FAIRFAX, Va. – The George Mason University men's basketball team (14-1, 2-0) put together one of its best defensive performances of the season during a 61-50 triumph over Rhode Island (9-6, 0-2) on Saturday afternoon inside EagleBank Arena.
The victory continues the Patriots' best start in program history (14-1) and improves the Green & Gold to 11-0 at home this season.
In a return to defensive form, the Patriots held the Rams to 35.2 percent shooting - the lowest by a Mason foe since November 15 - and just 50 points, the lowest scoring output by an A-10 opponent since Feb. 5, 2025.
"I'm so much happier when we keep teams under 50 points," head coach
Tony Skinn ('06) said. "We found our way and our identity in late clock scenarios. These guys locked in and it was a big reason why we got this win."
Sophomore
Stas Sivka has been a major factor in practice and in critical game situations over the past couple weeks, and on Saturday, he put together his true breakout performance. In a career-high 32 minutes, the Slovenian exploded for personal bests in points (17) and rebounds (6) while going 6-of-9 from the floor and 3-of-4 from beyond the arc. He was a game-high +17 when on the floor and is at +31 in two A-10 contests for the Green & Gold.
Junior
Kory Mincy added nine points, six rebounds and team-high four assists, while
Fatt Hill notched nine points (6-6 FT) in 20 minutes. Freshman
Emmanuel Kanga continued his strong play of late with eight points and four rebounds in 14 minutes on the floor.
Sivka's performance led the Patriots to a dominant 36-7 edge in bench scoring for the game. GMU also held advantages in points in the paint (22-16) and points off turnovers (13-5).
After a tough shooting stretch over the past few weeks, the Patriots enjoyed a welcome 8-for-16 (.500) effort from 3pt range, highlighted by Sivka's marksmanship.
The Patriots led 31-26 at the half, but a 7-0 spurt by the Rams to open the second stanza gave Rhode Island a 33-31 edge. But the Patriots used a key 14-5 run to go up by 10 (50-50) with 8:22 left and Rhode Island could not move closer than six (54-48) for the remainder of the game.
Next up, George Mason hits the road for a Wednesday night contest at Fordham. Tip-off in the Bronx is set for 7 p.m. and the game will be broadcast on ESPN+.
