WHEN: Tuesday, 7 p.m.
WHERE: EagleBank Arena, Fairfax, Va.
RECORDS: Mason (4-0), Loyola (Md.) (2-2)
SERIES RECORD: Mason leads, 7-6
LAST MEETING: Loyola def. Mason, 73-58, on March 15, 2017
LIVE VIDEO: ESPN+
LIVE AUDIO: Click here
LIVE STATS: Click here
GAME NOTES: Click here (PDF) 
TICKETS: Click here

FAIRFAX, Va. - The George Mason University men's basketball team (4-0) wraps up a five-game homestand with a Tuesday night matchup against Loyola (Md.). The game will serve as Mason's opening round game in the 2019 Cayman Islands Classic. 

Tip-off between the Patriots and Greyhounds is set for 7 p.m. Tuesday's game will be broadcast nationally on ESPN+, featuring commentary from Steve Kolbe. In addition, Bill Rohland will call the game on the GoMason Digital Network. Pregame coverage will begin at 6:45 p.m.

PATRIOT POINTS
• Mason is 4-0 for the third time in school history (2007-08, 2013-14). The Patriots will look to improve to 5-0 Tuesday for the first time ever in program annals.

• After Tuesday's Cayman Classic opening round and Friday's game at No. 6 Maryland, Mason will head to Grand Cayman for the island portion of the event. The Patriots open with Old Dominion on Monday at 5 p.m. and play either Washington State or Nebraska on Tuesday. Mason wraps up the event Wednesday with a third game. 

• Last time out, Mason upended JMU for the 13th time in the last 14 meetings. The Patriots knocked off their old conference rival, 83-70, behind 18 points from Jamal Hartwell II and a 14-point, 7-rebound effort from Javon Greene.

• Jordan Miller added 12 points (6-11 FG) and averaged 18.5 ppg over two contests last week. He is averaging 14.5 shots/game over the past two games after averaging 5.5 over the first two this season.

• AJ Wilson chipped in career highs in rebounds (12) and assists (4) while swatting five shots. Wilson is fourth in the country in blocks/game (4.5), fifth in block rate (17.8%) and second in total blocks (18).

• In addition to Wilson's five, Greg Calixte added a career-best four blocks vs. the Dukes. Mason's 10 blocks vs. JMU marked the most by a Patriot team since an 11-block effort in a Nov. 2017 win over CSUN in Fairfax.

• As a team, Mason is t-1st in the A-10 and is seventh nationally in blocks per game (7.3).

• Mason is holding opponents to 38.1 percent overall and 25.0 percent from 3-point range through four games. That 3pt FG% defense number ranks the Patriots 30th nationally.

• Junior Javon Greene leads Mason in assists (3.3 apg), 3pt FG made (11) and steals/game (1.5). He's averaging 13.8 points, has scored 10+ points in all four games and is up to 6.5 rebounds/contest.

• This season, 59.3 percent of Mason's points come from 2-point range (44th nationally). Four Patriots (two starters) are shooting 50 percent or better from the floor overall this season.

• Through four games, Mason is grabbing an offensive rebound on 34.0 percent of missed shots (72nd nationally) but allowing an offensive rebound on 34.1 percent of opponent misses (294th nationally).

• Wilson is fourth in the A-10 and 48th nationally in offensive rebounds/game (3.8). He is eighth in the A-10 in total rebounding (8.3 rpg).

• 2019 Atlantic 10 Most Improved Player Justin Kier is expected to miss the first part of the season as he recovers from a stress fracture in his right foot.

• Without Kier and fellow senior Ian Boyd (out for season, wrist) in the lineup, Mason finds itself in the bottom-75 in the nation in experience. The Patriot lineup averages 1.29 years of play/player (293rd nationally).

SECONDS, PLEASE
Through four games this season, Mason has excelled in second halves. The Patriots hold a +9 (123-114) combined scoring edge in first halves and a +21 (168-147) advantage in second stanzas. When comparing second halves to first halves, Mason is significantly better in FG% (.547 vs. .380), 3pt FG% (.432 vs. .171) and free throw percentage (.750 vs. .581).

HISTORY vs. LOYOLA (MD.)
The Patriots hold a 7-6 (.538) all-time record vs. Loyola (Md.). Wednesday marks the 14th meeting between the two programs. This will be only the fourth meeting between the teams since 1982. Mason and Loyola matched up often in the mid-1970s when the two schools were part of the Mason-Dixon Conference (DII). In the most recent matchup, the Greyhounds defeated the Patriots 73-58 in the College Basketball Invitational (CBI) on March 15, 2017 inside EagleBank Arena. Mason has won four out of the five meetings since the start of the 1980s.

A LOOK AT THE GREYHOUNDS (2-2, 0-0 PATRIOT; KenPom No. 207)
Loyola (Md.) was picked to finish fourth in the 2019-20 Patriot League preseason poll. The Greyhounds have a record of 1-2 on the road, earning their road victory against Chicago State (98-85) while dropping a contest at ODU and another match at Marquette on Nov. 5 in Milwaukee. Loyola is coming off of an overtime home victory vs. Fairfield on Sunday to improve to .500 on the year. Opponents are shooting 47.2 percent against the Greyhounds, along with an impressive 38.9 percent from beyond the arc. The Greyhounds are led by preseason All-Patriot League Team selection Andrew Kostecka, who paces Loyola in scoring (21.8 ppg) and steals (8). Kostecka averaged a Patriot League-leading 21.3 points and 2.66 steals per game in 2018-19, marks that ranked 27th and eighth in NCAA Division I basketball a year ago.  
 
UP NEXT
Mason hits the road for the first time to take on one of the nation's top teams. The Patriots will square off with sixth-ranked Maryland on Friday night. The 7 p.m. contest in College Park will air live on Big Ten Network.