George Mason dropped a 62-59 contest at Richmond Monday night after a 3-pointer from Jacob Gilyard with less than a second remaining.
Missing A-10 leading scorer Josh Oduro for the second-straight game, Mason (11-10, 4-4 A-10) battled its way to a 57-51 advantage with 5:25 to go.
Mason led 59-56 after a tough D’Shawn Schwartz jumper with 2:31 left, but Schwartz fouled out on the next Patriot possession and Mason could not score over the final two minutes. The Patriots had a chance with less than 10 seconds to go, but could not convert, and Gilyard hit the 3-pointer on the other end to send the Spiders home with the win.
For the Patriots, it marked their second loss in the final second over the last three games. Mason’s three most recent losses have come by a combined 10 points.
“This was another great basketball game from a fan perspective, but disappointing for us not to be able to close this game out,” head coach Kim English said. “Obviously we were short-handed, but it’s never an excuse in our program. We come into every game with what we have expecting to win and this is another night we should’ve won. But we didn’t and it comes down to making plays. We missed some shots we usually make and we need to make. On their end, they made big plays and got some big rebounds.”
Mason held the Spiders (16-8, 7-4 A-10) to under 40 percent (.393), a goal the Patriots had entering the contest. The Patriots dominated the glass (41-24, +17) and held a 26-18 edge in points in the paint. But 16 Mason turnovers proved critical, as Richmond converted those miscues into a +11 edge (21-10) in points off turnovers for the game.
Junior Davonte Gaines led the Patriots with 17 points to go along with nine rebounds and a team-high four assists. He made all nine of his free throw attempts in 37:40 of action.
Junior point guard Xavier Johnson notched his second-straight double-double, posting 13 points and 10 rebounds in 37:51.
Graduate student D’Shawn Schwartz also reached double figures with 11 points (2-4 3pt FG) to go along with four rebounds.
Mason led 12-9 after a 3-pointer from DeVon Cooper at the 14-minute mark of the first half. The Spiders used an 11-2 run to go up 20-14, but Mason rocketed right back with a 9-0 spurt to build a 23-20 advantage. The Patriots took a 31-29 edge into the half.
The Patriots could not convert a field goal over the first five minutes of the second half and Richmond took advantage, using a 12-0 spurt to build a 41-31 lead at the 14:47 mark of the stanza.
A 3-point play from Schwartz moved the Patriots back within four (43-39) and a beautiful finish in the lane from Johnson gave Mason the lead (49-48) with 8:32 to go.
The Patriots extended that edge to 57-51 with 5:25 left, but Mason would convert one field goal for the rest of the game as the Spiders closed the contest on an 11-2 run.
Mason hosts the back half of this week’s home-and-home series with Richmond Wednesday. The 7 p.m. contest inside EagleBank Arena will be broadcast nationally on CBS Sports Network.
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