#7 Seeded Patriots Look to Improve on the Past, Forge Ahead in the CAA Tournament

George Mason (14-15, 8-10) comes into Friday's 5pm opening round match-up against the #10 seed Northeastern Huskies (8-21, 6-12) looking to avenge last year's performance, a first round knock out as a #8 seed against Georgia State, and move forward to break the Patriot's CAA tournament winless drought.


Mason has not been in the CAA Championship Game since 2006, and hasn't been a top 4 seed since the 2004 season. The Patriots have not won a CAA tournament game in almost 6 years, so you may ask, why is their hope for this season? The answer is Coach Porter and her rejuvenation of the program.

When Coach Jeri Porter left Radford University and took over the George Mason program in 2008, she inherited a struggling team who has just finished the previous season 11th in the 12 team conference. In her first two years at Mason Coach Porter doubled the win totals overall, but the Patriots' were still finishing #11 and #12 in the conference. Then came the breakout 2010-2011 season.  The Patriots won 7 conference games and improved their win total from the previous season by +3 victories which helped them achieve their highest standing in the CAA tournament since 2005, a #8 seed.

Coach Porter and the Patriots have once again improved on last year's record, by being +1 in conference victories and earning a #7 seed in the 2012 CAA tournament.  This Mason squad came into the season only returning 2 starters, Amber Easter and Taleia Moton, but still improved on their previous season's record.  Coach Porter has really helped to tailor this offense to the strengths of its guards and their speed, which has allowed Moton and Easter to pushed their scoring averages up +8 and +2 respectively from last season. This has lead to Moton being the #12 ranked scorer in the nation, and giving her the ability to take over a game for the Patriots during crunch time.

This Patriot team is  unique from the past in that they have a a variety of ways they can beat an opponent. Their is no doubt Mason has lost games they should have  won, especially in conference, but in losses against top teams they have shown their true abilities. Mason has a variety of ways they can score on an opponent, either pressing the ball or playing half court. Rahneeka Saunders is one of the most underrated ball handlers in the CAA who quickly and unselfishly gives the ball up to the person with the best opportunity to score. Senior star Taleia Moton has the unique skills at being 5'6 to either blow by you with her speed on the dribble, or to step back and drain a jumper.  Then you have the wild card player, forward Janaa Pickard, who came into this year having missed all last season with an injury. The 6'1 sophomore forward is averaging 8.6 ppg as a starter, but her unique ability comes from shooting from mid-range and long distance. On the season she is hitting 39% from the 3-point line, and has show the ability to battle down low or take a defender outside for a 15-foot jumper.

Finally Coach Porter has a complied group of role and bench players capable of giving quality production during tough tournament games. Guard Christine Weithman at times this season has shown the ability to be a real threat off the bench, averaging 4 ppg and hitting 38.5% from beyond the 3-point arc. Weithman is a streak shooter, but something that makes this Mason team unique and dangerous if she gets hot.   With the added contribution of guard Joyous Tharrington and forward Cierra Strickland, and you have a very deep and skilled bench for the Patriots to use in the CAA tournament.

If you add all the above factors with a Mason defense that is only allowing oppnents to shoot 37.8%, which ranks them 3rd in the conference and the highest they've placed in that category since before 2004, then you have a Patriot squad capable of breaking the tournament wins drought.

Plummeting Patriots: Mason loses 6th Straight Game 61-53 to UNCW

In a game that featured two teams fighting for recognition, separated by just one game, it had all the makings of a well-matched playing field. But another second half falter by George Mason cut off the Patriot’s chances as they fell to UNCW 61-53 at Trask Coliseum. The Patriots (7-9,1-4) continue to slide into the conference cellar as they have now lost six straight games. The Seahawks (9-7, 2-3) however got a much needed win, to help better position themselves as we get closer to the conference championships.

The first half was a proponent of the matchup, even. Both teams would shoot an identical 35.7 percent from the floor by the end of the first half. George Mason came out of the gate fast, as they took an early 10-2 lead on an Amber Easter 3-pointer to force the first timeout of the game. A team huddle was all the Seahawks would need as they went on a spurt of their own reeling off nine straight to cut the lead to one. The Patriot’s would respond once more boosting their lead to five points on a pair of free throws.

Over four minutes elapsed without a bucket by George Mason, a gap that would allow UNCW to climb right back into the game. An Alisha Andrews layup with eight minutes on the clock gave the Seahawks their first lead of the game. Andrews would finish the game with 15 points, just one of four UNCW players in double figures.

Cierra Strickland would get things started up again for Mason, when she delivered an old fashion 3-point play to take the lead by four points with little time left on the clock. But much like they did all game UNCW provided the answer streaking for five straight to end the half leading 26-25.

The second half was marked by two tie scores and two lead changes, as play seemed to go back and forth early on. But Mason still couldn’t seem to shake their second half rust, as they let the game get out of their control. Taleia Moton turned the ball over, leading to a UNCW layup to put them on top for good. Moton, who has been Mason's saving grace for much of the season, would finish the game with five turnovers and nine points on just 29 percent shooting from the floor.

With just under three minutes to play in the second half, UNCW took their largest lead of the game by ten points on a Trice Abria 3-pointer. Abria would finish the game with 16 points, as she combined with Jessica Freeman to score over half of their 61 points. Mason who had held the Seahawks to 1-6 shooting from the arc in the first half, allowed UNCW to knockdown four 3-pointers while shooting 67 percent in the second half.

Over the next two minutes Mason’s sloppy play along with good free throw shooting by UNCW would put the lid on the contest. The Patriot’s would turn the ball over 5 times in the last two minutes. The Seahawks would close the door going 5-9 from the line.

This is the Patriots second longest losing streak under head coach Jeri Porter, George Mason lost 10 straight games back in the 09-10 season. Over this six game losing streak Mason has failed to show up in the second half, as they have been outscored by a margin of 217-170. Amongst these recent struggles bright spots seem almost non-existant. But if Mason chooses to build on anything its thier rebounding. In the game Mason outrebounded UNCW by a margin of 35-32, thanks to the work of Evelyn Lewis and Rahnekaa Saunders who combined for 17. This is the first time Mason has owned the boards in over three contests.

Mason will put their road woes behind them as they return the Patriot Center on January 19^th to take on William and Mary. This will mark the first of a much-needed three game home stand for the Patriots. Tip-off is slated for 7pm

Keith's Keys the Game: GMU vs. W&M

Mason enters Thursday's game against fellow CAA member William and Mary (7-5) with another road loss. The Mason has now lost their last 4 out of 5, and will need to quickly stop the bleeding for it not to affect their current 1-0 conference record.

What was key in the Patriots(7-5) last defeat  Norfolk State Spartans was a lack of rebounding. The Patriots were out-rebounded 45-33, and the only thing that kept Mason in the game was Christine Weithman coming off the bench  to hit 4 three-pointers. And once again their was not much production form either of the starting forwards in terms of productive scoring or rebounding. Both Evelyn Lewis and Janaa Pickard only combined for 8 of Mason's 33 rebounds, and a lack luster 10 total points of the 57 the Patriots scored.

What to Watch For:

William and Mary has been on a roller coast ride for the last month and a half. Since getting a win over Longwood on November 30th, a team Mason also defeated,  the Tribe has alternated wins and loses in each of their following competitions leading up to the present, going 4-3 in that time frame. The Tribe currently stand at 7-5, 0-1 in conference play after a loss to ranked Delaware.

In order for Mason to win this game they will have to rely on tough defense to defend the great shooters of William and Mary. Currently the Tribe has 4 players that average double digit scoring, with at least 3 players averaging double digit field goal attempts. This shows that William and Mary is a extremely balanced team and almost anyone on the floor is willing and able to score. This shows that they will score in bunches if not guarded correctly. William and Mary will test the perimeter defense of Taleia Moton and Rahneeka Saunders as the Tribe are averaging almost 36 more three-point attempts on the season, and have 4 players shooting atleast 32% from behind the arc on a minimum of 14 attempts. Those stats rank the Tribe 11th in the NCAA in total three point percentage in hitting just over 37% as a team. The Mason guards will need to put a star around the name Janine Aldridge, who tied for the lead in scoring for the tried with 13.8 per game and attempts 8 three-pointers per game.

Janine Aldridge #30--Shoots 40% from behind arc

The Tribe come in averaging 70 points per contest, while Mason hovers around 62. It will be important for Taleia Moton to be more a a distributor, and wait for good opportunities. To be successful tonight, Christine Weithman will need to provide some sort of impact off the bench like she did against Norfolk State, or to at least open up the floor to allow the forwards like Janaa Pickard to roam in a more open middle and allow easy jumpers.

This looks like it could be a shootout with William and Mary giving up about 65 points a game, and Mason showing the ability to sore having reached 80 points 3 times this season. In 3 of the 5 loses for Mason this season, players other then Taleia Moton have finished the game as the high scorer. This shows that for Mason to be successful, especially in a a run-and-gun game like this, the Patriots will need Taleia Moton to rebound from last game's slumber in which she had 11 points on 5 of 17 shooting, and return to being the floor general she was earlier in the season by taking more efficient shots.

Tip-off is at 7pm in Williamsburg, Virginia.

Keith's Keys to the Game: GMU vs. Norfolk State

Mason enters this game coming off a dominating loss by the paws of the Ohio University Bobcats. Their seems to be appearing a pattern on the road thus far, that dates back to last season. Mason is currently 2-2 on the road,  dropping the last two by a combined 28 points. If Mason cannot salvage the remaining two games of the road trip finishing up at William and Mary, then this season's record may be showing signs of last years road woes when the Patriots were 3-11 outside of the Patriot Center.



What to Watch For:

1) Turnovers:  In Mason's last match-up against Ohio University, in which they were defeated by 16 points, the Patriots gave up 15 turnovers while only forcing 10 turnovers from the Bearcats on just 2 total steals. This is a important statistic because Norfolk State comes in as a team that has a high turnover rate, about 19 per game, and it will be important for the Patriots to get on-ball pressure and force the Spartans to make mistakes as they are prone to do. The Norfolk State Spartans come in riding a 5 game losing streak, and the turnover margin is a big reason for their current 5-7 record. Rahneeka Saunders and Evelyn Lewis combined for a total of 9 turnovers in the last game, so it will be Mason's job as well to secure the basketball and on the other end force the Spartans into pressure situations.

#14 Whitney Long-14.8 ppg

2)  Defend the Guards: Senior Whitney Long and sophomore Rae Corbo come into tonight's games as the two leading scorers, at 14 and 12 points per game respectively, and the obvious threats to the Mason defense. Whitney Long will be a player for Mason to defiantly to keep an eye on because of her 5'4 frame, which she uses to her advantage with  great speed on both the offensive and defensive ends of the court. She is hovering around 40% from the field shooting, and shoots a decently high 35% from outside the three point line. It will be important for Taleia Moton to bring her team leading 2.4 steals per game style of hard nose defense, and apply it directly to Whitney Long all night.


3) Game Plan: This is a match-up that on paper should be a win for the Patriots, that is if they perform to their abilities. The Patriots dominated the Spartans in Fairfax last year 72-45, in only the third ever meeting between the schools.  If Mason is able to utilize their size and skill inside with Evelyn Lewis and Janaa Pickard, it should open it up for easy scoring for the guards and especially high volume/efficency shooter Taleia Moton averaging 22 points on 16 attempts per contest. Norfolk State's tallest starting player in 6-1 in  Batavia Owens, but she only averages around 16 minuets a game and just 5 ppg. And when Mason does hopefully score, it will enable them to setup the full court or 3-4 press to try to force turnovers, which is the achilles heel of this Spartans' team. This game will come down to having a solid game plan and making sure the players follow through with it on the court.

Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m. at Joesph Echols Hall in Norfolk. Mason (7-4) will look to improve their road record before league play, while the Norfolk State Spartans(5-7) will look to snap their 5 game losing streak before they begin conference play in the MEAC. You can listen to the game live on the GoMason Digital Network on WGMUradio.com.

Happy New Year and Go Mason!

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.

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.

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.

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 .

Patriots Bring the Bulldogs to the Pound, Win 88-59

If you were looking for a textbook definition of domination, this would be a game to use as an example. The Patriots(4-1) shot an amazing 56.5% from the field, while holding the over match UNC-Asheville Bulldogs(2-3) to 29.4%.  The surprise not only was the margin of victory, but also was the play of junior guard Christine Weithman.

We've talked before about Weithman and how she has the ability to spread defenses out with her 3-point shooting, that is when she gets significant playing time on a very deep Mason bench. Tonight was her time to shine, and she showed us why she could be this year's female equivalent of Ventrail Vaughts on last years Mason Men's basketball team because of the way she came of the bench like a spark plug to shoot 5-7 from the 3-point line and finish with a career high 22 points. This all coming in 26 minutes of court time.

Guard Weithman records career high 22pts vs UNC-Ash

Christine Weithman was the key to winning this game with her 15 points in the first half, which allow Mason to take 42-23 lead at halftime and build upon it come the second half. Even with a low shooting and scoring night from the dynamic starter Amber Easter (3-5, 6 pts), Mason finally got the bench production they were looking for with 5 out of 6 subs recording at least 1 field goal and combining for 35 points.

All of the Colonial Athletic Conference better take note that Taleia Moton continues to go on a scoring tear, scoring 30 points on 14 of 17 shooting and not even connecting on a single 3 pointer.  Moton on the season is now averaging just above 21 ppg with a 50% field goal percentage, and seems focused on not letting any opponent get in her way this season. Forward Forward Jannaa Pickard didn't dominate offensively down low today, but  had a major effect on the Bulldogs attempts with her 4 blocks during the contest.

The Patriot's next opponent is UMass who is currently on a 4 game skid, and has not won since their season opener at home on November 13th. The Patriots will look to improve to a 5-1 record, and improve upon their current 4 game losing streak. It will be important to watch if Mason can continue to get production of the bench, and especially from a proven 3 point shooter like Christine Weithman. If Weithman is able to come off the bench and give quality minuets to force defenses to spread more outside, this should help players like Evelyn Lewis and Jannaa Pickard to become more dominate as the season progresses.

Oh and CAA Player of the Year alert for Taleia Moton? Keep this up and the Patriots could make a strong showing come CAA play.

Thursday night, 7pm vs UMass. Be there!