FAIRFAX
--The onlyGeorge Mason University has a deal with the fast-food chain wherein fans can exchange their ticket stubs for free sandwiches any time the Patriots score 80 points. That seemed highly unlikely yesterday with ODU in town.
The Monarchs entered the game ranked second
They managed just one more point the rest of the way, but if their 71-55 victory over the Colonial Athletic Association's preseason favorite didn't satisfy their fans' hunger, it left coach Jim Larranaga happy.
"Coach L always emphasizes that we've got to run," junior guard Cam Long said. " This is a new year, and we've got to become more team-oriented."
The Patriots (7-6, 2-0 CAA) didn't look very unified in Wednesday's 80-57 loss at Radford. The Highlanders, like the Monarchs, had decided edges on George Mason in height, muscle and experience. Radford held a 47-29 edge on the boards. Said Larranaga: "That's not even competing."
The Patriots do possess athleticism and trust in their coach, though--even though none of them were around when he took GMU to the 2006 Final Four.
"Our players know [the Monarchs] were the preseason CAA favorites, that they're very big and that they beat Georgetown," Larranaga said.
So when Larranaga stressed the importance of defense and rebounding, the Patriots listened. And they discovered that excelling on that end of the floor makes things much easier on the other.
Said ODU coach Blaine Taylor: "I told our guys, 'They didn't score on our defense, they scored on our offense.' Some of them gave me some funny looks, but our transition defense was not very good. If we'd been able to score more baskets, we could have done a better job of getting set."
Credit the Patriots for not allowing that to happen. Thanks in large part to the spotlight GMU received for its 2006 Cinderella run, Larranaga and his staff have recruited more athleticism than ever before.
But it's young talent. The Patriots' only senior, forward Louis Birdsong, never left the bench yesterday. The starting lineup contained two juniors (Long and Isaiah Tate) and three sophomores. Two of them, forwards Mike Morrison and Ryan Pearson, combined for 32 points yesterday.
Four freshmen also see substantial time. Forward Kevin Foster has twice been named CAA rookie of the week, and Luke Hancock's 3-pointer bounced in at the halftime buzzer yesterday, giving the Patriots a 31-28 lead and lots of confidence.
That youth will translate into a few clunkers--especially on the road, like the Radford debacle and a 66-49 loss at George Washington a month ago. If the Patriots want to keep pace with the likes of ODU, defending champion VCU and surprising William & Mary (which already has beaten Wake Forest and Maryland), they'll need more consistency--and not just in the friendly confines of Patriot Center.
But yesterday's effort showed what is possible. No ODU opponent--not Georgetown, Missouri, Mississippi State or Dayton--has scored more points or shot better than the Patriots' 52.5 percent marksmanship. And yesterday, despite having just one starter (the 6-foot-9 Morrison) taller than 6-6, GMU became just the second team to out-rebound the Monarchs.
Classes may not resume for a while, but the Patriots learned an important lesson yesterday about playing to their strengths.
"Transition is about 70 percent of the game," Larranaga said. "The more layups you get, the better you are.
"High-scoring teams like Duke, Carolina and Kentucky, they convert their defense into baskets. They rebound or force a turnover and start running. We haven't been good enough on defense or rebounding to do either."
Yesterday, the Patriots were good enough. The weeks ahead will prove whether it was the start of a trend or just another well-intentioned new year's resolution that doesn't last.
Steve DeShazo: 540/374-5443
Email: sdeshazo@freelancestar.com