Brian T. Chan, Sports Editor
Overview:
The men’s basketball team has its home conference winning streak of 18 games in jeopardy as the team takes on the William & Mary Tribe on Tuesday night at 7 p.m. At the same time, Mason will look to prolong its nine-game home winning streak. The Patriots will host another tough opponent in the College of Charleston Cougars in the ESPN BracketBuster on Saturday at 8 p.m. Entering Saturday’s game against the Old Dominion Monarchs, the Patriots held a 16-9 overall record and 11-3 conference record.
Mason:
Two months ago, the Patriots dropped a nail-biter to the Dayton Flyers, snapping its 18-home game winning streak. Since then, Mason has won nine consecutive games, including a thriller last Tuesday against Colonial Athletic Association rival, VCU Rams. Even when the team had to rally from a 13-point halftime deficit, the Patriots did not dismantle in the overtime period. Mason has won 27 of its past 28 games at the Patriot Center. Sophomore forward Mike Morrison delivered a career-high 18 points and added 10 rebounds to his double-double while holding Rams’ Larry Sanders to just two points in the second half of the 82-77 win.
William & Mary:
After starting 14-3, the Tribe lost four of its next five games. The Tribe went back to its winning ways, defeating the Georgia State Panthers 59-56 in Atlanta. William & Mary returned to the Kaplan Arena, hosting the Delaware Blue Hens and Northeastern Huskies. The Tribe holds the best overall road record in the CAA at 8-5, but against the conference opponents, the Tribe is just 4-3. William & Mary currently sits in sixth place in the conference, just a half game behind the Rams, while holding a three-game advantage over the 5-8 Hofstra Pride. Guard David Schneider leads the Tribe with 15.8 points per game and 64 3-pointers. The senior is among the conference’s best all-around players, averaging a team-high 6.1 rebounds per game to go along with 33 steals.
College of Charleston:
The Cougars are led by its three-guard attack. Andrew Goudelock averages 19.7 points per night and leads the team with 93 assists in 25 games. Donavan Monroe and Tony White, Jr. average 12.2 points and 11.6 points, respectively. Forward Jeremy Simmons is the Cougars’ leading rebounder with 7.7 boards per game. Head Coach Bobby Cremins, a former great at Georgia Tech, has produced a high-scoring team that averages 74.2 points per game. The Cougars will not shy away from shooting 3-pointers, totaling 241 treys in 637 attempts. The Cougars are having a solid season at 16-9 overall, especially defeating the North Carolina Tar Heels earlier this year. Last week, the Cougars fell for the first time at home, losing to the Citadel Bulldogs 72-65 at the Carolina First Arena. The team will look for its first non-conference road win, having gone 0-5 thus far.
Records and statistics accurate as of Friday, February 12, 2010.
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