FAIRFAX, Va. - Junior Ryan Pearson scored a season-high 18 points and senior Cam Long eclipsed the 1,000-point career scoring mark to lead the George Mason men's basketball team past Loyola (Md.), 66-52, in non-conference action Wednesday evening at the Patriot Center.
Mason improved to 7-2 and finished its five-game homestand unbeaten with the win, while the Greyhounds dropped to 3-5 on the season.
Joining Pearson in double figures was Long who added 15 points while sophomore Luke Hancock chipped in 13 points. The trio combined to shoot 18-of-25 (.720) from the field, and junior Andre Cornelius pulled down a team-high six rebounds. Shane Walker and Robert Olson each contributed 14 points to pace the Greyhounds.
Loyola scored the first basket of the game, but the first Mason basket also pushed Long's career scoring total into quadruple digits, as the senior knocked down a 3-pointer from the left corner to become the 30th member of Mason's 1,000-point club. After a Loyola basket, an 8-0 run by the Patriots made it 11-4 with more than four minutes expired. Long's second trey of the evening followed by a three from Cornelius made the margin 19-7 with 12:59 left in the first half, the first double-digit lead for the Patriots.
It did not stay in double figures for long, as the Greyhounds worked their way back into the contest and got as close as six before Mason closed the half on a 7-0 run to set the halftime score at 36-23. Long had 11 points in the opening half to lead all scorers as he was perfect from the field (4-4) including three treys. Pearson added 10 points while Walker led the Greyhounds with seven points.
Six of the first eight points of the second half went to the Patriots, and Mason led comfortably for the majority of the half. Although a 12-2 run put together by Loyola, including eight straight points, cut the gap to 58-46 with less than six minutes remaining. The 12-point difference would be the closest Loyola would get as Mason finished off the victory, improving to 6-0 at home this season.
Mason will look to make it six straight wins when it plays its first official road game of the season, a 7 p.m. matchup on Saturday night at Liberty.
