Women's Basketball | 1/13/2019 4:30:00 PM

Box Score FAIRFAX, Va. - Coming off a tough loss in its Atlantic 10 home opener just three days before, the George Mason women's basketball team didn't back down against the A-10 preseason favorite.

The Patriots battled tough against Duquesne but ultimately fell 60-57 on Sunday as a steady snow fell outside the EagleBank Arena doors. Sophomore Nicole Cardano-Hillary scored 21 points and junior Jacy Bolton registered her fifth double-double of the season with 16 points and 12 rebounds.

"I'm just really proud of our team effort. I thought it was our best 40-minute defensive effort," Mason head coach Nyla Milleson said. "There are some other really good A-10 teams, but they are by far the most talented offensive team. They've got size, they've got shooters, they've got people who can put it on the floor. We made an adjustment. Not sure they made another three maybe one. I'm just really proud of this team. We talked about really all year. We really turned our focus the last couple of days to helping each other and what can we do to really keep our focus and what can we do to really help keep our emotions. And what can we do to better for 40 minutes. We locked into the game plan. They did what I asked them to do. We outrebounded a team that our bigger than we are. Unfortunately, if we had done that against the other two (A-10) teams we might be sitting here with a better record. Right now, we can't worry about what our record is. We've got to worry about growing and maturing every single day. We have done that over the last three days since we played St. Bonaventure."

Mason (8-8, 0-3 A-10) suffered its third straight loss despite taking a lead into the fourth quarter for the third straight game. The Patriots led by nine at halftime and held a 45-43 advantage after three periods.A jumper by Bolton gave the Patriots a 54-49 lead at the 4:40 mark. However, Mason was unable to maintain the lead, going scoreless in the last three minutes of the game.

Paige Cannon gave the Dukes (8-8, 2-1), who return all five starters from a team that won 25 games in 2017-18, the lead for good. Her reverse layup pushed Duquense ahead 58-57 with 1:17 left. Mason failed to take the lead on two consecutive possessions and Chassidy Omogrosso made a pair of free throws with 11 seconds to go for a 3-point lead.

Bolton's 3-pointer with six seconds left was off the mark. Duquense missed a pair of free throws on the other end but Bolton's halfcourt heave as the buzzer sounded went high off the backboard.

The Patriots look to bounce back against Massachusetts at noon on Wednesday in Amherst, Mass., in a game that will be televised nationally on NBC Sports Network.