Nov. 30, 2008

The George Mason men's basketball team takes to the road on Monday night to play at Liberty in a non-conference match-up between two of the Commonwealth's top teams. The contest will be televised on MASN and broadcast on WWRC 1260.

The Patriots are 5-1 on the season and they are currently ranked in the top 10 of the RPI. Liberty is 4-1, with a wins over a Division II school and an NAIA college. Included in the other wins is a victory at the University of Virginia and a win over William & Mary.

Mason's lone loss came on the road, a defeat at Hampton. The Patriots also have road wins at Vermont and at East Carolina. The win over the Pirates came just days before ECU beat VCU on the same court. Mason has won three straight and its last time out, the Patriots had five players score in double figures. That victory came against Ohio, which dropped to 26th in the unofficial RPI after the loss at Mason.

Liberty beat NAIA Montreat to open the year before losing at UNC Asheville. The Flames then went on the road and beat Virginia before heading home to beat Division II Coker. On Saturday, Liberty took an 80-74 overtime win over William & Mary.

Freshman Seth Curry, younger brother of Davidson phenom Stephen Curry, has led the Flames with a 22.0 points per game average while shooting 46.2 percent from the field. Anthony Smith is averaging 19.4 points per game while the three other starters are combining to average 30 points per game.

While scoring hasn't been a problem for Liberty, which is averaging 81.4 points per contest, rebounding has. The Flames are being beaten on the boards by a 41-33.4 margin. The Flames also have very little depth as four of the five starters are averaging 31 minutes per game or more.

Mason, meanwhile, doesn't have a single player averaging 31 minutes per game. Seven players are averaging at least 17.5 minutes per game and at least 7.0 points per game. Additionally, Mason has outrebounded the opposition in every contest and the Patriots hold a 38.5-31.8 rebounding edge.