WOMEN'S BASKETBALL vs. AMERICAN
When: Friday, November 11, 5 p.m.
Where: Patriot Center
2010-11 Records: Mason (13-17); American (22-9)
Follow: Live Stats, Live Video
All-Time Series: Mason leads 29-19
Last Meeting: 12/2/10, American def. Mason 46-43 in Washington, D.C.

Promotions
The United States Marines will be collecting Toys for Tots on the north and south concourses.

Mason Fans can celebrate Opening Night with a HOOPLA! Block Party outside the Patriot Center!  Join the Mason Nation for a celebration of Mason Spirit!  Spirit stations, fun zones, inflatables, food, giveaways and more!  Admission to the HOOPLA! Block Party is free for all.

The first 1,000 fans to enter the Patriot Center on Friday will also receive a free Mason athletics scarf courtesy of Farm Bureau Insurance.

Tickets
For ticket information, please click here

* The Green Machine will be without Doc Nix at men's and women's basketball games during the fall semester while he is on Pre-tenure Study Leave. Michael Nickens joined the faculty of the George Mason University School of Music in fall 2006 as Director of the Pep Band and as an Assistant Professor of Music. He will return for Dec 21 men's basketball game against Duquesne.

The George Mason women's basketball team will look to 11 returning letterwinners from the 2010-11 season to fill roles lost from last season, and amongst the returners this season are two starters and four players who appeared in over 20 games apiece last season.

In the 2010-11 season, Mason posted its best record since the 2003-04 season, posting a 13-17 overall record, which included a 10-5 mark in the Patriot Center. This season, head coach Jeri Porter will look to challenge for a Colonial Athletic Association title and that will all begin with the non-conference schedule.

"We want to be competitive and we want to win," stated Porter. "Building is always a slow and tedious process, but we believe we have turned the corner with regard to our competitiveness and our talent level. We believe that we are ready to compete and become part of the conversation in the CAA."

Mason opens the new season with two games in the Patriot Center before hitting the road. After visiting two opponents, the Patriots play the next five of six games at home.

"Our focus during the non-conference season will be to steadily grow and get better," noted Porter. "We will use each game to focus on areas that need to get better. Every team on the schedule will challenge us in different ways and help prepare us for CAA competition."

Conference action gets underway sooner this season with the first game being played on December 4 against Old Dominion. After ODU, the Patriots visit UMBC before welcoming Atlantic Coast Conference foe Maryland before the conference slate gets into full swing in January.

"As always the CAA will be extremely tough," Porter commented. "The league will be a little different as a few of the top teams graduated key players last season, but everyone is continuing to recruit top talent and add to what is already a talent rich conference."

Mason was no exception, adding three talented post players to the roster in freshmen Annie Lawler, Rachel McNair and Talisha Watts. Lawler, however, will redshirt the 2011-12 season due to an injury, leaving more opportunity for McNair and Watts.

"Both Talisha and Rachel fit our system very well," noted Porter. "Both are extremely athletic and run the floor very well. They will add to our three upperclassmen in the post and give us so many more options than we've ever had up to this point in our three seasons here."

McNair and Watts will add depth to the post as Evelyn Lewis, Janaa Pickard and Joyous Tharrington are all expected to see significant playing time in that role.

"This year will be a lot more consistent for Evelyn," Porter said. "We've talked to Evelyn about becoming a more offensive threat and using her athletic ability to also be a strong rebounder on both sides of the ball."

Pickard returns this season after being sidelined last season with an ACL injury sustained in the exhibition game. She appeared in all 30 games her freshman season and is expected to contribute significantly this season. "Having Janaa back on the floor is a tremendous addition for us," noted Porter. "We envisioned a large role for her last season and lost her in our exhibition. She is back 100% from her injury and just needs to work on some conditioning things, but just having her intelligence back on the floor makes us much stronger."

In addition to Lewis and Pickard, the Patriots will see added depth in the position in Tharrington who redshirted last season due to NCAA transfer rules. "Joyous will be a tremendous addition this season," commented Porter. "She is our smallest post player, but probably also our strongest next to Evelyn on the roster."

The Patriots bring a depth-filled and strong lineup in the guard position with the return of Taleia Moton, Rahneeka Saunders and Amber Easter. Porter and her coaching staff will make a couple adjustments on the floor this season, mainly in moving Saunders to the point guard and Moton to the two position. Moton, the team's leading scorer from last season averaging 12.2 points per game, and Saunders combined to average 17 ppg last season.

"We are really excited about Taleia this year," Porter remarked. "We felt like she had a solid season last year, but needed to settle in after a year off and this year should be a really good year for her in terms of more consistency in her scoring. We are going to move her into her more natural position this year, move her off the ball, and play her at the two.

"We are going to rely on Rahneeka a lot to run our offense and get the ball into the right hands, but also to hit open shots when she gets the opportunity," noted Porter. "We feel she has yet to show how really talented she is and hope this will be a breakout year for her." 

Easter will make the transition from post and be played mainly at the guard position this season. "We are going to slide Amber to the guard spot this year," Porter stated. "We played her at the forward out of necessity, but we are excited to play her at the wing this season, but still utilize her knowledge from playing two years in the paint."

Mason has a strong set of reserves in the guard position in sophomores Cierra Strickland and Christine Weithman, junior Shavonne Duckett and senior Amber Epps. As freshmen, Strickland and Weithman saw solid playing time and will look for minutes off the bench this season.

"Christine finished the year strong and is probably our best overall three-point shooter," commented Porter. "Cierra has worked really hard on her game and we have been really pleased with her up to this point. We feel she will be able to bring a lot to our rotation and we expect both to make huge contributions this season."

Duckett appeared in 22 games last season and scored a season-high eight points against Old Dominion. "Stepping into her junior year, Shavonne will be a tremendous help adding to our depth and will give us another athletic guard that rebounds well and can score," Porter noted. "Because of injuries, she hasn't really settled into a consistent role, but we are excited to be able to place her into a more consistent role this season."

Senior Epps will provide solid depth at the guard entering her senior season. "Amber is a solid defensive guard that can give us a spark off the bench," said Porter. "We are really excited about trying to find a role for her this season."