TOWSON, Md. - The Tigers (0-19, 0-7) travel to Fairfax, Va. on Saturday afternoon to take on George Mason (14-5, 6-1) at the Patriot Center. Opening tip-off is set for 4 p.m.
Last year, the Tigers fell at George Mason, 84-58, which unfortunately took place after Towson's bus was caught in traffic during a snowstorm and the game had to be postponed until the next day.
George Mason, who has a 30-8 edge in this series, won the first meeting this season at the Towson Center, 65-53, on Dec. 3. The Patriots outrebounded the Tigers by 41-26 and forced Towson to shoot just 37.5% from the floor. Marcus Damas led the Tigers with a season-high 25 points on 9 of 14 shooting from the floor.
George Mason is tied for first place in the Colonial Athletic Association standings with Old Dominion at 6-1.
The Patriots opened the season by splitting their first two games (which went overtime), defeating Rhode Island at home, 92-90, and losing to Florida International at the NIT Season Tip-off in Blacksburg, Va. They followed that loss with an easy win over Monmouth, 71-39, at the same tournament.
Since losing at Virginia on Dec. 6 by 20 points, George Mason has won 8 of 10 games. The Patriots' only losses took place against Duquesne at home, 75-64, and at Drexel by 60-53 on Jan. 12.
In their last game, the Patriots defeated Delaware at home on Wednesday, 89-63.
George Mason is a strong defensive team under new Coach Paul Hewitt, the former head man at Georgia Tech. The Patriots allow just 63.5 points per game and opponents shoot just 38% from the field and 29.5% from beyond the arc. They also force 14.6 turnovers per game and are outrebounding teams by an average of 1.3 rebounds per game.
George Mason usually produces at least one or more CAA Player of the Year candidates and this year is no different. Senior forward Ryan Pearson (6-6, 237) is an extremely dangerous player because he can take taller players to the basket or devour smaller players in the paint. Pearson leads the Patriots by scoring 17.8 points per game with 8.5 rebounds per outing while shooting 52% from the floor. He can shoot the three-point shot (14-38, 37%) and converts 72% of his free throws.
Senior Mike Morrison (6-9, 237) is one of the league's top defensive players. He averages 10.3 points and 6.9 rebounds per game while shooting 61% from the field. Like Towson's Robert Nwankwo, Morrison protects the basket (39 blocks in 19 games) but struggles to make free throws (54%).
The Patriots go with three guards led by redshirt sophomore Vertrail Vaughns (6-2, 184), who is second in scoring with a 10.4 average while shooting 45% from the field and 39% (30-78) from three-point range. He's a lefty with a quick release who can score in bunches.
Sophomore Byron Allen (6-3, 214) is a powerful guard who averages 8.5 points per game and leads the team with 70 assists (48 turnovers). He shoots 44% from the field, but is just 6-for-32 from the three-point line.
Senior Andre Cornelius (5-10, 174) missed the first semester and gives the Patriots another option in the backcourt. He has started three of nine games thus far, averaging 7.3 points per game in 21.8 minutes per outing while shooting 44% from the field and 40% (12-30) from beyond the arc.
Redshirt sophomore Sherrod Wright (6-4, 196) started 14 of 18 games and now comes off the bench. He is fourth on the team in scoring with an 8.5 average while shooting a blazing 50% from the field and 39% (11-28) from beyond the arc.
The Patriots are pretty deep on the bench, especially in the post, led by sophomore Jonathan Alredge (6-8, 228), who averages 4.3 points and 3.0 rebounds per game while shooting 39% from the field. Freshman Erik Copes (6-8, 244) is one of the most heralded freshman in the conference. Copes, a Philadelphia native, averages 3.4 points and 3.8 rebounds and has an incredible 39 blocks this season while playing 15.9 minutes per contest.
Freshman Corey Edwards (5-11, 177) is another talented freshman who averages 2.5 points per game and is second on the team with 22 steals while averaging 16.8 minutes per game off the bench. Edwards, who also has two starts, shoots 36% from the field but his strength is running the point and dishing out assists (40).
Saturday's game will be broadcast on WNST-AM 1570 and televised on Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic. There will also be a live in-game blog on TowsonTigers.com.
