason with 13 points and added five rebounds. Senior forward Jon Larranaga (Oakton, VA/St. John's-Prospect Hall) recorded 11 points and five boards, while freshman forward Jai Lewis (Aberdeen, MD/Aberdeen/Maine Central Institute) also had 11.

Junior guards Raoul Heinen (Bunschoten, Holland) and Mark Davis (Springfield, VA/R.E. Lee/Palm Beach CC) each finished with 10 points. Heinen also had five rebounds and a team-high four assists. Senior forward Jesse Young (Peterborough, Ontario/Peterborough College Institute) led the Patriots with nine rebounds.

Mathis connected on 7-of-10 field goal attempts, including a career-best 6 three-pointers in seven tries. He was also a perfect 6-for-6 from the free throw line. Taylor, who hit on 8-of-12 shots from the floor and was 2-for-4 from three-point range, also had four rebounds, three assists, two blocked shots and three steals.

George Mason held the early lead, holding its largest advantage of the game at 13-9 with 12:17 left. VCU then went on a 10-3 run to take a 21-16 lead with 7:56 remaining in the first half, and Mason would not lead again. The Patriots shot just 37 percent in the opening stanza, but stayed in the game by grabbing 11 offensive rebounds in the opening 20 minutes. VCU held a 36-31 lead at the break, on the strength of 48 percent shooting and 13 first-half points from Mathis.

The Patriots pulled even at 41-all with 16:11 left in the game on a jumper by Larranaga, but Taylor scored seven of the Rams next nine points to give VCU a 52-46 edge. Mathis then hit three 3-pointers in a three minute stretch to keep the Rams in front by eight, and a Troy Godwin fast break dunk made it 60-50 with 8:00 left. Mason got no closer than seven points the rest of the way, as VCU hit 10-of-12 free throws down the stretch to seal the win.

The Rams shot 54.3 percent from the field and was 9-for-15 (.600) from beyond the arc in the contest. The Patriots were 39.3 percent from the floor and 23.1 percent (3-of-13) from 3-point range.

George Mason sees its four-game win streak snapped as the team falls to 12-9 overall, 7-5 in league games. The Patriots return home to the Patriot Center for their next contest. Mason hosts Hofstra Thursday at 7:30 p.m. in a game that will be televised live by Comcast SportsNet.

Box Score
George Mason (12-9, 7-5 CAA) - 31-31=62
Virginia Commonwealth (13-7, 8-4 CAA) - 36-42=78