Nov. 21, 2007
Box Score
FAIRFAX, Va. - Senior Lateisha Wade scored 19 points to lead the George Mason women's basketball team to its second victory of the season, a 58-57 nail-biter over Maryland-Baltimore County in non-conference action Wednesday afternoon at the Patriot Center.
Mason leveled its season mark at 2-2 after its second win in as many games, powered by strong shooting in the second-half to hold off a feisty Retriever team that fell to 1-4. Joining Wade in double figures was freshman Brittany Poindexter, who doubled her previous best output with 12 points to go with a game-high eight rebounds. Leading the UMBC offense was Carlee Cassidy, who chipped in 17 points.
The Patriots seemed to have the early momentum, opening the contest on an 8-2 run. However, the Retrievers worked their way back, finally tying the score at 13 on a MacKenzie Butler layup with 7:04 to go in the half. The two teams went back and forth for the duration of the opening stanza, with neither team gaining a lead larger than three. The two teams went to the halftime break with Mason holding its first halftime lead of the season, a 21-20 advantage.
Mason again found the early momentum coming out of the intermission, opening the period on a 10-3 scoring spree to take an eight-point lead. UMBC responded to its rough shooting in the first half, one in which it was 7-for-30 (23.3 percent) from the field, by moving within two on another Butler layup to make the score 31-29. Another eight unanswered points by the Patriots gave them the lead for nearly eight minutes, until UMBC's Morgan Hatten gave the Retrievers a 44-43 lead with 8:36 to go.
The back-and-forth battle continued, with Mason expanding its lead to five at 51-46, but UMBC scored a basket with 2:17 left to take a 52-51 lead. However, much like its game on Saturday, the Patriots found a way to win by scoring five in a row, and preventing the Retrievers from escaping with a win.
Mason will try for three in a row on Friday when it hosts the Longwood Lancers in the Broadside Game of the Week. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.
