WHEN: Wednesday, 7:30 p.m.
WHERE: Mullins Center - Amherst, Mass.
RECORDS: Mason (6-8, 0-1), Massachusetts (7-7, 0-1)
SERIES RECORD: Tied, 3-3
LAST MEETING: Mason def UMass, 76-74, on Jan. 28, 2017, in Amherst
LIVE VIDEO ($): Click here
LIVE AUDIO: Click here
LIVE STATS: Click here
GAME NOTES: Click here (PDF)

ADDITIONAL TV/STREAM AVAILABILITY: The game will be broadcast on Eleven Sports via these TV/streaming platforms (where available):
- DIRECTV channel 623
- Verizon Fios channel 597
- AT&T U-verse channel 1665
- Fubo.tv
- PlayStation Vue

AMHERST, Mass. - The George Mason University men's basketball team (6-8, 0-1) wraps up its opening Atlantic 10 road swing with a contest at Massachusetts (7-7, 0-1) on Wednesday.

Tip-off between Mason and UMass is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. inside the Mullins Center. Wednesday's game will be streamed on the A-10 Digital Network UMass affiliate. In addition, an audio stream will be featured on GoMason.com, with commentary from Bill Rohland. Pre-game coverage begins at 7:15 p.m.

PATRIOT POINTS
* UMass is 7-1 inside the Mullins Center this season and owns home victories over Georgia and Providence. Mason is 1-3 on the road in 2017-18.

* Mason has won two of three all-time meetings with the Minutemen in the Mullins Center.

* Five of the six all-time matchups between the Patriots and Minutemen have been decided by six points or less.

* After Wednesday's contest, five of the Patriots next seven games will be played in Fairfax, including the next three.  

* Last time out, the Green & Gold dropped their A-10 opener at preseason league favorite Rhode Island, 83-64, on Saturday.

* Mason shot 51.9 percent in the second half vs. URI, but the Patriots were victimized by a first half in which they shot 34.4 percent. The Rams led 44-26 at the break.

* Sophomore Justin Kier led the Patriots in scoring for the third-straight game, tallying 15 points (5-7 FG) to go along with a team-high eight rebounds and three assists.

* Freshman forward Greg Calixte made his third-straight start and posted six points and a career-high seven rebounds in a career-best 29 minutes on the floor.

* Over the past four games (1-3), Mason is shooting 20.4 percent (10-49) from 3-point territory.

* Mason is 3-6 when it shoots under 35 percent from deep this season (3-2 when over 35 percent).

* Rhode Island held a +5 (44-39) rebounding edge on Saturday vs. the Patriots. Mason is 2-5 when it loses the rebounding battle in 2017-18.

* Mason has been outrebounded in each of the past three contests. The Patriots had held the rebounding edge in the three preceeding games.

KIER'S ON FIRE!
Over the past five games, sophomore guard Justin Kier has been the Patriots' most consistent player on both ends of the floor. He has posted at least 10 points while playing at least 32 minutes in each of those contests. He's led the team in scoring in the last three games and is averaging 18.0 points, 5.7 rebounds and shooting 62.1 percent from the floor (18-29) during that stretch. The consistency is a welcome sign for Kier. He posted 10+ points in each of Mason's first three games, but then failed to reach double digits in the next six, before putting together his current solid streak for the Green & Gold.

CALIXTE IN THE MIX
The emergence of freshman forward Greg Calixte over the past few games has allowed the Patriots to move fellow freshman Goanar Mar over to the four position and create a more versatile lineup for the Green & Gold. After averaging 2.0 points, 2.1 rebounds and 9.1 minutes over the season's first 11 games, Calixte moved into the starting lineup in game 12 vs. Penn State and the results have been welcome. He's averaging 6.3 points, 4.7 rebounds and shooting 69.2 percent in a far more substantial 24.0 minutes per contest during the stretch for the Patriots.

HISTORY vs. MASSACHUSETTS
Wednesday's game marks the seventh all-time meeting between UMass and George Mason in men's basketball. The series is tied at 3-3 and Mason is 2-1 in games played at the Mullins Center. The Green & Gold swept a pair of meetings with the Minutemen during the 2016-17 season, winning 86-81 in Fairfax (Jan. 4) and 76-74 in Amherst (Jan. 28). Five of the six meetings in the series have been decided by six points or less. Otis Livingston II is averaging 18.3 points, 3.3 assists and shooting 47.5 percent in three all-time meetings with the Minutemen, while Jaire Grayer is at 10.7 points and 6.7 rebounds over his three games.

A LOOK AT THE MINUTEMEN (7-7, 0-1 A-10; No. 190 RPI)
Massachusetts was picked to finish 12th out of 14 teams in the A-10 preseason poll, although the Minutemen have certainly exceeded expectations over the first half of the season. UMass owns wins over Georgia and Providence and sits at 7-7 on the year. Massachusetts opened A-10 play with a 98-78 defeat at St. Bonaventure on Dec. 30 in Olean. The Minutmen rank second in the A-10 and 54th nationally in 3-point field goal percentage (.388). They also are second in the league in rebounding margin (+2.7) and are third in field goal percentage (.459) and field goal percentage defense (.424). Breakout sophomore Luwane Pipkins leads the Minutemen and is fifth in the conference in scoring (18.1 ppg). Freshman Carl Pierre is 13th nationally in 3-point percentage (.494) and also contributes 10.2 points per contest. Junior forward Rashaan Holloway chips in 9.7 points and shoots 63 percent from the floor, while senior guard C.J. Anderson is at 8.5 points per contest and ranks second in the A-10 with 5.8 assists per contest.

UP NEXT
Mason returns home for the first of three-consecutive Atlantic 10 home games. The Patriots open the stretch with a noon contest vs. Davidson on Sunday (January 7) inside EagleBank Arena. The game will be televised nationally on NBC Sports Network.