Box Score (PDF)

FAIRFAX, Va. – The George Mason University men's basketball team could not overcome a second half offensive drought during a 69-57 loss to Saint Louis Wednesday night at EagleBank Arena.
 
Mason led 29-28 at the half, but the Patriots could convert just two field goals over a 14-minute stretch in the second half, allowing SLU – a team ranked in the top-60 of the NCAA's NET metric - to build a sizable advantage. The Billikens outscored Mason 20-3 during the sequence.
 
The Patriots stormed back with a 10-0 run to cut it to four (53-49) with 2:50 left, but the Billikens responded with a 7-0 spurt to ultimately put the game out of reach.
 
"We battled and competed in the first half, but the start of the second half was disappointing," head coach Dave Paulsen said. "We turned it over a number of times and dug too big a hole for ourselves. They're playing as well as any team in the league. We really fought on the glass in the first half but not nearly as much in the second half. We need to be able to sustain that."
 
Sophomore Jordan Miller led Mason in scoring for the second straight game, tallying 13 points to go along with five rebounds, including four on the offensive end.
 
Freshman Josh Oduro added his second straight double-digit effort, chipping in 11 points on 4-of-7 shooting.
 
Fellow freshman Xavier Johnson added eight points, a team-high three assists and two steals in 30 minutes of action.
 
Mason has controlled the rebounding edge for much of the A-10 slate, but SLU – the No. 1 rebounding team in the league – took the battle, 36-31 on Wednesday.
 
Mason shot 38.5 percent for the game and committed 18 turnovers, while SLU turned it over 16 times but shot an efficient 51 percent (26-51) from the floor.
  The Patriots wrap up the 2019-20 regular season with a Saturday contest at Fordham. Tip-off in the Bronx is scheduled for 2 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+.