The Silencing of the Rams: Mason Gets Sweep of VCU, Looks Forward to Senior Night Against JMU

The Patriots (14-14, 8-9) traveled to the Verizon Wireless Arena in Richmond just one day after the Mason men's basketball team was defeated on national television by the VCU men's basketball team. The women came into the game seeking to settle the score between the in-state rivals, as well as improve their overall record back to an even .500. The Patriots did this in convincing fashion by securing the lead with 11:13 left in the first half and never giving it up until they had sealed the victory 69-59.

Lewis had a solid night w/ 8 and 10

As stated in our preview for this match-up, in order for the Patriot's to secure a victory they would have to limit the threat of VCU's all-star forward Courtney Hurt. And while Mason did not by any means take her out of the game or shut her down, the defensive presence by Evelyn Lewis and Janaa Pickard held Hurt to below her averages in both scoring and rebounding. Courtney Hurt came in shooting 45.9% from the field, and the Mason defense was able to limit her to only hitting 8 of 19 from the field (42%).

The second thing we  stated Mason needed to focus on was limiting the effectiveness of the role players on VCU, thus putting more pressure on Courtney Hurt to force shots and put the team on her back. Mason did this to a certain extent, allowing only one VCU player not having the name "Hurt" on the back their jersey to score in double-digits. Andrea Barbour of VCU had 18 points on 50%  shooting from the field, but the other three Ram starters only combined for 6 of 19 (31.5%)  from the field and 14 total points. Mason effectively played team defense for the full 40 minutes, forcing the Rams into 17 turnovers with tough on-ball pressure coming from Rahneeka Saunders and Taleia Moton who both had 3 steals apiece.

Strickland had 8 points in 18 mins

Overall Mason was able to get their second win against VCU this season because of a strong TEAM game. Taleia Moton and Amber Easter combined for 35 points on 13 of 26 (50%) shooting from the field. Evelyn Lewis had a very solid offense night to go along with her great defensive performance, scoring 8 points (4 of 7) and hauling in 8 rebounds. And to top it all off, the most surprising figure of the night had to be in the column of Sophomore guard Cierra Strickland. Strickland, who came into the game only averaging 1.7 points in extremely limited action, scored 8 points in just 18 minutes of court time. Solid bench production like this is what separates an average Mason team, from being a a good or great basketball team.

Mason looks to continue their success as they conclude the regular season at home in the Patriot Center celebrating Senior Night. The Patriot will be playing an incredibly crucial game for the final CAA standings against JMU. A win could give the Patriots a #6 seed in the CAA tournament which would give them the advantage of playing the latest game of the first round, thus the most time to prepare for the opening round match-up. A win over JMU and achieving a #6 seed would match the Patriots up with the #11 seed, who based on Wednesday night's results, will most likely be Georgia State whom Mason just defeated in overtime a few weeks ago. From that point on a win would move them into a match-up with the #3 seed, whom based on Wednesday's results could be either Drexel or Hofstra. Mason has played both teams only once, and has beaten Drexel in Philly (56-51) while losing to Hofstra (70-82) in Fairfax.

A win over JMU will not be easy, as the Patriot have already fallen to the Dukes on the road 45-49 in a nail-biter. A victory tomorrow over a top 4 CAA opponent is important not only for team confidence, but it can potentially give the Patriot's an easier road to the conference championship game.

Looking for another reason you may or may not want to win tomorrow?  If Mason were to lose tomorrow, get the #7 seed and still advance past the first round of the CAA tournament, they would face the #2 seed JMU Dukes guaranteed in the second round. Playing the same team twice in a matter of a 10 days can be a good or bad thing, but playing a good team like the Dukes to advance in a one-and-done tournament would most likely be a road the Patriots want to avoid.

Once Again the Patriot face-off Wednesday night at 7pm in the Patriot Center. You can tune into WGMU Radio for live coverage of the game.