George Mason led by six at the break, then opened the second half with a 16-0 scoring run to take control on the way to an 82-54 win over UMBC in the teams’ season opener on Monday.
Mason, picked to finish fourth in the A-10 in the preseason, held UMBC, picked second in the preseason poll in the America East, to 27.8 percent shooting on the game.
Sophomore Efeosa Oliogu-Elabor led the Patriots with a career-best 17 points (7-of-12 FG) in the win to go along with six rebounds, three assists and two steals.
Senior Elijah Jones registered 13 points (3-of-7 3FG) and eight rebounds, while junior Makhai Valentine notched 12 points.
Grad guard Brayden O’Connor added 11 points and tied his career best with eight rebounds. Shane Pendergrass made his GMU debut and chipped in an 11-point, 6-rebound effort.
George Mason returns to EagleBank Arena for the program’s annual Gold Rush game on Friday (Nov. 6) vs. Coppin State.
Tip-off between the Patriots and Eagles is set for 7 p.m.
The game will be broadcast on ESPN+.
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Chris Graham
