George Mason (8-6, 3-0 A-10) vs. La Salle (10-4, 3-0 A-10)
WHEN: Wednesday, January 7, at 7 p.m. ET
WHERE: EagleBank Arena; Fairfax, Va.
LIVE VIDEO: ESPN+
LIVE STATS: LINK
LIVE AUDIO: GoMason Digital Network
GAME NOTES: LINK

FAIRFAX, Va. - The George Mason women's basketball team hosts the La Salle Explorers on Wednesday, January 7. The game will be broadcast on the ESPN+ with tip-off set for 7 p.m ET with Steve Kolbe and Debbie Taneyhill on the call. Simon Burts will be on the GoMason Digital Network starting at approximately 6:45 p.m.

This is the 20th matchup between the Patriots and Explorers. La Salle currently leads the series 11-8, but George Mason has won the last three games in a row. 

SCOUTING THE EXPLORERS

The La Salle Explorers have an overall record of 10–4 and a 3–0 mark in conference play. The Explorers are averaging 66.0 points per game while allowing 63.8 points per contest. As a team, La Salle is shooting 39.7% from the field, 27.5% from three-point range, and 72.9% from the free-throw line. They average 14.9 assists per game, commit 17.8 turnovers per game, and hold an assist-to-turnover ratio of 0.84. La Salle averages 38.0 rebounds per game, with a rebounding margin of -0.9, and records 10.6 steals and 4.6 blocks per contest.

Defensively, the Explorers allow opponents to shoot 38.9% from the field and 27.9% from three-point range. Opponents average 5.9 three-pointers made per game against La Salle. The team forces 19.2 turnovers per game and ranks with 149 total steals on the season. La Salle's scoring defense stands at 63.8 points per game, while opponents average 38.9 rebounds per game. The Explorers commit an average of 15.7 fouls per game and allow opponents to shoot 74.9% from the free-throw line.

Individually, Ashleigh Connor leads the team with 15.5 points per game and 4.1 assists per contest, while shooting 41.2% from the field and 37.5% from three-point range. Aryss Macktoon averages 15.0 points and a team-high 7.0 rebounds per game, along with 3.6 steals per game. Joan Quinn contributes 9.8 points and 2.9 assists per game, and Kiara Williams adds 9.0 points and 4.4 rebounds per contest. Amiya Moses leads the team in blocks with 1.21 blocks per game, contributing to La Salle's 4.6 blocks per game as a team.

• The Patriots are 3-0 in A-10 play for the first time since joining the conference in 2013-14
• Head coach Vanessa Blair-Lewis won her 400th career game on January 4, 2026 vs. VCU, 68-58
• Zahirah Walton is one of 20 players in the country averaging at least 20 points per game. Richmond's Maggie Doogan is the only other player in the A-10 averaging as many
• Walton won A-10 Player of the Week for the week of Dec. 29, 2025 after a 25-point performance vs. Dayton. This is her third player of the week honor this season
• Head coach Vanessa Blair-Lewis is the longest tenured Black female head coach in D1 (27 years)
• Kailani Merrell from Daytona, Fla. joined the team during winter break after graduating from high school early
• The Patriots won the Atlantic 10 championship for the first time in program history in 2024-25, giving them their first NCAA Tournament berth
• Three Patriots were named to the 2025-26 A-10 Preseason teams: Zahirah Walton and Kennedy Harris were named to the Preseason First Team and Hawa Komara was named to the Preseason Second Team. Walton and Komara were also named to the Preseason All-Defensive Team.
• The Patriots were picked to finish second in the A-10 Preseason Poll
• Head coach Vanessa Blair-Lewis was named to the Kathy Delaney-Smith Coach of the Year Watch List for the third year in a row
• Zahirah Walton and Kennedy Harris were named to the Becky Hammon Player of the Year Watch List for the 2025-26 season
• Redshirt juniors Page Greenburg and Zahirah Walton and junior Kennedy Harris were named team captains for the 2025-26 season
• Two transfer graduate students joined the Patriots this season: MJ Johnson (Texas A&M/Ball St.) and Hawa Komara (Rhode Island) 
• There are seven freshman making their collegiate debuts with the Green & Gold this season: Sanyiah Littlejohn (Philadephia, Pa./Lansdale Catholic), Kayla Johnson (Upper Marlboro, Md./Elizabeth Seton), Mary Amoateng (Baltimore, Md./Bishop McNamara), Kailani Merrell (Daytona, Fla./Sprunce Creek), Matilde Motta (Saronno, Italy/S.M. Legnani), Leah Keyes (Stafford, Va./Virginia Academy), and Sara Blair (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla./St. Thomas Aquinas). 
• The George Mason coaching staff added a few new pieces and promoted two key staff members this off season. Demetria Frank was promoted to Associate Head Coach and Nigel Bowden was promoted to Director of Basketball Operations. Lauren Stack and Kate McCarney joined as graduate assistants, and Brandon Stewart was appointed Director of Player Personnel. 

UP NEXT
The Patriots hit the road again to take on regional-rival George Washington on Sunday, January 11 at 12 p.m. in Washington, D.C. The game will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network.