Jan. 8, 2010
The George Mason men's basketball team will put its 13-game Colonial Athletic Association home winning streak on the line on Saturday afternoon at 4 p.m. when the Patriots host UNC Wilmington at Patriot Center. The game will be televised on MASN and broadcast on WTNT 570 AM.
Mason and UNCW met earlier in the season and Mason took a 57-52 road win over the Seahawks. Mason has won the past four meetings in the series and only once in school history have the Patriots won five straight against UNCW. That feat was accomplished from March of 1985 through February of 1987.
The Patriots are coming off a tough road loss at Northeastern, falling to the Huskies 71-46. It was the second-straight road game in which Mason lost by more than 20 points. It's been a different story for the Patriots at home this year. Mason is 6-1 with a one-point loss to Dayton on December 8. Since then, Mason has won four straight. At home this year, Mason is outscoring the opposition by 6.4 points per game and outrebounding the opposition by three boards per contest. Mason is shooting 44.9 percent from the field at Patriot Center.
Ryan Pearson leads Mason in scoring and rebounding at 12.4 points and 6.6 boards per game. He has been stellar over the past six games with three of his five career double-doubles coming in those contests. He had a career-high 20 points at Northeastern while grabbing 10 rebounds. Cam Long is also averaging double figures with 10.9 points. He also leads the team with more than 3.0 assists per game.
The Seahawks have won two straight including a 62-61 last-second win at William & Mary to snap the Tribe's 10-game winning streak. They are 2-3 on the road with a win at Elon on top of the one at William & Mary. Chad Tomko, preseason second-team All-CAA is averaging 14.7 points and 4.6 assists. John Fields, a transfer in his first year at UNCW, is averaging 13.1 points, 9.6 rebounds and shooting 56.1 percent from the field. Those numbers are second in the CAA in rebounding and field-goal percentage.
This year UNCW is outrebounding the opposition and outshooting the opposition but they are allowing an average 26 free throw attempts per game and they have turned the ball over nearly five times more per game than the opposition. In fact, the Seahawks have turned the ball over 15 times or more in 12 of their 14 games and they have turned the ball over 20 or more times on five different occasions.
Saturday is Armed Forces Day sponsored by the U.S. Army with a special halftime performance by the New Guard America Drill Team. Members of the military can purchase $7 discounted tickets by showing their military ID at the Patriot Center Box Office. Offer valid for up to four tickets.
