WHERE: EagleBank Arena - Fairfax, Va.
WHEN: Wednesday, 7 p.m.
RECORDS: George Mason (15-7, 4-5), Loyola Chicago (15-7, 7-2)
SERIES: Series tied, 1-1
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LIVE AUDIO: Click here
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GAME NOTES: Click here (PDF)

PROMOTION: Black History Month Game

FAIRFAX, Va. - The George Mason University men's basketball team (15-7, 4-5) returns home for a Wednesday night contest vs. Loyola Chicago (15-7, 4-5) as Mason Athletics celebrates Black History Month.

Tip-off between the Patriots and Ramblers is set for 7 p.m. Wednesday's game will be broadcast on ESPN+, featuring commentary from Voice of the Patriots 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 check in at 85th in Tuesday's NET rankings. That's the highest Mason has been at this point of the season in program history. The team also is No. 96 in the KenPom rankings.

• Mason has dropped two games in a row by just three total points. Most recently, the Green & Gold fell 66-65 at UMass on Saturday.

• The Patriots limited the Minutemen to just 38.9 percent (21-54) from the floor, but UMass grabbed a game-changing 18 offensive rebounds which led to 16 second chance points for the home team.

• The Minutmen owned a +14 (40-26) edge on the glass. Mason is now 14-2 when winning the rebounding battle this season and 1-5 when its opponent wins the battle on the boards.

• Sophomore Keyshawn Hall led Mason with an A-10-personal best 25 points. He is averaging 22.0 points over the Patriots' past three games and is fourth in the league in scoring (18.8 ppg) in conference play.

• Senior Darius Maddox notched 14 points vs. the Minutemen. He's averaging 17.7 points and shooting 50 percent from the floor (.500 3pt FG) over Mason's past three contests.

• Freshman Baraka Okojie posted team highs in assists (4) and steals (3) Saturday. He leads the A-10 in steals in conference play (2.1/game) and is averaging 10.8 points, 3.6 assists and 2.8 steals.

• Senior Woody Newton registered 11 points and a team-best six rebounds at UMass. It marked his highest point output since Dec. 5 at Tennessee (13 games).

• After averaging a -2.3 turnover margin in non-conference play, Mason is a much improved +1.9 in A-10 games (5th in A-10). The Patriots were +4 against a UMass team which entered the game ranked in the top-30 nationally in turnover margin.

• The Patriots are 11-1 at home this season and have won 25 of their past 28 games inside EagleBank Arena.

• The Green & Gold will play three of their next four games inside EagleBank Arena.

• Mason ranks 10th nationally in 2pt FG defense (.440), 22nd in overall FG defense (.398) and 60th in scoring defense (67.0 ppg).

• Hall leads the A-10 in defensive rebounds/game (7.6), rebounds/game (8.7) and double-doubles (8).

• Loyola ranks first in the A-10 in tempo in league games (70.5 possessions/game), while the Patriots are ranked 14th (65.5 possessions/game).

HISTORY vs. LOYOLA CHICAGO
Wednesday's game marks the third all time matchup between the Patriots and Ramblers in men's basketball. The two teams split a pair of matchups last season during the Ramblers' inaugural campaign in the A-10. Mason picked up an 86-75 victory in Fairfax on Jan. 7, while the Ramblers captured the return game Feb. 4 in Chicago by the score of 69-61. Then-junior Malik Henry averaged 14.5 points, 6.0 rebounds, 2.5 blocks and shot 80 percent (12-15) over the two games. Ronald Polite III averaged 13.0 points and 3.0 assists.

A LOOK AT THE RAMBLERS (15-7, 7-2 A-10; NET #114, KenPom #115)
Loyola Chicago was picked to finish eighth in the A-10 preseason poll but currently sits in second place with a 7-2 league mark. The Ramblers feature a top-50 KenPom defense (0.992 points/possession, 47th) and allow just 0.963 points/possession in A-10 games. Offensively, Loyola Chicago leads the A-10 and ranks 25th nationally with assists/game. Des Watson leads the team with 13.2 points/game and shoots 43 percent from 3pt range. Philip Alston adds 12.6 points/game, while Braden Norris ranks third in the A-10 with 4.7 assists/contest. Miles Rubin is third in the A-10 and 11th nationally with 2.36 blocks/game.

UP NEXT
George Mason heads to the Tar Heel State for a Saturday matchup at Davidson. The 2:30 p.m. contest will be broadcast nationally on USA Network.