In their first of three road games, George Mason (13-8, 2-6) will take on St. Bonaventure (13-8, 5-3) after a loss to URI on Tuesday.
This contest marks the 13th time these two programs have faced off, with the Bonnies holding an 9-3 series lead. The most recent matchup took place at EagleBank arena of this season resulting in a 61-49 victory for the Bonnies in Fairfax.
Again, the outlook is not good for the Patriots, the Patriots have lost 8 of the last 9 matchups against the Bonnies. They’ll have to beat the odds again if they want to win today.
The Bona’s have been playing okay all season. They’ve won 5 of their last 8 games, but those three losses have come from Dayton, VCU, and URI. Mason needs to play their best basketball, which is a lot to ask for right now.
Breaking Down St. Bonaventure
The Bonnies hold a 4-2 lead at EagleBank Arena over Mason but are currently 4-5 overall away this season.
Notable Players:
Sophomore Kyle Lofton checks in at the one spot in Bonnies’ scoring with an average of 13.9 points per game. He still leads the A-10 in assists per game (6.2 apg), total assists (130), minutes per game (38.5 mpg) and is fourth in free throw percentage (86.5%). However, in his last game against Fordham, Lofton did not register a field goal – the first time in his 55 career collegiate games that he has not posted at least two field goals.
Osun Osunniyi is next up with some good stats; notably his rebounding ratio. He’s grabbing 9.6 rebounds per game this season and has 40 offensive rebounds and 94 defensive rebounds. In five A-10 games where he has suited up this year, Osun Osunniyi has averaged 11.4 rebounds per contest.
Breaking Down George Mason
Mason continues to show fans that the 11-2 non-conference record they built up was just a façade.
As I’ve said before, Mason cannot compete against top-tier A-10 teams, that’s just a fact. We’re now competing to play on Thursday instead of Wednesday of the A-10 Tournament. We are currently 10th in the A-10. Ouch. In my last preview, I thought Mason would break even in non-conference play, now I’m concerned the Patriots won’t win more than 6 games this year.
Time is ticking, and Mason needs to recover,
However, here are my predictions for the rest of the season.
St. Bona – L
UMass – L
VCU – L
GW – L
Richmond – L
St. Joe’s – W
Dayton – LLLLLLLLLLL
Duquesne – L
Saint Louis – L
Fordham – W
2-8, that’s my prediction. I think Mason could possibly finish with at best a 4-6 record. That put’s 6-12 record, I think that puts us squarely in the position to play in the first round of the A-10 tournament.
My Prediction: A Mason “L“
