FAIRFAX, Va. – The George Mason University men's basketball team (5-1) stifled one of the nation's top scoring offenses in a complete 81-59 victory over East Carolina (4-3) Saturday afternoon inside EagleBank Arena.
 
The Patriots held the Pirates 23 points under their season average and limited the nation's No. 37 2pt offense (.567) to just a 36.8 percent clip (14-38).
 
It was a controlled performance from start to finish by the Green & Gold, who never trailed and led for 38:36 of a possible 40 minutes.
 
The 5-1 record matches Mason's 2019-20 squad for the program's best start over the past 15 seasons.
 
"This is a very good win against a good American Conference team," head coach Tony Skinn ('06) said. "I thought we were locked in from the start at our practice Wednesday and we were consistent throughout the week. I'm very proud of the win and it gives us momentum into our game on Wednesday."
 
Five Patriots scored in double figures in a solid all-around effort by the Green & Gold.
 
Senior Darius Maddox led Mason with a season-best 19 points on 7-of-14 shooting, while sophomore Keyshawn Hall tallied his fourth double-double in six games with 17 points and 10 rebounds to go along with four assists.
 
Senior Ronald Polite III chipped in 11 points (5-9 FG) and three assists, while junior Jared Billups added a season-best 10 points (5-6 FG), two assists and two steals. Billups also took the responsibility of primary defender on the AAC's second-leading scorer, RJ Felton (20.3 ppg), and held the dynamic guard to just five points (2-10 FG).
 
Senior Woody Newton notched 10 points (2-3 FG), two blocks and two steals in 15 minutes off the bench, and graduate forward Amari Kelly dished out a career-best five assists to go along with six points and two blocks.
 
The Patriots held the Pirates to 34.5 percent shooting overall (20-58) and maintained a 14-13 lead in second chance points, despite ECU grabbing 16 offensive rebounds.
 
Mason shot a season-best 58.2 percent (32-55) from the floor, including a sizzling 74.2 percent effort (23-31) inside the arc. The Patriots also dished out a season-high 18 assists in the win.
 
The teams were tied at 26-26 with less than five minutes to play in the first half, but the Patriots scored 30 of the next 40 points to build a 56-36 advantage five minutes into the second half. Mason led by as many as 23 (81-58) in the second half.
 
The Patriots will remain in Fairfax to host NJIT on Wednesday (Nov. 29) at 7 p.m. The game is dubbed Night of Champions. At halftime, Mason will honor its 2023 A-10 Championship teams, including baseball, softball and women's outdoor track & field. Individual conference champions from swimming & diving, track & field and wrestling also will be recognized.