WHEN: Wednesday, 7 p.m.
WHERE: JMU Convocation Center - Harrisonburg, Va.
RECORDS: Mason (3-3), James Madison (2-5)
SERIES RECORD: Mason trails, 46-50
LAST MEETING: Mason def. JMU, 80-77 (OT), on Nov. 26, 2016 in EagleBank Arena
LIVE VIDEO: Click Here
RADIO: 106.7 WJFK
LIVE AUDIO: Click here
LIVE STATS: Click here
GAME NOTES: Click here (PDF)

FAIRFAX, Va. - The George Mason University men's basketball team (3-3) reignites an old CAA rivalry Wednesday night when the Patriots travel to Harrisonburg to battle James Madison (2-5).

Tip-off between the Patriots and Dukes is scheduled for 7 p.m. Wednesday's game will be broadcast on the MadiZONE HD Sports Net via jmusports.com. In addition, Bill Rohland will provide live audio through the A-10 Digital Network and 106.7 WJFK, with coverage beginning at 6:45 p.m.

PATRIOT POINTS
• Wednesday's JMU game marks a homecoming for Mason sophomore Justin Kier, who starred at Spotswood High School and is from nearby Grottoes, Va.

• The game versus the Dukes is the third of four straight for the Patriots away from home. Mason dropped the first two games of the trip in Cancun to Louisiana Tech & Fresno State and ends the swing on Sunday at Auburn.

• In Mason's most recent outing, the Patriots nearly erased a 17-point deficit but ultimately fell to Fresno State (79-73) on Nov. 22 in the team's final game of the Cancun Challenge.

• Sophomore Ian Boyd tallied career bests in points (18) and field goals made (7) vs. the Bulldogs, while junior Otis Livingston II chipped in 18 points and made 6-of-10 field goals.

• Livingston II is shooting 52.6 percent (10-19) from 3-point range over the past four contests.

• Freshman Goanar Mar added 17 points and seven rebounds and was named to the 2017 Cancun Challenge All-Tournament Team at the conclusion of the event. He averaged 17 ppg, 7.0 rpg and shot 57.9 percent over the tournament's two games.

• Mar's 15.2 points per game leads the Patriots this season. It's also the highest scoring average by a Mason freshman in more than 20 seasons. He is among the top-25 freshman scorers in the country according to NCAA.com and is third amongst A-10 rookies.

• Mason has faced an average halftime deficit of 11.0 points over the past four contests (2-2 record).

• Key note for Wednesday's game: Mason is ranked 26th nationally in fewest fouls per game (15.8) while JMU is ranked 291st (21.4 fouls/game).

• Junior Jaire Grayer played 32 minutes/game and averaged 13.0 points and 8.5 rebounds in Cancun. He played just 20 minutes in the previous game vs. CSUN due to a mild knee injury. In each game when Grayer has been at full strength, he's grabbed at least eight rebounds (just one vs. CSUN). He's t-5th in the A-10 in rebounding this season (7.8 rpg).

• Mason struggled from the free throw line through three games (29-55, .527) after ranking 43rd nationally (.747) last season. But the Patriots are 59-of-72 (.819) over the past three contests.

• The Patriots are the 16th-youngest team in the nation this season according to Ken Pomeroy's experience stat (1.01 years/player).

HISTORY vs. JAMES MADISON
The Patriots hold a 46-50 (.479) all-time record vs. the Dukes. James Madison is Mason's most common opponent over the program's 52-year history, as Wednesday will mark the 97th meeting. Mason is 25-19 vs. JMU in Fairfax, 17-27 in Harrisonburg and 4-4 on neutral courts vs. the Dukes. The Patriots have won 20 of the past 22 games between the schools. In the most recent matchup, Mason defeated JMU 80-77 in overtime last season inside EagleBank Arena (11/26/16).

HISTORY vs. CAA OPPONENTS
Mason is 218-161 (.575) all time against teams currently in the Colonial Athletic Association. The majority of those meetings came when the Patriots competed in the CAA from 1985-2013. The Patriots' most common CAA opponents are James Madison (46-50), William & Mary (39-27) and UNC Wilmington (40-31). In addition to JMU this season, Mason also will play CAA foe William & Mary on Wednesday, Dec. 6 inside EagleBank Arena. Ian Boyd (15 pts, 10-12 FT) and Otis Livingston II (10 pts, 3 ast) each played well in last season's meeting.

HISTORY vs. IN-STATE DIV. I OPPONENTS
Friday's game marks the 382nd all-time game for Mason against an in-state, Div. I foe. The Patriots are 177-204 (.465) vs. Commonwealth opponents over the past 51 seasons. Harkening back to its CAA history, Mason's most common in-state opponents are James Madison (46-50), Richmond (23-35), William & Mary (39-27), Old Dominion (21-36) and VCU (19-38).

A LOOK AT THE DUKES (2-5, 0-0 CAA)
James Madison was picked to finish 10th out of 10 teams in the 2017-18 CAA preseason poll. The Dukes have dropped five of their first seven games, with the team's latest win coming vs. Appalachian State (105-99, 2OT) on Nov. 22 in Harrisonburg. In the team's most recent contest, the Dukes fell at Radford, 69-68, on Saturday. Redshirt-junior/Toledo transfer Stuckey Mosley leads the team in scoring (17.6 ppg) and is shooting 42.9 percent (18-42) from 3-point territory.  Senior Joey  McLean chips in 16.1 points and dishes out a team-best 2.7 assists per contest, while freshman Matt Lewis is at 10.1 points per game.

A TALE OF TWO HALVES
Over the past four games, Mason has been victimized by poor first halves while getting back into games with strong second halves. Over that period, Mason is averaging 30.0 points and shooting 37.1 percent (.292 3pt FG%) in first halves while allowing opponents to average 41.0 points and shoot 53.8 percent (.468 3pt FG%). In second halves of those games, Mason leads its opponents in scoring (38.0 ppg to 28.8 ppg), field goal percentage (.442 to .368) and 3-point field goal percentage (.349 to .278). The Patriots rallied from double-digit deficits to defeat Binghamton and CSUN, but could not do the same vs. Louisiana Tech and Fresno State in Cancun.

A CONTRIBUTOR FROM THE GET-GO
Freshman Goanar Mar tallied 11 points (3-4 3pt FG) in his Mason debut vs. Lafayette on Nov. 10. He was the first Mason freshman to post 10+ points in his first game since Luke Hancock notched 11 points against Liberty on Nov. 13, 2009. Mar has registered 10+ points in five of his first six games while leading the team in scoring (15.2 ppg), field goal percentage (.527), free throws made (26), free throws attempted (33) and free throw percentage (.788). He tallied career bests in points (22) and rebounds (11) vs. CSUN on Nov. 18 and was named to the Cancun Challenge All-Tournament Team after averaging 17.0 points and 7.0 rebounds in Mexico.

UP NEXT
Mason remains on the road to take on SEC foe Auburn on Sunday (3 p.m. ET) in Alabama. The game will be broadcast nationally on SEC Network +. That stream is broadcast via the WatchESPN app.

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