By: Justin Creech

Fairfax, VA—Dre Smith scored 14 points and Cam Long added 12 as the George Mason Patriots bounced back from Wednesday’s loss at Delaware with an 80-52 win over Northeastern.

Smith and Long combined for 23 points in the first half as Mason built an 18 point lead.

                “We’ve been wanting [to play],” said Smith of he and his teammates wanting to make up for the loss to Delaware. “We know we let one go in Delaware, and the biggest thing we wanted to do was show we can put together a complete game.”

                Two other Patriots scored double figures as John Vaughan finished with a game high 16 and Louis Birdsong finished with 11 as Mason remained undefeated at home. The Patriots have won all eight home contests this season.

                Mason has been victim of second half let downs as of late. Twice in the last ten days the Patriots have blown second  half leads of 13 or more points.  They blew a 13 point second half lead to Georgia State Jan. 2, then lost a 19 point second half lead Wednesday at Delaware.

                However, there was no doubt Saturday the Patriots were intent on finishing what they started.  They extended their lead to 26 three minutes into the second half and pushed the lead to 30 by the 11:52 mark.

                “We kept up the defensive intensity,” said Smith. “We knew they were going to bring pressure and we knew they were going to come after us, so the biggest thing was to stay on the attack.”

                Long, who made just his second career start, scored all 12 of his points in the game’s first 11 minutes. His three with nine minutes to go in the half gave Mason a 21-13 lead.

                “The team kept telling me to be aggressive,” said Long. “Coach [Larranaga] kept telling me we are going to need you to step up. We got one down and just make sure you come out and play hard.”

                Mason (11-5, 3-2) played without senior guard Jordan Carter for the fourth time in the last six games as he attempts to recover from a reoccurring foot injury.  Long wasn’t even Mason Coach Jim Larranaga’s first choice to replace Carter. Smith was scratched from the starting lineup after showing up late to the pre-game meal.

                “I’ve been telling [Long] the same thing since like Oct. 13,” said Larranaga of Long’s performance. “It’s what I tell everybody. Basketball is a game of competition. The team that plays harder has a far better chance of succeeding.”

                The victory was even more impressive since Will Thomas and Folarin Campbell were not among the four Patriots who scored in double figures. Campbell finished with seven while Thomas added six. Thomas drained two free throws three minutes into the second half for his first points of the game. He didn’t make his first field goal until a hook shot with 7:45 remaining.

                “That’s big because Will is a big  part of our offense,” said Smith. “That shows the maturity of this team and Will loves it. He doesn’t want to have to carry us every night.”

                Nikem Ojougboh’s hook shot gave the Huskies (6=9, 2-3) an 11-9 lead 5:30 into the game. Long responded with consecutive layups and Campbell hit his only three of the game to give Mason a 16-11 lead.

                Chris Alvarez finished a layup to pull Northeastern to within 28-20 with 3:54 to go in the half, but that was as close as the Huskies would get.

                Mason finished the half with a 10-0 run on baskets by Birdsong and Vaughan and two three’s from Smith.

                The second half was much of the same.  After Matt Janning hit a three to pull Northeastern to within 46-23, Mason answered with a 12-5 run.

                Vaughan scored on consecutive layups followed by two free throws and a jump shot from Birdsong. Vaughan’s second layup drew a smile from the redshirt junior guard, almost as if he couldn’t believe he had scored so easily. Freshmen Isiah Tate drove to the basket and finished a layup to cap the run and give the Patriots a 58-28 lead.

                Vaughan’s three with 4:44 to play gave the Patriots their largest lead of the game at 74-40.