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.

Patriots Stay Perfect on the Road: Win 54-50 at Stony Brook

It looked pretty grim, and a story line that many fans of Mason Women's basketball have become accustomed to over the past few years. With just 9 minuets left in the game, on the road, the Patriots found themselves facing  15 point deficit. But this year is starting to look like something different for these patriots.

It was the DC native, Rahneeka Saunders, known more for her hustle and defense then for her jumper, who hit the shot that would put the Patriots up for good and ultimately give them the win on the road. Saunders would finish the game with 12 points, 3 over her average, and 4 rebounds(3 offensive). The ability for Saunders to step up shows that this Patriot team could do big things year, especially when one of their stars stumbles a little. Amber Easter, coming off a 16 point game against Longwood, would finish 2 of 8 for only 6 points in 32 minutes of court time.

But this is where the Patriots showed their strength. Behind the steady production of Taleia Moton who finished with 18 points and 4 assists, the forwards down low were able to impose their will. Evelyn Lewis was 4 for 6 from the field with 8 points, 5 rebounds, and 1 block while right beside her the redshirt sophomore Janaa Pickard scored 9 points, hauled in 9 rebounds with 1 block.

It's important to note that Coach Porter used her subs sparingly tonight(33 mins for 5 players), with only Rachel McNair recording a single point to total out the bench scoring for the night. It was most likely due to the Patriots low scoring first half(36%), and because of the 29-19 deficit they saw at halftime.

It will be important in the future for the Patriots to be more aggressive in the first half and not get behind like they did tonight, allowing Stony Brook to shoot 5-10 from 3-point range for the first 20 minutes. The bench will have to be a factor if the Patriots plan on winning more games then they did last year in the CAA. And if the Patriots continue to shoot 50% from the line like they did tonight it will eventually come back and hurt them.

Remember that the Patriots return home on Sunday at 2pm against UNC-Asheville Bulldogs!