In the first installment of the Patriots’ three-game homestand, George Mason (8-1) will take on Jacksonville State (2-4), not a state btw, to continue to close in on the best start in program history.
This contest will mark the first-ever meeting between the Patriots and the Gamecocks (Yes, that is their name).
Now let’s break down these two teams as I sit in my bed writing this preview.
Breaking Down JSU
Jacksonville State (not a state) was picked to finish fourth out of 12 teams in the always competitive Ohio Valley Conference.
One thing that made me laugh was that JSU’s statistics page looks like they just took an introductory HTML coding class.
Like, look at this.
The hyperlinks don’t even link to the athletics website!
If JSU plays like they code, this should be an easy win for the Patriots.
Here are some players to look for:
Sophomore De’Torrion Ware, paces the team in scoring (11.7 ppg) and rebounding (6.3 rpg).
Jacara Cross averages 11.5 points per contest and FG% is .604 (29-48).
Derek St. Hilaire tallies 10.2 points and 2.0 assists per game.
The last two players also have a combined 22 turnovers in their 6 games.
Breaking Down George Mason
After coming from a Cayman Islands Classic Championship win, the Patriots need 4 more wins to tie the best start in program history (12-1, 1983-84).
I think the Patriots will get to 11-1 before falling to TCU. Don’t even get me started on conference play… (The A-10 looks TOO good right now)
AJ Wilson is starting to stay consistent and has already accumulated 34 blocks on the season. The Mason record for a season is 77 set by George Evans in 1998-99.
Guess who’s back, back again, Kier’s back, tell a friend. If Kier plays as expected, he’ll be an incredible asset to this already pretty good Mason team.
As long as Mason doesn’t go to its old ways of playing down to its opponent, they should win this game.
My Prediction: A Mason “W”
See you there.
