WHEN: Saturday, 4 p.m.
WHERE: EagleBank Arena - Fairfax, Va.
RECORDS: George Mason (12-10, 5-4), VCU (15-7, 8-3)
SERIES: VCU leads, 43-22
TELEVISION: MASN2
LIVE VIDEO: Click here
LIVE AUDIO: Click here
LIVE STATS: Click here
GAME NOTES: Click here (PDF)
TICKETS: Click here
GIVEAWAY: The first 4000 fans will receive a free Mason 50th Anniversary Tumbler

FAIRFAX, Va. - The George Mason University men's basketball team (12-10, 5-4) hosts VCU (15-7, 8-3) for its annual Homecoming Game on Saturday afternoon inside EagleBank Arena.

Tip-off between the Patriots and Rams is set for 4 p.m. Saturday's contest will be televised regionally MASN2 and broadcast nationally on ESPN+. The broadcast will feature 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 3:45 p.m.

PATRIOT POINTS
• Mason avenged a last-second loss at Richmond Monday (62-59) with an 87-84 overtime victory over the Spiders Wednesday in Fairfax. After trailing late in regulation, Mason led by as many as seven (83-76) in overtime.

• Junior Josh Oduro, the A-10's No. 2 scorer (17.9 ppg), returned from a two-game absence (concussion protocol) and made a tremendous impact Wednesday, tallying career bests in rebounds (14), offensive rebounds (8) and assists (5) to go along with 24 points and two blocks.

• Oduro is averaging 27.0 points, 10.0 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.5 blocks over the past two games he's played.

• D'Shawn Schwartz tallied a team-high 24 points Wednesday,  including 12 of those in the final eight minutes (regulation & OT). He also tied his career best with six 3-pointers on 11 attempts (.545). Schwartz, who ranks fifth in scoring in A-10 play (17.8 ppg), has posted 10+ points in 12-straight games.

• Guard Xavier Johnson tied his career best with 17 points (6-11 FG, 3-5 3pt FG) and added nine assists in the win over Richmond. He's averaging 15.3 points, 7.0 assists, 6.3 rebounds and shooting 50 percent from the floor (.545 3pt FG) over the past three games. Johnson ranks 45th in the country in assists/game (4.9).

• The Patriots are one of the most efficient shooting teams in the nation. Mason ranks 19th in the country in 3pt FG percentage (.380), 23rd in effective FG percentage (.549), and 59th in 2pt FG percentage (.532).

• Graduate student DeVon Cooper ranks 21st nationally in 3pt FG% (.430) and 50th in 3pt FG made/game (2.77). He needs just six more 3-pointers to become the seventh player in school history to reach the 200 triple milestone. When he gets there, the Patriots will be one of just 21 programs nationally to have two players with 200+ career triples (Schwartz).

• Walk-on Blake Buchanan has earned a spot in Mason's rotation over the past three games. In that stretch, he's averaging 17.0 minutes, 3.0 points and shooting 50 percent from 3pt range (3-6). He's tallied a positive +/- in all three games.

• In A-10 contests, Mason leads the league in 3pt FG percentage (.407) and 3pt FG made/game (9.7). Cooper is shooting 48.1 percent from deep in league play (26-54), while Schwartz is at 43.5 percent (27-62).

• After Saturday's game, Mason will play its next three contests on the road, including games at Saint Joseph's (2/16), at Fordham (2/20) and at VCU (2/23).

JOHNSON PUTTING TOGETHER CAREER SEASON
Junior Xavier Johnson has developed into one of the top point guards in the A-10 this season. He ranks seventh in the league and 49th nationally in assists/game (4.9) and is eighth in the conference in A/TO ratio (1.81). In league play, he has upped his assists to 5.7 per game while impressively increasing his shooting numbers to 45.8 percent overall and 42.9 percent from 3pt range. He's averaging 10.0 points/game in A-10 play.

HISTORY vs. VCU
Saturday's game marks the 66th all-time meeting between old CAA and current A-10 foes George Mason and VCU. Mason is 13-14 at home, 8-22 on the road and 1-7 on neutral courts vs. VCU (22-43 overall). The Patriots have won three of the past four matchups at the Siegel Center, but have not defeated VCU at home since February 2016. In the most recent matchup, Mason took down VCU, 79-76, in overtime on February 20, 2021. Josh Oduro led Mason with a monstrous effort in the win. The Gainesville, Va., product poured in 27 points (8-11 FG, 11-14 FT), to go along with six rebounds, a block and an assist in 29 minutes on the floor. Then-freshman Otis Frazier III tallied career bests in points (10), rebounds (6) and minutes (30).

HISTORY vs. IN-STATE, DIVISION I OPPONENTS
Monday's game marks the 410th all time contest for Mason against an in-state, Div. I foe. The Patriots are 191-218 (.467) vs. Commonwealth opponents over the past 54 seasons. Harkening back to its CAA history, Mason's most common in-state opponents are James Madison (49-51), William & Mary (40-28), Richmond (26-41), VCU (22-43) and Old Dominion (22-37).

A LOOK AT THE RAMS (15-7, 8-3 A-10; KenPom 87, NET 76)
VCU was picked fourth in the 2021-22 A-10 preseason poll. The Rams tallied a 7-4 non-conference mark, highlighted by wins over Vanderbilt and Syracuse, and are 8-3 to begin A-10 action. VCU ranks fourth nationally in defensive efficiency (0.869 points/possession) and 302nd in offensive efficiency (0.959 points/possession). The Rams lead the A-10 and rank fourth nationally in 3pt FG percentage defense (.273) and turn their opponent over on 26.1 percent of possessions (second nationally). Vince Williams leads the team in scoring (12.6 ppg) and rebounding (6.1 rpg). Point guard Ace Baldwin Jr. adds 10.6 points and a team-best 5.1 assists per contest.

UP NEXT
Mason hits the road for a three-game swing, beginning Wednesday (Feb. 16) with the team's second contest against Saint Joseph's this season. Tip-off on Hawk Hill is set for 7 p.m. The contest will be broadcast on ESPN+.