Women's Basketball | 2/27/2018 9:17:00 AM

WHAT: Atlantic 10 Women's Basketball Championship First Round
WHO: No. 4 seed George Mason vs. No. 13 seed St. Bonaventure
WHEN: Tuesday, 7 p.m.
WHERE: EagleBank Arena, Fairfax, Va.
RECORDS: Mason (22-8, 11-5 Atlantic 10); St. Bonaventure (8-21, 3-13 Atlantic 10)
SERIES RECORD: Mason leads 4-2
LAST MEETING: Mason defeated St. Bonaventure 78-63 on Feb. 18, 2018 in Olean, N.Y.
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GAME OF THE WEEK: Free meal deal – hot dog, chips, drink – for all Mason students with a valid Mason student ID.

FAIRFAX, Va. – After wrapping up its most successful regular season in program history, the George Mason women's basketball team turns its attention to another goal – winning a conference tournament crown.

That quest begins at 7 p.m. on Tuesday when the Patriots host No. 13 seed St. Bonaventure at EagleBank Arena in the first round of the Atlantic 10 Women's Basketball Championship. All Mason students with a valid Mason student ID will receive a free meal deal – hot dog, chips and drink – as part of the Game of the Week promotion.

Mason (22-8, 11-5), which set the single-season school record for wins, enters the tournament as the four seed after finishing fourth in league play for its highest finish since joining the league five years ago.
The winner advances to the quarterfinals to play either George Washington or La Salle in Richmond, Va., at 2 p.m. on Friday in Richmond, Va. The quarterfinals, semifinals and championship game will be held Friday, Saturday and Sunday at the Richmond Coliseum in Richmond.

This is the third meeting in the last month between the Patriots and the Bonnies (8-21, 3-13). Mason swept the season series, picking up a 76-63 victory on Jan. 31 in Olean, N.Y., and a 78-63 win just nine days ago on Feb. 18 at EagleBank Arena. Mason leads the all-time series 4-2 - all six meetings coming in the last five years – and has won three straight.

St. Bonaventure has lost nine of its last 10, including two setbacks to the Patriots. The Bonnies are led by Mariah Ruff. The senior guard leads the team with 16.6 points a game and 146 assists, which is second-most in the conference. In league games, she leads the A-10 with 19.6 points a game. In the two games against the Patriots, the Bonnies made 24 3-pointers but were outrebounded 95-53.

Mason has won four of five and is coming off a 65-55 victory over La Salle on Saturday in the regular-season finale to set the school record for wins. The Patriots also tied their record for most conference wins in program history with their 11 th league win – their most since 2003-04 when still in the Colonial Athletic Association.

Graduate student Natalie Butler leads the Patriots into the league tournament, averaging a nation-best 16.3 rebounds a game and a conference-leading 18.7 points a game. She also tops the nation in double-doubles (29) and her 29 consecutive double-doubles are tied for the third-longest streak in Division I women's basketball history. In two games against St. Bonaventure this season, she averaged 22.5 points, 20 rebounds and two blocked shots.

Freshman guard Nicole Cardaño-Hillary ranks third in the conference in scoring (17.9 ppg) and third in steals (80). She also is tied for 19th in the nation in steals and ranks second among Division I freshmen in scoring and third in steals.

Mason is 2-4 all-time in the Atlantic 10 Women's Basketball Championship. The Patriots suffered a 66-55 first-round loss at Duquesne last year. Mason will be trying to reach the quarterfinals for the second time in three years. The Patriots advanced to the quarterfinals – the farthest they've reached since joining the league – in 2016 after knocking off Dayton in the second round.