Box Score (PDF)
FAIRFAX, Va. - The George Mason University men's basketball team dropped a 77-57 contest to preseason A-10 favorite Richmond Saturday afternoon inside EagleBank Arena.
Mason (5-5, 1-3 A-10) was within four (46-42) at the 13:25 mark of the second half, but an 18-5 run from the Spiders allowed Richmond (9-3, 3-1) to harness control of the game.
The Patriots were plagued by 22 turnovers, which led to a 30-9 edge in points off turnovers for the Spiders.
"You have to be able to sustain and execute offensively and defensively against a really good team," head coach
Dave Paulsen said. "While I was pleased with the run to get the game to four, I was really disappointed in how we executed from there. We need to have a better overall level of collective toughness."
Redshirt-senior
AJ Wilson led the Patriots with a team-best 16 points (8-12 FG) to go along with six rebounds and three blocks. He is now averaging 12.5 points and 3.0 blocks per game while shooting at a 48.9 percent clip in A-10 play.
Junior
Jamal Hartwell II added 10 points (3-5 FG, 2-4 3pt FG), while fellow junior
Jordan Miller chipped in eight points, five rebounds and a team-best three assists. Senior
Greg Calixte tallied a solid seven points (3-4 FG) and four rebounds off the bench.
Mason, usually a solid team on the defensive glass, gave up 12 offensive rebounds to the Spiders which led to a 14-2 advantage in second chance points for Richmond. The Spiders made 8-of-21 3-point attempts (.381) for the game.
Mason committed five early turnovers and started 2-of-9 from the floor as the Spiders jumped out to a 16-5 advantage. Richmond extended the lead to 14 (26-12) on a 3-pointer from Chase Burton at the 8:04 mark, but Mason answered back with a 14-4 run to move within four at 30-26. The Spiders scored the final five points to go back up nine (35-26) at the break.
Mason cut the lead to 40-34 and was within four (46-42) after free throws from Miller at the 13:25 mark of the second stanza. From there, the Spiders forced three-straight Mason turnovers and put together a 15-3 run to go up 17 (64-47) with 7:28 to play. The Patriots would not move closer than 14 (66-52) for the remainder of the game.
Mason wraps up its three-game homestand with a Wednesday night contest vs. La Salle. The contest is scheduled to tip at 7 p.m. and will air on ESPN+.
