George Mason keeps winning; VCU rallies to knock off St. Joseph’s

George Mason took the lead for good on a Jahari Long three with 1:56 to go, then finished off George Washington, 69-64, in Fairfax on Monday.

Down I-95 in Richmond, VCU rallied from a seven-point second-half deficit to defeat St. Joseph’s, 79-72.

Mason (18-1, 6-0 A-10, NET: 62) continues to win tight ones; VCU (13-6, 4-2 A-10, NET: 55) is doing its best to keep pace with the top three in the A-10.

Quick details from the two dubs:

• Riley Allenspach had his second double-double of the season for Mason with 18 points and a career-best 12 rebounds in 30 minutes.
• Masai Troutman added 14 points (6-of-11 FG) and three assists, while Kory Mincy added 13 points, six rebounds and four assists.
• For VCU, Michael Belle (9-of-11 FG, 2-of-4 3FG) had a career-high 20 points, and Brandon Jennings had 18 points (6-of-12 FG, 4-of-4 3FG).

Richmond (13-6, 3-3 A-10, NET: 118) hosts Rhode Island (10-8, 1-4 A-10, NET: 139) on Wednesday.

NCAA Tournament resumes

---

George Mason

• ELO: 21
• SOR: 28
• RPI: 34
• KPI: 46
• NET: 62
• KenPom: 71
• BPI: 69
• BartTorvik: 99

Average: 53.8

Best hopes for resume wins:

• at Richmond (Quad 2), Feb. 10
• at George Washington (borderline Quad 1), Feb. 13
• Dayton (Quad 2), Feb. 18
• at VCU (Quad 1), March 3
• Saint Louis (Quad 1), March 7

Quad 1 key – home: 1-30; neutral: NET 1-50; road: NET 1-75.
Quad 2 key – home: 31-75; neutral: 51-100; road: 76-135.

Analysis: The Top 30 ELO and Strength of Record and Top 50 RPI and KPI rankings will give them an argument.

---

VCU

• KenPom: 49
• ELO: 52
• BPI: 53
• NET: 55
• KPI: 57
• RPI: 62
• BartTorvik: 64
• SOR: 73

Average: 58.1

Best hopes for resume wins:

• Dayton (Quad 2), Feb. 6
• at Richmond (Quad 2), 14
• George Washington (Quad 2), Feb. 17
• at Saint Louis (Quad 1), Feb. 20
• George Mason (Quad 2), March 3
• at Dayton (Quad 1), March 7

Quad 1 key – home: 1-30; neutral: NET 1-50; road: NET 1-75.
Quad 2 key – home: 31-75; neutral: 51-100; road: 76-135.

Analysis: VCU is 0-5 in Quad 1s, though the win over Virginia Tech (NET: 54) could turn into a Quad 1 if the Hokies jump into the Top 50.