George Mason team put together a strong second half comeback Friday night but could not overcome 21 turnovers, falling to host James Madison 67-64 inside Atlantic Union Bank Center.
Mason (4-1) trailed 34-29 at the half, but rallied back to take a 42-40 edge at the 12:46 mark. After trailing 55-50, Mason pulled in front by one (61-60) with 41 seconds to go, but JMU answered with a 7-0 run to close out the victory.
“I’m a realist in basketball – the Dukes deserved to win tonight,” head coach Kim English said. “They were the tougher team. They were the aggressor. They were more physical. They had great moxie and swag, and they tested us from the beginning from a ball security standpoint.”
In addition to the 21 turnovers, Mason shot a season-low 37.9 percent from the floor (.379). After ranking in the top-20 nationally for the first two weeks of the season in 2-point field goal percentage, the Patriots made just 40 percent (10-25) of their shots inside the arc Friday.
Junior Davonte Gaines put together another career-progressing performance to lead the Patriots, tallying his second straight double-double with career highs in points (19), rebounds (11) and 3pt FG made (4). Gaines hit 6-of-11 shots and 4-of-6 3-point attempts in a stellar night for the Buffalo product.
Junior Xavier Johnson made a career-best four 3-pointers on seven attempts and finished with a season-high 14 points. He also grabbed five rebounds, dished out three assists and made two steals in 35 minutes on the court.
Sophomore Malik Henry added career highs in points (6) and steals (3) in a solid 14 minutes off the bench for the Texas product.
Mason entered the game with an average rebounding margin of +11.3, but the Dukes won that battle Friday with a 39-37 edge on the glass.
James Madison made four of its first eight 3-pointers to build an early 18-12 advantage. Back-to-back 3-pointers from Gaines tied up the score at 18-18, but the Dukes used a 9-3 spurt to take a 31-23 edge. JMU entered the half ahead, 34-29.
After JMU went ahead 40-33 early in the second half, the Patriots used a 9-0 run, capped by a D’Shawn Schwartz 3-pointer, to take the lead at 42-40. After a mini JMU run, Mason pulled back in front 46-45 after a 4-point play from Gaines.
An 8-1 spurt by the Dukes put JMU back up 53-47 at the 7:20 mark. James Madison remained in front by five (55-50) with 6:23 left, but a lay-in from Johnson and triple from Gaines tied it back up at 55-55.
Mason went ahead 61-60 on a dunk from Henry with 41 seconds to go, but JMU’s Vado Morse hit a 3-pointer on the next possession to give the Dukes a lead they would not relinquish for the remainder of the game.
Next up, Mason makes its first-ever trip to South Dakota to compete in the Crossover Classic Nov. 22-24 at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls. The Patriots open the event with Washington on Monday (Nov. 22) at 9:30 p.m. ET/8:30 p.m. CT. The game will be broadcast on ESPN3.
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