Women's Basketball | 12/11/2017 8:45:00 AM

WHEN: Monday, 7 p.m.
WHERE: EagleBank Arena, Fairfax, Va.
RECORDS: Mason (9-2, 0-0 Atlantic 10); UMBC (1-9, 0-0 America East)
SERIES RECORD: Mason leads 6-2
LAST MEETING: UMBC defeated Mason 65-53 on Dec. 8, 2011 in Baltimore
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FAIRFAX, Va. – Off to their best start in quarter of a century, the George Mason women's basketball team heads back to the court for the third time in five days.

The Patriots host UMBC at 7 p.m. on Monday at EagleBank Arena to cap off a four-game homestand. Mason (9-2) has won three straight and nine of 10. The Patriots are off to their best start since the 1992-93 season.

They've been unbeatable at home, off to a 7-0 start at EagleBank Arena. Dating back to the final home game of last year, the Patriots have won eight straight home games – their longest home winning streak since winning nine in a row during the 1992-93 and 1993-94 seasons.

Mason has won all three games of its current homestand, including a 73-70 overtime victory over LIU Brooklyn last Thursday and a 64-41 rout of Eastern Kentucky on Saturday. A dynamic inside-outside duo in center Natalie Butler and point guard Nicole Cardano-Hillary have led the way.

Butler, a 6-foot-5 center from Fairfax Station, Va., has been named the Atlantic 10 Player of the Week each of the last four weeks. She is tied for the most double-doubles in the country at 10 and ranks second in rebounding (13.7 rpg). She is also averaging 18.1 points a game – third-most in the A-10.

Right ahead of her at 18.2 ppg – second-most in the conference – is Cardano-Hillary. The freshman from Madrid, Spain, was named A-10 Rookie of the Week on Monday for the second time in three weeks. She has scored in double figures in all 11 collegiate games and is tied for the most 3-pointers made (27) by a freshman in the country this season.

UMBC (1-9) has lost seven straight and is coming off a 70-48 loss to Denver last Thursday. The Retrievers are led by guard Laura Castaldo (13.9 ppg). Mason leads the all-time series 6-2 but the teams haven't met in more than six years. The Retrievers defeated the Patriots 65-53 in the teams' last meeting on Dec. 8, 2011 in Baltimore.