WHERE: EagleBank Arena - Fairfax, Va.
WHEN: Saturday, 2:30 p.m.
RECORDS: George Mason (18-11, 7-9), Richmond (23-7, 15-2)
SERIES: Richmond leads, 42-29
TELEVISION: USA Network
LIVE VIDEO: Click here
LIVE AUDIO: Click here
LIVE STATS: Click here
TICKETS: Click here
GAME NOTES: Click here (PDF)

PROMOTION: Face painters on concourse and postgame autographs; Senior ceremony begins at 2:15 p.m.

FAIRFAX, Va. - The George Mason University men's basketball team (19-11, 8-9) concludes the regular season Saturday when the Patriots host first-place Richmond (23-7, 15-2) on Senior Day.

Tip-off between the Patriots and Spiders is set for 2:30 p.m. Saturday's game will be broadcast on USA Network, featuring commentary from Jason Knapp (play-by-play), Dr. John Giannini (analyst) and Caroline Pineda (sideline). In addition, Voice of the Patriots Bill Rohland will call the game on the GoMason Digital Network, with streaming coverage beginning at 2:15 p.m. (ET).

PATRIOT POINTS
• The Patriots check in at 93rd in Friday's NET rankings. It's the first time Mason has been in the top-100 this late in the season since the metric was established. The team also is No. 100 in the KenPom rankings.

• The Patriots own 19 regular season (pre-conf. tournament) victories for only the third time in past 11 seasons. If Mason wins Saturday, it would give the Patriots 20 pre-tourney triumphs for the first time since 2011-12.

• The Patriots snapped a three-game skid Wednesday night with a 69-51 win at Rhode Island. Mason held the Rams to just 29.4 percent (15-51) shooting in the win.

• Senior Darius Maddox led the Patriots with a game-high 21 points and tied his career high with five 3-pointers on 10 attempts vs. the Rams. While Mason leading scorer Keyshawn Hall has missed the last two games due to injury, Maddox has stepped up to average 21.5 points while shooting 53.8 percent.

• After averaging 16.3 turnovers/contest during the team's three-game skid, Mason committed just six in Wednesday's win over the Rams. The Patriots also held a +2 (39-37) rebounding edge and improved to 18-4 when winning the battle on the boards this season.

• Graduate forward Amari Kelly tallied 18 points (7-13 FG, 2-3 3pt FG), six rebounds and two assists against the Rams.

• Freshman guard Baraka Okojie has been an outstanding primary distributor over the past four games while Ronald Polite III has battled injury. He's averaging 4.3 assists and also 2.3 steals over his past four contests. His six dimes vs. Duquesne tied his personal best.

• Okojie ranks third in the league in steals in A-10 games (1.8) and has posted at least two steals in nine conference contests. He also has excelled getting to the line this season and ranks ninth amongst all NCAA Div. I freshmen in free throw attempts (128).

• Okojie's 42 steals this season are the most by a Patriot since Javon Greene registered 55 in 2019-20.

• Maddox's 63 3-pointers made rank 18th most in single season program history. His 40.4 3pt FG percentage ranks fifth best amongst Patriots with at least 150 attempts in a season.

• Amongst first year Div. I head coaches, Mason bench boss Tony Skinn ('06) ranks fifth in victories (19) so far this season.

GEORGE MASON A-10 TOURNAMENT SEEDING SCENARIOS*
* Courtesy of Patrick Stevens
•The Patriots will be the No. 7 seed with a win vs. Richmond AND a St. Bonaventure loss AND a Saint Joseph's loss
• The Patriots will be the No. 7 seed with a win AND a St. Bonaventure loss AND a Saint Joseph's win AND a Duquesne win AND a Loyola loss
• The Patriots will be the No. 8 seed with a win AND a St. Bonaventure win AND a Saint Joseph's loss
• The Patriots will be the No. 8 seed with a win AND a St. Bonaventure loss AND a Saint Joseph's win AND a Duquesne win AND a Loyola win
• The Patriots will be the No. 8 seed with a win AND a St. Bonaventure loss AND a Saint Joseph's win AND a Duquesne loss
• The Patriots will be the No. 9 seed with a win AND a St. Bonaventure win AND a Saint Joseph's win
• The Patriots will be the No. 9 seed with a loss

PATRIOTS CELEBRATE SENIORS vs. THE SPIDERS
George Mason will recognize graduate students Tre' Wood and Amari Kelly, as well as seniors Malik Henry and Ronald Polite III during Saturday afternoon's senior ceremony. In a portal era where player movement has become the norm, Henry and Polite III have dedicated themselves to the Patriot program during their careers. The two student-athletes have played for three head coaches (Dave Paulsen, Kim English, Tony Skinn) during their four seasons in Fairfax and have served as an exemplary foundation for the program during periods of transition and change.

HISTORY vs. RICHMOND
Saturday's game will mark the 72nd all-time meeting between George Mason and Richmond in men's basketball (Mason trails 29-42). The Patriots are 17-13 vs. the Spiders in Fairfax and 9-22 in games played in Richmond (3-7 on neutral courts). Mason has won four of the past five in the series, although the Spiders won the first meeting this season, 77-70, on January 13 inside the Robins Center.

The Patriots trailed 60-43 with 11:40 to play but moved as close as two (72-70) with 1:06 remaining. But Mason could not score on its final three possessions as the Spiders held on for the victory. Senior Darius Maddox led the Patriots with a team-best 18 points to go along with five rebounds and two assists, while senior Ronald Polite III added 13 points (3-5 3pt FG) and a game-high six assists.Graduate forward Amari Kelly chipped in 13 points (6-10 FG) and six rebounds and Jared Billups added 10 points, six rebounds and two steals.

A LOOK AT THE SPIDERS (23-7, 15-2 A-10; NET #69, KenPom #76)
Richmond was picked 11th in the A-10 preseason poll, but has earned at least a share of the Atlantic 10 regular season title while sporting a 15-2 league mark. Richmond features a top-30 KenPom defense (0.984 points/possession, 30th) and holds opponents to a .463 effective field goal percentage (19th nationally). Jordan King ranks second in the A-10 in scoring (19.0 ppg) and is 11th nationally in 3pt percentage (.428). Neal Quinn adds 12.5 points and a team-best 4.0 assists/contest while Isaiah Bigelow tallies 11.2 points and a team-high 6.4 rebounds/game.

UP NEXT
George Mason begins play in the 2024 Atlantic 10 Championship on Wednesday. The Patriots will compete as either the No. 7, No. 8 or No. 9 seed in the event held at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y.