June 18, 2003
FAIRFAX, Va. - George Mason University's men's basketball team grabbed seven of 10 first-place votes in 2003-04 preseason Colonial Athletic Association balloting conducted by the league's 10 head coaches, the association announced Wednesday.
The Patriots are projected to finish first in the conference after receiving 79 points, outdistancing second-place UNC Wilmington, which garnered 67 points. Virginia Commonwealth was tabbed for third with 65 points. The Seahawks, the 2002-03 CAA Champions, received two first-place votes and the Rams earned one first-place tally. Delaware and Drexel tied for fourth with 51 points. Coaches were not eligible to vote for their own team.
Individually, Mason senior Mark Davis was selected to the preseason CAA first-team in the balloting. Davis concluded the 2002-03 season as the Patriots' leading scorer, averaging 15.5 points per game. The 6-5 guard/forward started all 28 games, leading the team in steals (54) and three-point field goals made (50), while averaging 3.9 rebounds per contest. Davis was a second-team All-CAA pick last season.
George Mason concluded the season with a 16-12 overall record and an 11-7 mark in league play. The Patriots return eight letterwinners from last year's team, including three starters in Davis and seniors Raoul Heinen and Richard Tynes. The Patriots also welcome five newcomers to the program. Mason also returns sophomore Lamar Butler, who sat out last season due to injuries and academics, and junior Terry Reynolds, a transfer student out of Toledo who practiced with the team last year, but sat out due to NCAA transfer rules.
2003-04 Men's Basketball Coaches' Projections
1. GMU (7) 79
2. UNCW (2) 67
3. VCU (1) 65
T4. DEL 51
T4. DREX 51
6. ODU 47
7. HOF 39
8. JMU 24
9. W&M 15
10. TOW 12
Pre-Season First Team
Domonic Jones, VCU
Mark Davis, GMU
Kenny Adeleke, HOF
Adam Hess, W&M
Troy Godwin, VCU
Pre-Season Second Team
Mike Slattery, DEL
Mike Ames, DEL
Nick George, VCU
Alex Loughton, ODU
Anthony Terrell, UNCW
