WHERE: EagleBank Arena - Fairfax, Va.
WHEN: Wednesday, 7 p.m.
RECORDS: George Mason (5-1), NJIT (1-4)
SERIES: First meeting
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NIGHT OF CHAMPIONS: Mason Athletics will honor its 2023 A-10 Championship Teams (baseball, softball, women's outdoor track & field) and individual conference champions in a halftime ceremony.

FAIRFAX, Va. - The George Mason University men's basketball team (5-1) will wrap up a two-game homestand with a Wednesday night battle vs. NJIT.

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

PATRIOT POINTS
• The Patriots are 5-1 to begin the season, which matches the 2019-20 squad for the best start over the past 15 campaigns. That team began the season 11-1.

• Mason is coming off an 81-59 triumph over AAC foe East Carolina on 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).

• Senior Darius Maddox tallied a game-high 19 points (7-14 FG) vs. ECU. He is averaging 15.0 points and shooting 38.9 percent from 3pt range over his last three games. The Bowie, Md., product ranks ninth in the A-10 in 3pt FG made/game (2.3).

• Sophomore Keyshawn Hall added 17 points, a team-high 10 rebounds and four assists. Hall is averaging 21.3 points, 11.3 rebounds, 3.0 assists and is shooting 49.2 percent (31-63) over the past four contests.

• Graduate forward Amari Kelly dished out a career-high five assists in the win Saturday. He's scored 10+ points in five of six games this season and is 26th nationally in free throw percentage (.944).

• Junior guard Jared Billups notched a season-best 10 points (5-6 FG) to go along with six rebounds, two assists and two steals vs. ECU. He also held the Pirates' leading scorer RJ Felton (20.3 ppg) to just five points on 2-of-10 shooting.

• The Green & Gold dished out a season-best 18 assists vs. ECU.

• Senior Woody Newton tallied 10 points (2-3 3pt FG), two blocks and two steals vs. ECU. He's 8-of-13 (.615) from 3 on the season.

• Mason will play a brand of basketball dubbed "Patriot Pressure" this season, which emphasizes creating discomfort for opposing offenses. Through six games, Patriot Pressure has been on display, as the Patriots rank eighth nationally in 2pt FG defense (.405), 34th in scoring defense (62.2 ppg allowed) and 35th in overall FG defense (.382).

• The Patriots have held their opponent under 40 percent shooting in four of six games this season.

• Head coach Tony Skinn's 5-1 record also is the best-ever start by a Mason first-year head coach.

• The Patriots are 4-0 at home so far this season and have won 18 of their past 20 contests inside EagleBank Arena.

HALL PUTTING TOGETHER BREAKOUT SEASON
Sophomore Keyshawn Hall has been a breakout force to be reckoned with over the Patriots' first six games. After averaging 5.7 points an 1.7 rebounds and 0.5 assists over 17 games a freshman at UNLV, Hall has quickly developed into an all-around stalwart at Mason while averaging 17.7 points, 10.8 rebounds and 2.2 assists. He ranks in the top-10 nationally in defensive rebounds/game (9.7, 3rd) and double-doubles (4, 5th) and is 13th in overall rebounding (10.8/game). He also is sixth in the A-10 in scoring (17.7 ppg). The Nov. 20 A-10 Player of the Week tallied a career-best 29 points in the win over Cornell on Nov. 15 and notched 21 points and 15 rebounds on Nov. 20 vs. South Dakota State, registering just the ninth 20+ point/15+ rebound performance by a Mason player since 2010.

HISTORY vs. AMERICA EAST
Mason has tallied a 17-12 (.586) record all time against current programs representing the America East Conference. The Patriots' most common foes are UMBC (13-8), Vermont (2-1) and Maine (0-2). In the most recent matchup with an America East opponent, Mason defeated UMBC on Dec. 21, 2019 inside EagleBank Arena.

HISTORY vs. NJIT
Wednesday's game marks the first ever meeting between George Mason and NJIT in men's basketball.

COACHING CONNECTION
George Mason head coach Tony Skinn ('06) and NJIT bench boss Grant Billmeier both served as assistants under Maryland head coach Kevin Willard. Both Skinn and Billmeier were part of Willard's 2022-23 staff in College Park, and also worked together at Seton Hall from 2018-21. In their four seasons together, Skinn and Billmeier helped lead their squads to two NCAA Tournament appearances (and a third was likely in 2020 prior to the cancellation of the Big Dance due to COVID-19).

A LOOK AT THE HIGHLANDERS (1-4, 0-0 America East; KenPom #353)
NJIT was picked to finish ninth out of nine teams in the 2023-24 America East preseason poll. The Highlanders are 1-4 to begin the campaign, with the victory coming over Delaware State (81-72) on Nov. 20. NJIT averages 62.6 points/game and allows 79.8 points per contest. Sebastian Robinson leads the Highlanders with 12.0 points/game and a team-best 3.4 assists/contest. Tariq Francis adds 10.8 points/game, while Adam Hess chips in 9.6 points and pulls down a team-high 6.0 rebounds/outing.

UP NEXT
The Patriots hit the road for a two-game swing. First up, Mason heads to the Glass City for a Saturday (Dec. 2) matchup with Toledo. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. and the contest will be broadcast on ESPN+.