Pure Domination: Patriots Start Road Swing with Loss

Coach Jeri Porter has always preached the full 40 to her team. This means playing a full game of basketball with intensity and hustle until the final whistle. In tonight’s game against Ohio that game plan fell to the wayside, as Mason lasted only four minutes. After establishing an early 8-0 lead over the Bobcats, the Patriots quit. Mason (7-4, 0-1) watched Ohio (7-7,0-0) take complete control as they dominated play in route to a 75- 59 win on their home court.

Ohio never looked back as they embarked on a 19-4 run, to flip the script and give their team a seven point lead after trailing earlier in the game. They weren’t finished, as they went on another run this time 11-4 to force a Mason timeout. The Bobcats would close out the half with a 40-23 advantage, all due in part to their strong shooting, posting a 50 % first half average.

The second half was much of the same as Ohio stepped on the gas building their biggest lead of the game at 23 points on a Mariah Byard 3-pointer. The Bobcats used the 3-point shot all day to keep the Patriots off balance, connecting on five 3-pointers and shooting over 40% from the arc.

Mason never got closer than 13 points as they were put away for good. In the game the Bobcats connected on 28 field goals, a season high. Their 52.8 % field goal percentage is the best of the year as they were averaging just 36 % on the season. Junior Ashley Fowler poured in a season high 13 points, going 4-4 from the free throw line.

Ohio played an all around basketball game, as even the defense was dominate securing eight steals and three blocks. There wasn’t much for George Mason to take form this game, as they were beaten in every statistical category but rebounding.

On an individual note George Mason guard Taleia Moton remained hot, as she put up 25 points to go along with three rebounds. She remains in the top 15 in the nation in scoring. Her counterpart guard Raneeka Saunders continued to dominate the glass, pulling down seven rebounds. The 5 ft 6 guard leads Mason in rebounding at 6.8 per game.

The Patriots will be back in action on Monday, as they welcome in the New Year with a game against Norfolk State. They will look to get their first win of this three game road swing, tipoff is at 6pm.

Keith's Keys to the Game: Mason vs. Ohio

Mason is on the road Thursday to battle against the Bearcats of Ohio University. The Bearcats(6-7), come into tonight's game having alternated wins and losses in their past 4 games (2-2). Mason on the other hand, comes in having snapped a two game losing streak against GW last week, improving to 7-3 overall.

What to Watch For:  1) Home Atmosphere: Ohio comes in with a below average  record on the year so far, but the Bearcats have been strong at home in Athens. Five of their six wins this season have come at home, and by an average margin of victory of 14.8 points per game. It will be important for Mason to come out hot on the road, and not to be rattled in a hostile arena and on along road trip. In the past Mason has struggled on the road, but so far in 3 contests,  the Patriots have come away victorious in 2 of them.

2) Getting to the Free Throw Line: Mason this year has struggled to get to the  foul stripe, and are not getting the easy opportunities/cashing in on easy chances for points. On the season Mason is only getting to the line and making 11.7 FT's per game, and only as a team  hitting FT's at 66%.  Ohio on the other hand averages 14.6  made free throw attempts per game, and is hitting 71% as a team from the stripe. In Mason's last game against GW, in which they got to the line 27 times, they allowed the Colonials to claw back from a 16 point deficit because of their inability to shoot free throws in the second half. The Patriots went 7 of 17 from the FT line in the second half,and it almost cost them the game down the stretch. I see this being very important in this game, as well as a key in whether Mason is able to ice games away in the future or if it will be plagued by dismal free throw shooting all season long. Players like Rahneeka Saunders (54% FT) and Evelyn Lewis (22 % FT) who routinely get to the line because of the way they drive the ball down low, need to step their game up in big road games such as this one.

3) Rebounds--Offensive: In the Ohio Bearcats 7 losses this season, almost all of them have been in some way related to their lack of rebounding, and the rebounding deficit in most cases reflected the margin of defeat. It will be important for Mason to dominate the boards much like they did against GW, where they had +17 rebounding margin and four players with 7 or more rebounds. This intensity on the glass will lead to the easy second chance points Mason was able to get against the Colonials, and should be something they should try to exploit against a Ohio , team that seems to let down in the second half. Ohio is being outscored by a total of forty-four  points(-44) in the second half on the season thus far, while Mason is +27 in the same category. Mason will have to be on the look out for Ohio's Tenishia Benson, who averages over 7 rebounds and 13 PPG as a guard, and will be looking to improve their rebounding output to ensure a victory got the Bearcats.

Tune in to the GoMason Digital Network on WGMURadio.com to listen to the latest action on Mason women's basketball. Tip-off is slated for 7 pm at the Convocation Center in Athens,Ohio. Mason won last years first ever meeting between the two schools 69-53 at the Patriot Center.

Mason Fights Off the Colonials, Win 58-55

     There is something special about this year's Patriots squad. There are not many teams that can have 22 turnovers, blow a 16 point lead, have 2 bench points, and still manage to squeak out a victory. But this is not your usual team, this is a 7-3 inspired Patriots who refuse to lose. As Janaa Pickard put it after the game, "We expect to do well, working hard fuels that, this is exactly where we want to be at this point in the season."
      The first half featured poor shooting from both teams, with Mason shooting 32% and scoring 31, while George Washington shot 24% and had 21 points of their own. The Patriots, despite having the lead, struggled with their turnover margins throughout the entire first half. It was their stars who rose up once again and kept their lead intact, as Moton and Easter (along with 8 straight points from Saunders to end the half), combined for 31 points in the game. Moton and Saunders shot well from outside, combining to go 5 for 12 from outside the arc.
      GW was led by their star Guard Chakecia Miller, who did it all for the Colonials, scoring 20 points and sniping 10 steals. Miller and fellow guard Danni Jackson were able to run the break on the Patriots and score easily in the second half during their 18-6 run to cut the lead to 1. This was the second game in a row that a team was able to get out in the open court and run the fast break against George Mason, who will need to target that aspect of their game to improve on in the future.
      Mason was able to stave off the comeback in the waning moments, as Moton was able to hit a free throw to give the Patriots a 3 points lead, immediately after Colonials player Miller missed a wide open break away layup that would have tied the game. As the final desperation 3 pointer clanged off the rim, Mason came away with a very satisfying victory.
      Mason was able to get back on track after their 2 game losing streak. They will travel on the road for their next 3 games. They will play at Ohio on December 29th, tipoff is set for 7 pm. The Patriots will return home on January 8th when they take on CAA powerhouse Deleware, tipoff is set for 2 pm.

Keith's Keys to the Game: Mason vs. GW

Coming into what is being called the "Battle of the Orange Line", because of the general proximity of the two schools, both teams are in the midst of two game losing streaks. Both have played a familiar opponent in ODU,  by which it took the George Washington Colonials overtime to defeat the Monarchs by 6,  and Mason was able to take care of them in regulation by a 16 victory. GW finds themselves at .500 with a 5-5 record, and Mason is currently at 6-3 but trying to rebound off a blowout loss against #5 Maryland.

Keys to the Game:

1) DEFENSE: Both GW and Mason average 61 and 63 points per game respectively, so scoring should not be an issue for either squad. In all 3 of Mason's losses this season, there had been a complete breakdown of interior defense that has lead to easy baskets in the paint for their opponents. Mason has also had an issue in guarding the perimeter at times, and will have to be sure to defend the 3-point arc where GW averages 4.5 outside knockdowns per game. GW also comes into the game averaging 10 or more steals per game, where as Mason only gets close to around 6. It will be important for Mason to keep possession, and not be sloppy with the basketball and give the Colonials easy baskets. Look for Taleia Moton and Rahneeka Saunders to do more of the ball handling, and try to limit the amount of turnovers.

2) INTERIOR PLAY: Mason has struggled through out the entire season to get any scoring from their starting forwards Evelyn Lewis and Janaa Pickard. But Pickard has in the last few games started to get in a rhythm, and is averaging just around 9 ppg. Evelyn Lewis on the other hand has somewhat digressed in her starting role, only offering up just over 3 points per game in close to 25 minutes of court time. This has put a lot of pressure on the guards, especially on Taleia Moton, to burden a majority of the scoring load. This load has certainly slowed down Moton, who recently seems to be forcing shots, and no doubt has had a negative affect on her recent performance.  Her scoring averages, 9 points against UMBC( 1 of 9) and 16 points ( 6 of 17) against UMD, plainly show that if she struggles so does Mason. Mason needs to have a good offensive output by both Lewis and Pickard to force the GW defense to respect the interior shot, and open up the outside play to players like Amber Easter and Saunders to drive or shot.

3) REBOUNDS: Even though Mason is only being out rebounded on the stat sheet by an average of 1 total rebound per game by GW, this has been a ongoing problem that has helped lead to the recent negative results. On no team should a 5'6 guard, in Mason's case the hard working Rahneeka Saunders, be out-rebounding the 6'3, 6'1, and 6'0 starting forwards on the team. Saunders averages just around 6 rebounds a game. In watching the most recent Maryland game, Mason was dominated 33- 59 on the boards, and where the Terps on several occasions were able to get not one but sometimes 3 consecutive shots up before it finally rolled in with no Patriot snagging a rebound.  And in the the loss the UMBC where Mason was out rebounded by 3, the game was a 4 point contest up until the final two minutes. And then under 2 minutes, UMBC would miss a shot but put back a offensive rebound and to go up 6, and Mason would never get close again. This show how important it is for the forwards, especially  6'3 Evelyn Lewis, to use her size and snag more offensive boards for easy put backs. Rebounds will be a extremely key stat for this game.

Tip for the "Battle of the Orange Line" is at 3 p.m. against GW. Tune in to WgmuRadio.com for online listen, or join us at home at the Patriot Center for all the action.

Mason Gets Shell-Shocked, Loses to #4 Maryland 50-78

For the first few minutes of the game their was hope that this was the Mason team that could be a big time contender, both in and out of the CAA, but against #4 Maryland that was not the case.

Mason(6-3) was able to stay with #4 Maryland(11-0) for the first 5 minutes or so but then the Terps, lead by their preseason Wooden-Top 30 player nominee Alyssa Thomas and Lynetta Kizer,  surged to a 35-13 margin with just over 5 minutes remaining. The sophomore Thomas would lead Maryland with 18 points on 7-13 shooting for the day. She was an unstoppable force and really showed the weakness of the Mason defense through out the season so far, down low in the trenches.

Almost at will and in transition Maryland was able to out-run the Mason defense and pound the ball inside for easy baskets. Time after time Mason would miss a shot, and Maryland would then beat every player on the Patriots squad  up the court. Maryland look like a much faster, stronger, and more fierce team on the afternoon. Even when up by 20+ points, the Terps continued to push the ball up the court and slam the ball down the Mason defense's throat. No matter half court or transition sets, Mason was not able to decipher the Terps offensive attack or find a way to slow it down.

On the night for Mason, Taleia Moton lead with 16 points on 6 of 17 shots. The only other Mason player  in double digits was Janaa Pickard with 12. Evelyn Lewis was made totally ineffective by the Maryland defense, who were able to force bad shots without getting fouls called. Lewis went 0 for 6  from the field with ZERO points. Mason was only able to get to the foul line 10 times the whole game, 3 times in the first half, but on the flip side shot 100% from the stripe.

On the faces of the Mason players, you could see the look of frustration as shots weren't dropping and fouls weren't being called. But overall this is why Maryland was #4 in the country, and they looked and played like it.

My final analysis came when Mason was down by  36 points  with just over 2 minutes to go. I started to keep fresh scorecard  for the final 2 minutes to see if Mason continued to play hard to cut down the lead  into the 20's.  A blowout loss will show the character of a team, and show the chemistry of a squad and its coaching staff. Maryland had in their last game blown out a opponent by 70 points, so it would be Mason's job to play with heart or crumble under the weight of competition.

 Fortunately for Mason fans, the Patriots showed they have a lot of heart. The Patriots would finish the last two minuets on a 11-1 run and  even with some of the Terps starters out,  they still showed great defense and were able to cut the deficit to the 20's.

Mason(6-3) is on its first losing streak of the season, having lost two in a row. They will look to break the streak on Thursday January 22nd against GW at the Patriot Center. Tip is at 3 pm and can you can listen live at wgmuradio.com.

UMBC Stops Mason's Winning Streak at 6 Games, Patriots lose 65-53

Sometimes even good teams have off nights, as George Mason experienced Thursday, as they lost to UMBC 65-53. The Patriots were simply outscored in almost every category: Points in the paint (16-22), points off turnovers (12-18), bench points (9-15), and even rebounding (39-36) a stat they haven't lost in the entire season. But the most egregious statistic from Thursday is the 20 turnovers by Mason, including 7 by the usually extremely dependable guard Rahneeka Saunders. Saunders, along with her counterpart Taleia Moton struggled to find their rhythm on the offensive end, combining to go 4 for 18 from the floor with 13 points. The Retrievers came into the game knowing that the Patriots backcourt combo is one of the most lethal in the area, and were able to shut them down.

UMBC answered with their own strong offensive performance, led by forward Erin Brown (21 points) and guard Michelle Kurowski (19 points, 8 rebounds), the Retrievers fought past the 22 lead changes to gut it out,   with Brown shooting strong from beyond the arc, hitting 5 of 8 three-pointers, including one with 4:51 left to play in the game to give UMBC a 51-49 lead which they never relinquished.

While Mason was unable to get the victory they got to witness strong play from their forward Janaa Pickard. This was the second game in a row where Pickard broke her previous career-high as she put up 17 points, along with grabbing 8 boards. The 6'1 Redshirt Sophomore is starting to prove herself to be a great weapon down low. This game also saw the offensive production return of guard Amber Easter, who had been battling previous injuries, who was able to play 32 minutes and score 14 points and grab 8 rebounds as well. Easter, who started off the season hot before getting hurt, will be another weapon for Mason to rely on as they get into the heavy CAA schedule.

The rise of Pickard, the return of Easter, combined with the usually stellar play of Saunders and Moton gives the 6-2 Patriots some confidence heading into Sunday's showdown with No. 6 Maryland. They will need all the help they can get if they want to pull off a victory against one of the best in the nation. Tip-off is scheduled for 2 pm Sunday.

Patriots Clip the Wings of the Lady Monarchs, GMU 85 ODU 69

      For the 3rd time this season, and the first time since 2003, the Patriots surpassed the 80 point margin in route to their victory over the Lady Monarchs of Old Dominion. George Mason grabbed the lead (9-8) after a turnaround jumper from Evelyn Lewis with 16 minutes left in the 1st half and never looked back. The home crowd was treated to a clinic on how to dominate a basketball game, hosted by guards Taleia Moton and Rahneeka Saunders. Moton and Saunders continue to prove that they may be the best two guard combo in the CAA. Saunders was relentless at the point, weaving through triple teams and slipping past the bigs down low. She finished with 17 points, 7 assists, and 8 rebounds (by the way in case anyone forgot, she is listed at 5'6).

      Taleia Moton was the Jordon to Saunder's Pippen as she had her 3rd straight 30+ point performance, the last time that was done was by Cindy Lundberg back in, oh wait, 1975!; which happened to be Mason's first women's basketball season. Moton's line ended up being 33 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists, and 3 steals. Forward Janaa Pickard put it best after the game, "Taleia and Rahneeka are definitely up there with the best in the conference, no doubt in my mind." Pickard had an excellent game too, finishing with 16 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 blocks.

      George Mason was able to find their points in the paint to start. Lewis and Pickard were able to body up the Monarch's post players, Tia Lewis and Shakeva Richards, which opened up the floor for Saunders and Moton to score. Tia Lewis, who had been averaging close to 17 points per game, struggled from the floor in the first half for ODU. She was only 3 for 7 with 6 points and 4 boards. The majority of the points for the Lady Monarchs came from guard Jackie Cook, who put up 13 points in the first and finished with 17. Lewis eventually found her stroke in the 2nd half, finishing with a team high 20 points.

      The "stat to look at" for this game was the free throw production for Mason. Moton and Pickard were able to draw contact down low and cash in. The team made 29 of 36 free throws (80.5%), with Moton converting 12 of 13 and Pickard 7 of 8. The 3 point show also came to the gym today as Mason hit 4 three-pointers, with Moton, Saunders, Pickard, and Amber Easter each having one.

      Mason will head on the road to UMBC on Thursday, Tip-off set for 7 p.m.

Keys To The Game: ODU vs GMU

1) Dominate Guard Play: There is still uncertainty about the return of second leading scorer Amber Easter for Mason, so it will be important that either Taleia Moton continues to play at an All-American level(23.3ppg) or that players like Rahneeka Saunders and Christine Weithman step their game up and improve their scoring firgures to atleast double figures. If the Mason guards don't help out, I believe ODU's freshman stud Ashley Betz-White(10.3ppg) will have a big game in taking the ball inside-out with the forward Tia Lewis.


2) Inconsistent Forward Play: This will be a game when the paint is where the game will ultimately be won. The last game at UMass showed obvious weakness for Mason when at times the Minutewomen were simply passing to the block and throwing shots off the glass. It will be crucial that Mason's forwards Evelyn Lewis and Jannaa Pickard not only apply stingy defense for a full 40 minutes, but that they also exploit the opportunities they get to score. Many times against UMass the forwards missed chip shots from only a few feet around the basket. If Mason wants to put the pressure on ODU's star forward Tia Lewis, then Mason's own forwards need to be a scoring threat and try to get Lewis into situations where shes having to carry her squad on both sides of the ball.


3) The Bench Must Score: In the last game against UMass, Mason only got 5 points of production from its bench in a game that went down to the wire. ODU is a team that has only lost to Mason 1 time in 49 match-ups  the last game being a nail bite loss 67-68.  In the 4 point win over Stony Brook a few weeks ago, the bench only produced 1 point. And the only loss Mason has suffered this year, a 55-51 defeat against American at home. Taleia Moton and Amber Easter had 19 and 20 points respectively, but the bench only had a single 3 pointer all night. If the bench players like Joyous Tharrington and Cierra Strickland don't turn their minutes into scoring production, this game will no doubt be a tough one to win or secure until the final minutes.

CAA Conference Opener: GMU vs. ODU Preview

George Mason will enter the Patriot Center tonight for their first CAA matchup of the season against rival Old Dominion. Old Dominion comes into the game with new but familiar faces, lead by first year head coach Karen Barefoot. Barefoot, the former head coach of Elon University, led her Elon team to their first ever Division I playoff appearance is no stranger to the game of basketball. The 209-143 career record coach Barefoot has compiled, as well as receiving two "National Coach of the Year" awards, shows her commitment and ability to turn around programs..

Offesivley ODU is paced by their standout senior Tia Lewis. Lewis is averaging 16.9 ppg and a sizable 9.3 rebounds. Last year Lewis was both a member of the All-CAA third team and ODU women’s basketball team MVP.

George Mason is riding a 5 game win streak into tonight’s contest, the best start under head coach Jerri Porter. Mason has been on a tear lately, lead by the floor general Taleia Moton. Moton will look to continue her dominance tonight, as she asserts herself as one of the best scorers in the nation, averaging just above 21 ppg.

This will be the 50th meeting between the two teams, Old Dominion has a strangle hold on the series with a 48-1 advantage. The last contest between the two teams was a 68-67 nail bitter, as Jasmine Parker hit a buzzer beater with 1 second left to seal the win for ODU.

Thing to Watch:

- Taleia Moton vs ODU freshman point guards. Moton has dominated every team she faced this year and should have her way against a young ODU backcourt.

- Tia Lewis vs Mason bigs. Tia Lewis fights for every board and loves scoring inside. If Evelyn Lewis and Janaa Pickard get into foul trouble again, it could be a long night.

- Coach Barefoot vs Coach Jerri Porter. Karen Barefoot is no stranger to the ODU program, she was with them from 05-08, where she won three CAA Championships. But Coach Porter has her kids playing inspired basketball. The best part is that all the players on the team are her recruits. What a coaching battle.

Listen in as we sit down with head coach Karen Barefooot to talk about her new coaching gig, the CAA and stopping the 5-1 Patriots

Patriot’s Enter the Battlefield Against Minutewomen, Come Out the Victors 55 to 52 Over UMass

Tonight’s matchup between the Patriots (4-1) and UMass(1-5) would seem on paper to be another blowout, but it was anything but the sort at the Patriot Center.

The crowd inside the Patriot Center was a little taken aback because for the first time in quite a while, Amber Easter was missing from the starting lineup. It wasn’t for a lack of production, as Amber has averaged 11 points and 6 rebounds per contest this year, but for the injury she acquired during the blowout win against UNC-Ashville last week. It was in that same game though; we saw the star potential in sophomore guard Christine Weithman who dropped 22 points off the bench. Sources tell us that Easter’s injury isn’t too serious, and she is no longer in a walking boot. But the play of Weithman gave the Patriots hope of added production off the bench. In tonight’s matchup against the Minuetwoman, in which Coach Porter gave Weithman her first career start, it wasn’t the case.

The game once again fell on the shoulders of potential “CAA Player of the Year” Taleia Moton who finished the game with 32 points, 13 of 22 from the field, to go along with 5 rebounds and 4 steals. Weithman was unable to get back the stroke she had last Sunday, finishing with just 6 points on 2 of 6 from beyond the 3-point line. Despite the lack of production, she still played 29 minutes, and commanded a lot of respect from the UMass defenders who face guarded her all night. This really opened up the game for Moton, who was given a lot of 1-on-1 matchups and she easily took advantage of them.

This was a night where, to be truthful, Taleia honestly had to “Tebow” her team to victory. The bench was given time to play on the court, with 4 players getting 37 minutes. But the production was weak, with the bench only producing 5 points over that time period. Joyous Tharrington played extremely hard when she was put into the game, getting 2 rebounds and 4 points, but the Patriots will need more production from her and the rest of the bench for the team to be successful in the CAA.

Mason, though at times was getting dominated in the paint, still was able to win the rebounding battle by a margin of 39-37. And a key to winning this game was going to be creating turnovers and getting steals, and Mason won both those battles 12-14 and 8-4 respectively.

Mason is off to their hottest start of the season at 5-1, and is the best start to a campaign since 2000-2001. The Patriots will open up CAA play this Sunday at home against rival ODU. They will face one of the top forwards in the conference in Tia Lewis, who is averaging 16 ppg. If the defensive play of Evelyn Lewis and Jannaa Pickard does not improve from tonight’s performance, the Monarchs may be in for a big night scoring within the paint.

Tip is set for 2pm Sunday, at the Patriot Center. Listen here for Coach Porters post-game comments following the close win over UMass.

Rolling Along: Patriots Cruising to Best Start Since 2001

When George Mason hits the floor tonight at the Patriot Center in a matchup against UMass, they will look to build off a week of success. The Patriots currently sit at 4-1 in their conference, good for third in the CAA. Mason's weekly success includes wins over Longwood, Stony Brook and UNC Asheville. During this strech they have averaged 74 points, 12 assists and just under 38 rebounds. In these games, Mason has been lead by the strong play of senior guard Taleia Moton, who ranks in the top 15 in the nation in ppg. Below is a list of the individual and team accomplishments George Mason has made over the last week:

- Sophomore Christian Weithman hit 5 three pointers against UNC Asheville to tie her career high, and also tied a career point high with 22

- Senior Taleia Moton scored 19 second half points against UNC Asheville to end the game with 30 points. It was the second time this week, she also scored 30 in the game against Longwood.

- George Mason reachd the 80 point plateau twice last week, the first time since the 2006 season

- Senior Taleia Moton was name CAA co-player of the week

- At 4-1 this marks Mason's best start under head coach Jeri Porter


Tune in live tonight to our broadcast of GMU women's basketball starting at 6:30pm. Follow this link to listen in .