WHO: Women's Basketball vs Delaware
WHERE: EagleBank Arena, Fairfax, Va.
FINAL SCORE: Mason 90, Delaware 83
KEY PLAYERS: Taylor Brown – 28 points (season-high); Tiffany Padgett – 13 points, 12 rebounds; Chinyere Bell – 11 points, 12 rebounds

Fairfax, Va. – It took two overtime periods and required double-digit efforts from five Patriots, but at the end George Mason University's women's basketball team ended its four-game skid against former CAA opponent Delaware and defeated the Blue Hens 90-83 at EagleBank Arena on Monday night.

GAME NOTES

-Redshirt senior guard Taylor Brown registered third consecutive season-high performance with 28 points, followed by redshirt junior guard Kara Wright, who finished with 18 points thanks to sinking several nerve-racking free throws in the dying moments. Redshirt senior Kristi Mokube added 12 points with crucial plays in the final minutes despite playing with four fouls, while redshirt junior and freshman forwards Tiffany Padgett (13 points, 12 rebounds) and Chinyere Bell (11 points, 12 rebounds) recorded their first double-doubles for Mason with impressive performances on both ends of the court.

-Junior Hannah Jardine recorded 31 points for the Blue Hens, including a buzzer-beating 3-pointer – one of five for her in the game – to send the contest into overtime; Erika Brown, also a junior, added 20 points while freshman Nicole Enabosi was the third Delaware player to score in double digits with 13 points.

-Mason came in the game very motivated and opened the scoring with a 3-pointer by Padgett following an offensive rebound by Tayler Dodson. The lead grew to 5-0 after the opening three minutes of the contest.

-After Delaware came on level terms at 7, the Patriots responded with a layup by Bell that put Mason back in the lead.

-The Blue Hens, however, ended the quarter on a 8-3 run to build a 15-12 lead after 10 minutes of play. All of Mason's points in that run came from the free-throw line.

-The Patriots penetrated Delaware's paint early in the second quarter while the Blue Hens were successful from behind the 3-point line, increasing their lead to eight at 28-20.

-Midway through the period, Padgett converted from long range for Mason's first 3-pointer on the night, which started a 9-1 run for the Patriots, who tied the game at 29-all.

-An offensive rebound by Bell after a missed free throw by Taylor Brown within the last minute of the second quarter allowed for the ball to return to the senior's hands and she made no mistake from 3-point range to complete a four-point possession for the Patriots and send the teams into halftime with Delaware leading 36-33.

-The Blue Hens started the second half on a 6-2 run and extended their lead to seven to force an early third-quarter timeout by Mason's head coach Nyla Milleson.

-Mason managed to chip off some of Delaware's lead after the media timeout in the third quarter and went into the final quarter trailing only by four, 53-49.

-A hustle play by the Patriots midway through the fourth quarter led to a layup by Wright on the break and cut the Blue Hens' lead to one at 56-55.

-Four consecutive points by Bell – a layup through traffic and two free throws – made it a two-possession game in favor of Mason with the Patriots in the bonus, 60-56. This margin was preserved with only 19 seconds to play, but a quick basket and a stop by the Blue Hens made it a one-possession game ahead of the last possession in regulation and Jardine capitalized on that opportunity, sending the game into overtime with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer.

-It was Mason who had to come from behind in the first period of overtime, but the team got a much needed stop on the defensive end and Padgett provided the game-tying basket with 12 seconds to go, 72-72. The defense continued impressing for the final possession and Brown recorded a steal to give the Patriots a chance to win the game, but Wright could not get the ball up in the air in time.

-The game was tied at 78-all halfway through the second overtime, but Mason showed iron nerves and remained perfect from the free-throw line after regulation (10-10) to win the game 90-83 and close another year of emotions and memories at EagleBank Arena on a positive note.

STAT BREAKDOWN

-Mason shot 39.7% on the night (29-73) – including 63.6% in overtime – while Delaware had an impressive showing of 3-point shooting (11-25) for similar overall effectiveness of 39.1% (27-69).

-The Patriots kept better control of the ball than they had recently and committed 16 turnovers over the 50 minutes of playing time, four fewer than their opponent.

-The Patriots dominated the glass and outrebounded the Blue Hens 53-37, which led to a massive advantage in second-chance points, 27-6.

POST-GAME QUOTE

“What a great win over a quality Delaware team! That is the team that I have seen glimpses of...five in double figures, toughness on the boards and playing together. I am very proud of this team!” – Mason's head coach Nyla Milleson

NEXT ON THE COURT

Mason will play its last home game of 2015 after the final exams pause, on Dec. 19 against Air Force. Tip-off will be at 1 p.m. at RAC.