WHEN: Wednesday, 7 p.m.
WHERE: EagleBank Arena - Fairfax, Va.
RECORDS: George Mason (5-3, 1-1), VCU (8-2, 1-0)
SERIES RECORD: Mason trails, 21-42
LAST MEETING: Mason def. VCU, 73-67, on Feb. 12, 2020 in Richmond, Va.
TELEVISION: MASN
LIVE VIDEO (ESPN+): Click here
LIVE AUDIO: Click here
LIVE STATS: Click here
GAME NOTES: Click here (PDF)
GAME PROGRAM: Click here

FAIRFAX, Va. - The George Mason University men's basketball team (5-3, 1-1) hosts rival VCU (8-2, 1-0) on Wednesday in the team's A-10 home opener.

Tip-off between the Patriots and Rams is scheduled for 7 p.m. Wednesday's game will be broadcast regionally on MASN and nationally on ESPN+, featuring commentary from Bill Rohland and John Feinstein. In addition, Steve Kolbe will call the game on the GoMason Digital Network, with streaming coverage beginning at 6:45 p.m.

PATRIOT POINTS
* Mason split its A-10 opening road trip, winning 93-92 (2OT) at UMass on Dec. 30 and falling at Dayton (74-65) on Saturday.
 
* The teams were tied at 63-63 with 2:41 to go Saturday, but the Flyers scored 11 of the final 13 points of the contest to earn the win.
 
* The Patriots shot 41.2 percent (7-17) from 3-point range at Dayton. Through two games in A-10 play, Mason has made a solid 43.6 percent (17-39) of its 3-point attempts.
 
* Freshman Tyler Kolek led the Green & Gold with 16 points (6-11 FG, 4-9 3pt FG) at Dayton. He's averaging a team-best 18.0 ppg over the past three games while shooting 52.9 percent (18-34) overall and 48 percent (12-25) from beyond the arc.
 
* Junior Jordan Miller averaged 20.5 points, 6.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists during the two-game road swing. He ranks fifth in the A-10 in scoring (17.8 ppg) this season. 
 
* After playing six minutes at UMass (0-1 FG), senior Javon Greene bounced back nicely at Dayton with 13 points (4-8 FG) and a season-best three 3pt FG made on six attempts. 
 
*  Greene has recorded 133 career steals (44th nationally) and needs just two more to tie Kenwan Alford for 11th on Mason's all-time list. With his third 3-pointer at UD, he moved into a tie with Tony Skinn for 14th on Mason's 3pt FG made list (125).
 
*  Greene also is just 31 points away from reaching the 1,000-point milestone for his career. 
 
* AJ Wilson leads the A-10 and ranks 17th nationally with 2.7 blocks/game. He is sixth nationally in career swats (183).
 
* The Patriots rank fifth in the A-10 in offensive rebounds per game (11.12). Bahaïde Haïdara (2.5 offensive rebounds/game) and Josh Oduro (2.38/game) rank fourth and seventh in the conference, respectively, in the category.
 
* The Patriots are assisting on 56.5 percent of their made field goals this season (82nd nationally). That comes in contrast to the previous five seasons, when Mason on averaged has ranked 310th in assist rate.
 
* Mason is shooting just 28.9 percent (24-83) from 3-point range in home games, but is making 35.0 percent (42-120) in road/neutral site contests. The Patriots shoot 67.7 percent (63-93) from the free throw line in road/neutral site games but just 46.8 percent (29-62) in home games.

HISTORY vs. VCU
Wednesday's game marks the 64th all-time meeting between old CAA and current A-10 foes George Mason and VCU. Mason is 13-13 at home, 7-22 on the road and 1-7 on neutral courts vs. VCU (21-42 overall). The Rams have won 15 of the past 20 meetings and 11 of the 14 games in Atlantic 10 play. 
 
The two teams split a pair of contests last season. VCU won 72-59 in Fairfax on January 5, 2020. But the Patriots captured the return game, winning 72-67 in the Siegel Center on Feb. 12. Mason posted a superb +21 (48-27) edge on the glass in the win. The Patriots grabbed 15 offensive rebounds and scored 13 second chance points in the game. AJ Wilson led the Patriots with 14 points, 11 rebounds and five blocks in the triumph. Overall, in the two games last season, Xavier Johnson (11.5 ppg), Jordan Miller (11.0 ppg) and Javon Greene (10.0 ppg) all averaged double figures against the Rams. 
 
Select Career Averages vs. VCU (Min. 2 games played)
Jordan Miller (4 games): 11.8 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 1.5 apg, 44.4 FG% (16-36), 33.3 3pt FG% (2-6)
Xavier Johnson (2 games): 11.5 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 2.5 apg, 1.5 spg, 57.1 FG% (8-14), 25.0 3pt FG% (1-4)
Jamal Hartwell II (3 games): 6.7 ppg, 1.3 rpg, 1.7 apg, 30.8 FG% (8-26), 25.0 3pt FG% (4-16)
Greg Calixte (6 games): 6.7 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 64.3 FG% (18-28)
AJ Wilson (5 games): 5.2 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 1.6 bpg, 30.8 FG% (4-13)
Javon Greene (6 games): 4.0 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 1.5 apg, 1.7 spg, 15.2 FG% (5-33), 16.7 3pt FG% (3-18), 91.7 FT% (11-12)
Josh Oduro (2 games): 4.5 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 1.0 bpg, 44.4 FG% (4-9)
 
A LOOK AT THE RAMS (8-2, 10 A-10, NET #31, KenPom #55)
VCU was picked to finish ninth in the A-10 preseason poll but currently sports the top NET ranking in the A-10 through 10 games. VCU earned non-conference wins over KenPom top-75 teams Utah State (85-69) and Memphis (70-59), with the only two losses coming to top-50 teams Penn State (72-69) and West Virginia (78-66). VCU sports the 17th-best defense in the country according to KenPom, giving up just 0.905 points/possession. The Rams rank fifth in the country in steals per game (11.2), 13th in turnovers forced per game (19.0) and 19th in blocks per game (5.3). 
 
Preseason All-A-10 Third Team selection Bones Hyland leads VCU in scoring (17.1 ppg, 8th in A-10) and shoots 38 percent (30-79) from 3-point range. Vince Williams adds 11.2 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.3 assists per contest, while KeShawn Curry chips in 9.5 points per contest. 
 
UP NEXT
Mason hosts the other A-10 program from the River City when Richmond comes to town Saturday. Tip-off with the Spiders is scheduled for 12 p.m. inside EagleBank Arena. The game will be broadcast nationally on CBS Sports Network.