Dec. 30, 2005

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George Mason (4-5) vs. Siena (5-4)
Loudonville, N.Y.
Dec. 31, 2005; 2 p.m.

SERIES RECORD George Mason leads the overall series with Siena, 3-2, which includes a 1-0 record when playing in Loudonville, N.Y. Siena won the last meeting by a score of 70-68 at the Patriot Center on Jan. 9, 1994 and Mason's last win against Siena came in Fairfax on Dec. 6, 1992 (83-72). The only time these two teams squared off in New York was on Jan. 4, 1992 and Mason claimed a 66-62 victory.

ABOUT SIENA Sophomore forward Laura Menty leads Siena with 13.7 points per game, while senior forward Whitney Cave has averaged a team-best 8.4 rebounds per game. Four Siena players have started all nine games in Menty, Cave, senior guard Lauren Surber and junior guard Katelyn Dooley. The Saints are on a four-game winning streak, with their last victory coming against St. Bonaventure by a score of 72-47 on Dec. 28 at the Pepsi Arena in Albany, N.Y. Siena holds a 5-1 record when playing at home this season and have won its past three contests on the Saints home court.

LAST TIME ON THE COURT

Fairfax, Va. (AP)--George Mason University's women's basketball team dropped a 70-33 decision to sixth-ranked Maryland on Dec. 22 at the Patriot Center.

Ashleigh Newman matched a career-high with 21 points, and Marissa Coleman added 20 points and 10 rebounds for the Terrapins (10-1), who have won six straight and are outscoring opponents by an average of 32 points. Maryland's only loss was to No. 1 Tennessee.

Moni Akintunde scored nine points to lead the Patriots (4-5).

"I thought we did a pretty good job defensively to hold them to 70, which is probably 25 under their average," George Mason coach Debbie Taneyhill said. "But unfortunately they held us to 30 under our average. We have to do better scoring."

Maryland had a 35-19 lead at halftime. They've won all three meetings with their D.C.-area neighbors from the Colonial Athletic Association.

Mason has a victory over another Atlantic Coast Conference school, Miami, this season, but the Patriots could only stay with the Terrapins for about 14 minutes.

Jessica Smith's layup cut Maryland's lead to 22-17 with 6:45 remaining, but Newman scored seven points in a 13-2 half-ending run in which the Terrapins' defense repeatedly kept George Mason from getting decent looks at the basket.

Newman had 16 points on 6-for-9 shooting at the half, doubling the output of any George Mason player. The Patriots shot 28 percent in the first half, with Jen Daniels, their only starting senior, missing all four of her attempts.

Mason missed its first 10 shots of the second half, and Maryland quickly pushed the lead to 20.

Turnovers were even with 19 a piece and Maryland outrebounded Mason, 55-41.

CLOSING OUT THE YEAR The Patriots have only played on New Year's Eve three times in school history. Mason owns a 2-1 overall record and a 1-0 mark when on the road. The last time Mason played on Dec. 31 the Patriots defeated Southeast Louisiana on the road by a score of 87-62.

NON-CONFERENCE FINALE Since becoming a member of the Colonial Athletic Association, George Mason holds an 8-12 overall record in its last non-conference game of the year. Nine of these contests were on the road and the Patriots have won five of those games.

REBOUND-REBOUND Sophomore forward Moni Akintunde grabbed a team-high 10 rebounds against Maryland on Dec. 22 for her fourth double digit carom showing of the season.

LAST DECEMBER GAME Mason holds a 15-13 overall record in the last game played in December, which includes a 9-6 mark when facing an opponent on the road.

FOR THE FIRST TIME Freshman Colleen Shumaker started her first collegiate game against Maryland on Dec. 22 in Fairfax.

MAKING HER DEBUT Sophomore-transfer Lateisha Wade played in her first game with Mason on Dec. 22 after sitting out the first eight games due to the NCAA Transfer Rule. Wade scored two points, collected one rebound and added one assist, as well as one steal.

FAMILIAR FOES Siena and Mason have two of the same non-conference opponents in Miami and Maryland. Mason went 1-1 in these two games, defeating the Hurricanes in Coral Gables, Fla. and falling to Maryland in Fairfax. The Saints lost to the Terrapins in their season opener by a score of 107-66 in Loudonville and also dropped a 76-47 decision to UM in Florida.

FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH Mason is one of the youngest Division I women's basketball teams this season as the Patriots sit tied for third with a total of 11 underclassmen on its roster (five freshman, six sophomores). Air Force has the most underclassmen with seven freshman and six sophomores, for a combined 13.

WHERE'S MASON? With the return of only two starters and five letterwinners, Mason was predicted to finish the 2005-06 season seventh in the Colonial Athletic Association, which was voted on by members of the media and the league's sports information directors.

PLAYING HOST For the second-straight year, George Mason will host the Colonial Athletic Association Championship which will be held from Mar. 8-11 at the Patriot Center.

PLAYING PROFESSIONALLY Former Mason standout Jen Derevjanik became just the second Patriot to play in the WNBA as she was on the Connecticut Sun's roster for both the 2004 & 2005 seasons. Both years the Sun made it to the WNBA Finals.