Feb. 13, 2007

The George Mason men's basketball team will take the court on Wednesday night looking to avoid its first four-game CAA losing streak in nearly nine years. The Patriots will play at Delaware with a 7 p.m. tip in a game televised on the Mid-Atlantic Sports Network (MASN).

The last time Mason lost four-straight games within a single season was a five-game losing steak to close out the 1997-98 season, Jim Larranaga's first as head coach of the Patriots. Since then, Mason has lost four straight just once, although it was over the course of two seasons. Mason dropped the final two games of 2002 and first three of 2003.

The Patriots are currently 7-8 in the CAA, the first time since 1997-98 that Mason has been sub-.500 in league play after 10 games. Still, the Patriots are tied for fifth in the CAA with three games to go. The Blue Hens are tied for 11th in the league with a 3-12 CAA record, 5-21 overall.

Mason beat Delaware two weeks ago, 89-59 at the Patriot Center. Mason had one of its best shooting nights in school history in that contest, shooting 63.3 percent from the field. Delaware has lost players this year due to injury, withdrawal from school and academics. In its past two contests, the Blue Hens have played just six players and only seven players are listed on the active roster.

Delaware has been led by Herb Courtney, who is one of the top players in the conference. He is averaging 18.0 points per game and 7.6 rebounds, both among the top five in the CAA. He is also shooting 36 percent from long range. Brian Johnson is one of the league's top first-year players, averaging 8.5 points and 4.5 assists. Courtney had 16 points and nine rebounds in the first meeting, but he committed seven turnovers. Johnson had six points and two assists while Sam McMahon had 14 points and Darrell Johnson scored 11.

Folarin Campbell led Mason with 21 points in the first meeting while Will Thomas had 14 and Dre Smith and John Vaughan each had 12.