March 15, 2009
The George Mason men's basketball team earned a berth in the 2009 National Invitation Tournament on Sunday night as the Patriots were selected as a seventh seed and will play a first-round game at second-seeded Penn State (22-11) on Tuesday night at 8 p.m. on ESPNU.
Mason is 0-5 all-time against Penn State including an 0-3 mark under head coach Jim Larranaga. The teams last met on Dec. 8, 1999 when the Nittany Lions beat the Patriots, 67-54 in State College, Pa.
For Mason (22-10), this is its second-straight postseason appearance as Mason went to the NCAA Tournament last season. This is the second time in school history Mason is making back-to-back postseason appearances and it is the seventh time in the past 10 years the Patriots will play in a postseason tournament. Mason has made five NCAA appearances in school history and this is the fourth time the Patriots will play in the NIT.
Mason's last trip to the NIT came in 2004 when the Patriots beat Tennessee and Austin Peay at Patriot Center before falling on the road at Oregon. Before that Mason made an NIT appearance against St. Joe's in 2002, losing at Patriot Center. In 1986, Mason played at Lamar in its first-ever postseason appearance, before falling at Providence. Mason is 3-3 all-time in the NIT with a 2-1 mark at home and a 1-2 mark on the road.
Should Mason beat Penn State, it will travel to either third-seeded Niagara or sixth-seeded Rhode Island for a second-round clash with game date and time to be determined.
March 17 is a memorable day in Mason men's basketball history as the Patriots earned their first-ever NCAA win on that day in 2006, beating Michigan State. In 2004, Mason beat Tennessee in the NIT on that date.
Ticket Information
The George Mason Athletic Ticket Office does have a block of tickets available for season ticket holders and Mason students to purchase. Any tickets purchased through George Mason will be available for pick up at the Bryce Jordan Center on game day.
Reserved tickets are $15, while student tickets are $5. George Mason season ticket holders can submit a request for tickets through their "My Mason Nation Account".
Tickets ($5) and bus transportation ($5) for Patriot Platoon members will be available beginning at 10 a.m. on Monday, March 16 at the Mason Athletic Ticket Office in the Field House. General Mason students can begin purchasing tickets ($5) and transportation ($10) at 1 p.m. at the Mason Athletic Ticket Office in the Field House. The deadline to purchase tickets is 5 p.m. on Monday, March 16.
Tickets are available to the general public at www.ticketmaster.com or by calling 814-865-5555.
