Today’s tilt between VCU and George Mason has big time Atlantic 10 implications. A victory for the Rams would guarantee them solo 2nd place. A victory for the Patriots will ensure that the worse they can do is a 6th place tie and would wrap up a winning record in the conference.
Senior day at Siegel should make an already dynamic environment even more electric, if that’s possible. VCU has one of the top home courts in the Atlantic 10. Siegel has been sold out 98 consecutive games. Today the VCU faithful will say good-bye to JeQuan Lewis, Mo Alie-Cox, Doug Brooks, Ahmed Hamdy, Jordan Burgess, and Torey Burston.
The first meeting between these schools produced a 73-64 VCU victory. Lewis led the Rams that night with 26 points. Mo Alie-Cox chipped in with 14 points and 9 rebounds. The Rams outrebounded the Patriots, 42-31. A game Patriots team was led by 5 players scoring in double digits with Jalen Jenkins scoring 12.
George Mason is coming off a victory over Duquesne. The victory wasn’t satisfying to Coach Dave Paulsen who said several times that he would like to see his Patriots play better going into the Atlantic 10 tournament. They will be trying to get their 20th win of the season.
George Mason has been led all season by seniors Jalen Jenkins and Marquise Moore. Jenkins is the Patriots most dynamic post threat and will have his hands full with Justin Tillman. Moore has been Mason’s all-everything player. He averages 17.4 points, 10.4 rebounds per game.
Things to Watch
- The match up between JeQuan Lewis and Otis Livingston should be a great one.
- George Mason was -11 on the boards in the first game between the two. That will need to be closer if they want to have a chance to win.
- Will Mo Alie-Cox cover Marquise Moore for parts of the game?
- Justin Tillman vs Jalen Jenkins is old school 1980’s quality low post play. It’s a must see.
| TEAM | A-10 | Overall |
|---|---|---|
| Dayton | 15 – 2 | 24 – 5 |
| VCU | 13 – 4 | 23 – 7 |
| Rhode Island | 12 – 5 | 20 – 9 |
| Richmond | 12 – 5 | 18 – 11 |
| St. Bonaventure | 10 – 7 | 18 – 11 |
| George Mason | 9 – 8 | 19 – 11 |
| George Washington | 9 – 8 | 17 – 13 |
| Davidson | 8 – 9 | 15 – 13 |
| La Salle | 8 – 9 | 14 – 14 |
| Fordham | 7 – 10 | 13 – 17 |
| Saint Louis | 6 – 11 | 11 – 19 |
| Massachusetts | 4 – 13 | 14 – 16 |
| Saint Joseph’s | 3 – 14 | 10 – 19 |
| Duquesne | 3 – 14 | 10 – 20 |
Marcus “Mook” Washington is the host of Making The Cut. Follow Mook on Twitter: @mtcwithmook and IG: MTCWithMook
