By Brad Byrne ('23)

The George Mason men's basketball team overcame an old foe in LIU Wednesday night at EagleBank Arena as Patriots withstood the relentless fast pace play from the Sharks to earn a 80-74 victory to imporve to 3-0.

LIU currently ranks in the top-50 in the country in tempo and it was certainly felt throughout the game, with the Sharks pushing the ball into the offensive zone off of inbounds all night. The Sharks were able to disrupt the Patriots' 1-2-2 defense, leading to 14 fast break points. The pressure forced Mason into a bind, as they got into early foul trouble in the first half, with 11 fouls being committed.

Despite the fouls, the Patriots were able to break through the unique triangle and two defense. 

Sophomore Jordan Miller led the Patriots with a career high 25 pts. (3-5 3FG). This career performance was accompanied by five rebounds, two assists, two blocks and two steals. 

"Jordan has always been a great player and I've always been telling him that it will all come together eventually," said head coach Dave Paulsen. "Tonight was that night for Jordan."

After struggling through the first half, freshman Xavier Johnson exploded for 11 of his 13 points coming in the second half, while completely taking over the game in the last six minutes. 

The game was a hard fought all the way until the final whistle, with the game being tied up 84 times over the two halves. The Patriots finally broke away at the end, closing out the game to move to 3-0 for the first time since the 2013-14 season. The Northeast Conference favorite LIU will have to regroup after starting off the season 0-3.

The Patriots return to action Saturday against in-state rival James Madison at EagleBank Arena with tipoff set for 7 p.m.