WHERE: Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum - Greenville, N.C.
WHEN: Saturday, 4 p.m.
RECORDS: George Mason (2-2), East Carolina (3-0)
SERIES: George Mason leads, 34-15
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FAIRFAX, Va. - George Mason hits the road for the second-straight weekend for a Saturday matinee at East Carolina.

Tip-off between the Patriots and Pirates is set for 4 p.m. Saturday's game will be broadcast on ESPN+, featuring commentary from Patrick Johnson (play-by-play), Si Seymour (analyst) and Mattison Little (sideline). In addition, Voice of the Patriots Bill Rohland will call the game on the GoMason Digital Network, with streaming coverage beginning at 3:45 p.m.

PATRIOT POINTS
• GM is coming off a tough 70-69 loss to Central Michigan on Wednesday night in Fairfax. Mason led 68-64 with 31 seconds left, but two late 3-pointers from the Chippewas propelled CMU to the road victory.

• Preseason All-Atlantic 10 Second Team selection Darius Maddox led GM with 15 points (3-8 3pt). He has scored 15+ points in all four games and is averaging 2.5 3pt FG made/game (9th in A-10). His 43.5 3pt FG percentage ranks fifth in the league.

• Jared Billups added 13 points - his highest scoring output at GM - and added a game-high nine rebounds. He's averaging a career-best 7.5 rebounds/game through four games.

• K.D. Johnson and Woody Newton chipped in 10 points. Johnson dished out two assists and posted two steals as well. He ranks eighth in the A-10 in assists/game (3.8) and is t-24th nationally in career steals (172).

• Turnovers have plagued GM early in the season (the Patriots committed 14 Wednesday night). The Green & Gold rank 301st nationally with 15.8 turnovers per game.

• The Patriots were ranked in the preseason KenPom top-100 this season for the first time since 2013-14.

• Through four games, GM's lineup ranks as the 26th oldest in the nation (2.76 years/player). The Patriots feature four fifth-year student-athletes as well as three players in their fourth season of eligibility.

• Much like head coach Tony Skinn's first season at the helm, the Patriots feature an outstanding FG defense. GM is 28th in 2pt FG defense (28th) and 37th in effective FG defense (.414).

• Graduate forward Zach Anderson is 19 points away from 1,000 for his career.

• The Patriots rank second in the A-10 and 20th nationally with 21.3 free throws made/game. More than 28 percent of the team's scoring output comes at the charity stripe. That ranks 20th nationally. GM's 28.5 attempts/game puts the team 27th in the country.

• GM has struggled to find consistency from beyond the arc this season. The team is a combined 29.5 percent (26-88) from deep and has shot below 34 percent in three of four outings this season.

• The Green & Gold feature a balanced scoring attack, with only Maddox averaging 10+ points/game. A total of seven additional Patriots average at least six points, while eight GM players log at least 16 minutes/contest.

HISTORY vs. EAST CAROLINA
Saturday's game marks the 50th all-time meeting between George Mason and East Carolina in men's basketball. It's just the sixth matchup between the programs since ECU departed the CAA in  2001. Mason has won nine of the last 10 matchups dating back to 1999. The Patriots' 69.7 team field goal percentage against ECU on Feb. 22, 1982 still ranks as the top single game mark in school history. George Mason won that game, 70-57. In the most recent matchup, the Patriots knocked off the Pirates, 81-62, last season on Nov. 25 in Fairfax. Darius Maddox led George Mason with 19 points in the win.

HISTORY vs. AAC OPPONENTS
Mason has tallied a 45-23 all-time record against opponents from the American Athletic Conference. The bulk of those contests came against East Carolina (34-15) when both programs were a part of the CAA. The Patriots' other most common AAC foes are Wichita State (3-2), Charlotte (3-1) and Tulane (3-1). Like last season, GM will once again play both East Carolina and Tulane. The Patriots beat ECU in Fairfax (81-62) in 2023-24 and earned a 69-66 win over Tulane in New Orleans on Dec. 22.

A LOOK AT THE PIRATES (3-0, 0-0 AAC; KenPom #232)
East Carolina was picked ninth out of 14 teams in the American Athletic Conference Preseason Poll. The Pirates are 3-0 to begin the season, including a 63-59 win over Coastal Carolina. Much like the Patriots, ECU excels at getting to the line while ranking third nationally in free throw rate. Nearly 40 percent of the team's points come at the charity stripe (3rd nationally). Preseason All-AAC First Team selection RJ Felton leads the team with 22.0 points, 9.0 rebounds and 3.3 assists/contest. He's made 9-of-16 triples (.563) on the year. C.J. Walker adds 17.7 points and 8.3 rebounds/contest, while Jordan Riley (14.3 ppg, 6.3 rpg) and Cam Hayes (10.3 ppg, 4.0 apg) also average double figures.

UP NEXT
The Patriots return home for a Wednesday night contest vs. Coppin State. Tip-off between the Patriots and Eagles is set for 7 p.m. inside EagleBank Arena.