Jan. 23, 2010

The George Mason women's basketball team gets a break from the road as it begins a two-game homestand with a clash against William & Mary on Princess Day Sunday afternoon at the Patriot Center. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m.

As part of Princess Day, all young girls are encouraged to dress up in their favorite princess outfit for the game. The first 300 youth will receive a green tiara.

Additionally, Sunday is the Broadside Game of the Week, and Mason students with valid ID will receive free Mason beads. Mason students in attendance can also register to spin the "Wheel of Fun" for a chance to win a flat screen TV and other prizes.

Mason returns home after playing three of its last four games on the road, with the lone home game coming in the 72-61 win a week ago over Northeastern. The Patriots, who have accumulated an 8-1 record at the Patriot Center, are now 8-9 on the season and 1-5 in conference play. Most recently, Mason fell 59-51 at Drexel on Thursday night in a game that was as close as three points with less than two minutes to go.

William & Mary is 9-8 overall and carries a 2-4 mark in Colonial Athletic Association play. The Tribe has lost four of its last five games including a two-game skid at home to VCU and most recently, a 68-51 loss at Hofstra on Thursday evening. Taysha Pye leads the Tribe offense with a 14.7 points per game scoring average, the eighth highest in the CAA.

Last time the two teams met, Brittany Poindexter led the team with 20 points and tallied her first career double-double with 11 rebounds, but Mason was unable to hold off William & Mary as the Tribe earned a 74-63 Colonial Athletic Association victory on Feb. 15 last year at Kaplan Arena. With just seven players dressed for the game, Poindexter was one of two Patriots in double fi gures, as Brittney Wilkins earned her second career double-double with 18 points and 11 rebounds. Taysha Pye led the Tribe (12-12, 5-8) with 23 points and 11 rebounds.

In the all-time series between the two charter members of the CAA, Mason holds a 47-19 advantage with the teams splitting their last two matchups.