Oct. 16, 2008
The 2008-09 George Mason men's basketball team will see Coach Jim Larranaga in his 12th season leading the Patriots. The only way to describe his first 11 years is to call them an unequivocal success. During his tenure, Mason leads all CAA teams in overall wins, conference wins and postseason wins. But with more than 3,000 points, 1,500 rebounds, 500 assists, 250 steals and 150 blocks having graduated, should Mason fans expect more of the same in the coming season?
"I think we have to clearly emphasize that this is a very young team with seven of our 12 scholarship players being in the freshmen and sophomore classes," Larranaga said. "Yet at the same time, we feel that this team is going to be very capable of competing against the best teams in the CAA come March."
While the majority of the team is young, there are five experienced veterans who are hungry to repeat the conference championship the Patriots claimed in 2007-08. Fifth-year senior guard John Vaughan, senior forward Chris Fleming and Darryl Monroe, senior guard Dre Smith and junior forward Louis Birdsong are experienced and all are expected to have big roles in the 2008-09 campaign.
Vaughan first came to Mason in the summer of 2004 and as a freshman, was named to the CAA All-Rookie Team. He sat out the following season after knee surgery and each of the past two seasons, he's been third on the team in scoring. Now he's the leading returning scorer after averaging 12.3 points last year.
"John Vaughan had an outstanding junior year and I believe he has positioned himself to be not only our team leader, but an all-conference performer as well," Larranaga said. "He is our best perimeter defender, he is our most consistent scorer and he has a major role in setting the tone for how this team will perform at both ends of the court."
Vaughan had a terrific season on the defensive end last year, but was snubbed when the CAA All-Defensive Team was announced on the eve of the CAA Tournament. He used that as motivation and on the conference's biggest stage, he showed he should not be overlooked in the future.
"His outstanding defense in the CAA Tournament was instrumental in helping us get to the NCAA Tournament," Larranaga said. "His defense on (Northeastern's) Matt Janning, (UNC Wilmington's) Chad Tomko and (William & Mary's) David Schneider is what propelled us to have three outstanding defensive efforts."
Another big performer in the CAA Tournament was Fleming. Coming off the bench, he provided a tremendous spark. So much so that teammates felt he should have been named to the All-Tournament Team.
"Chris Fleming has a critical leadership role as a senior on this team," Larranaga said. "He is the one and only remaining player who competed in 2006 when we made our run to the Final Four. His competitiveness, his physical strength and his defensive presence will be valuable assets to our team this year.
"He will have a very important role in helping our young freshmen learn what Division I basketball is all about, much like he learned from Will Thomas and Jai Lewis.
While Fleming did his damage last year off the bench, both Smith and Birdsong started the majority of the games last season for Mason and both will need to take their game to the next level this season.
"Dre Smith is our Mr. Energy," Larranaga said. "He is a high-octane 3-point shooter and we expect him to have a huge senior year, much like he did in his final year of junior college ball. He has been a key contributor the past two seasons and we expect this year for him to soar to new heights.
"Louis Birdsong made nice strides in his first two seasons as a Patriot. We expect that growth to continue in his junior year. Louis has played in the offensive shadow of outstanding players like Will Thomas and Folarin Campbell. We now expect him to step up and become a double-figure scorer. Louis is very capable of making a major contribution at both ends of the court. His ability to defend both inside and outside is critical to this season's success."
The final upperclassman hasn't had a chance to play in a Mason uniform in more than 20 months. Darryl Monroe sat out the 2007-08 season after having surgery on his big toe. Two years ago as a junior, he averaged 6.1 points and 3.9 rebounds playing in all 33 games.
"Darryl Monroe is coming off a redshirt year and it is vitally important that he immediately establish himself as our go-to guy on the inside," Larranaga said. "Darryl is the one experienced player who has started regularly at the 4-5 position. His defense, rebounding and scoring will all be needed for us to be successful."
Three other returning lettermen will also be expected to pick up the slack left by the departures of Folarin Campbell, Jordan Carter and Will Thomas. Guards Cam Long and Isaiah Tate and forward Vlad Moldoveanu have put their freshmen seasons behind them and are expected to make important contributions, none more so than Long.
"Cam Long's progress as a freshman was outstanding," Larranaga said. "His role will completely change and he will be given the reins of this team and be asked to lead us on the court. As a point guard, he has the ability to get everyone involved while still scoring himself.
"At the defensive end, we will need him to step up and become a stopper and a defensive catalyst. He is also an outstanding rebounder and this should help a team that is somewhat undersized."
While Long should be in the starting lineup, Moldoveanu and Tate are likely to begin the season coming off the bench.
"Vlad spent the summer with the Romanian National Team working on his skills," Larranaga said. "He has returned for his sophomore year as a much improved offensive player. Vlad needs to continue to work in the weight room to become as strong as he's capable of because he will be battling against some very big and strong interior players both in non-conference and conference play.
"Isaiah Tate is one of the best 3-point shooters I've ever coached. We will need that marksmanship from long-range this season. Ike came along very well at the end of last season and his progress has continued through the offseason. We need Ike to become a consistent defender so that he can earn valuable playing time and help us at the offensive end."
While Mason lost three players that accounted for half its offense, the eight returning players have had plenty of time to learn each other's game and to form a unique bond.
"Of the eight returning players seven were here full-time over the summer," Larranaga said. "They had a chance to lift weights and play pick-up ball and begin the process of taking on new roles. With the graduation of Folarin Campbell and Will Thomas, our four seniors now have to step to the forefront to lead this next generation of Patriots. We're very confident that J.V. Dre, Darryl and Chris are ready, willing and able to take on that added responsibility."
Mason has five freshmen on the roster, four of which are scholarship athletes. Andre Cornelius was first-team All-State in North Carolina, Kevin Foster and Michael Morrison were first-team All-State in Florida and Ryan Pearson was the co-MVP of the Jordan Classic Regional All-Star Game in Madison Square Garden and he was named first-team All-City out of New York City.
Cornelius, a point guard, scored 30 points per game as a senior with eight assists. He was named the top point guard recruit in the CAA by Rivals.com.
"Andre Cornelius is a high-octane performer," Larranaga said. "I believe he will become an instant favorite of all George Mason fans. His speed and quickness and jumping ability will make him very, very hard for defenses to contain. He has the ability to create offense off the dribble for both himself and others."
Foster, a forward, averaged 19.6 points and nine rebounds his senior season and was named McDonald's All-American Honorable Mention.
"Kevin Foster is a gifted athlete who played primarily in-and-around the basket in high school and will be making the transition to more of a perimeter position in college," Larranaga said. "We want to expand Kevin's perimeter skills and 3-point shooting for his long-term development.
Morrison, a power forward, averaged 17 points, nine rebounds, five assists and two steals and he led his team to the state title game in both his junior and senior seasons.
"Michael Morrison is an outstanding young athlete who should make steady progress throughout his career and become one of the truly gifted big men in George Mason basketball history," Larranaga said. "His size and speed and jumping ability allow him to defend and rebound against the biggest and best opponents on our schedule. We will be working with Mike to make him a force inside at the offensive end throughout his freshman year so he can become our go-to guy on the inside as his career continues."
Pearson, a forward, averaged 25 points, 12 rebounds and three assists his final year when he played at prestigious Christ the King High School.
"Ryan Pearson is one of those unique athletes that has a knack for scoring and rebounding," Larranaga said. "He scores in a variety of ways and is a difficult match-up no matter where he plays on the floor. His long arms and quick moves give him an advantage night-in and night-out. We will need Ryan to become a consistent defender so that he can reach his full basketball potential."
With so many returning players, Mason's talented scholarship freshmen will have to fight to see the court.
"We believe all four freshmen will make a significant contribution to the George Mason basketball tradition during their four-year career," Larranaga said. "We believe each of them will compete very hard for playing time this year but we fully expect that no matter how well they play this year, it's their future, once they've earned experience, that has us all excited."
The final member of the Patriots is Brian Henderson, who comes to Mason from Gaithersburg, Md. As a high school senior, he averaged 15 points, six rebounds and two assists.
"Brian Henderson is a walk-on who has proven that he can play at the college level," Larranaga said. "He is a fine shooter and competitor and will be an integral part of helping our team prepare for games, much like Tim Burns did in that role for many years."
The first game Mason will have to prepare for is its season-opener at Vermont. Other non-conference road games are Hampton, East Carolina, Liberty and Dayton while Mason will host Brown, Mount St. Mary's, Ohio, Radford and Tulane. The Patriots will also play in the ESPN BracketBuster on the road. After that comes the typical trying Colonial Athletic Association schedule with the Patriots playing home-and home with Delaware, Drexel, James Madison, Northeastern, UNC Wilmington, Old Dominion and Towson while hosting Georgia State and Hofstra and traveling to VCU and William & Mary.
"Probably the most difficult part of our schedule is that we have so many early-season road games and for a young team, this will be extremely challenging," Larranaga said. "I think the conference is as deep and as talented as it has ever been. There will not only be a huge battle at the top, but there will also be a tremendous fight to even stay in the first division for all teams. Teams that have finished in the bottom half of the league have dramatically improved and I doubt seriously that anyone can dominate the league from start to finish."
