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Written by Justin Creech
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Thursday, 29 November 2007 |
Washington, D.C.—The George Mason University Men’s basketball team let the rest of the college basketball world know that their run to the Final Four two years ago was not a fluke. The Patriots finished third in the 2007 edition of the Old Spice Classic, earning wins over Kansas State University and the University of South Carolina.
The win improved the Patriots record to 5-1, tied for the best six-game start in school history. Coach Jim Larranaga felt being able to play on a neutral court was a factor in Mason’s strong performance, since in the past they have had to play pre-season tournament games on their opponent’s home floor.
“This is by far the best event we have participated in,” said Larranaga. “We had a chance to play three high caliber programs, two top 20 teams this year, and play them on a neutral site. Being able to play these teams on a neutral site really made a significant difference.”
Mason won it’s opening round game against the Kansas State Wildcats 87-77 on Thanksgiving night. The Patriots entered the game scoring just 61 points per game through their first three games, but were able to improve that number by shooting 47 percent from the 3-point line. Mason hit 8-of-17 3-point attempts led by John Vaughan’s 3-of-5 showing. Vaughan led all Mason scorers with 21.
“One of the things Kansas State was expecting was that they were going to be the running team and that we wouldn’t run with them,” said Larranaga. “But, in fact it’s the opposite. We’ve been encouraging our players to increase the tempo because we believe the more running you do the more the court opens up and the easier it is to start making those three’s.”
Despite holding an eight point lead late in the first half against Villanova, the Patriots were unable to stop the Wildcats 3-point shooting and fell 84-76 in the second round of the tournament. They would rebound and knock off the University of South Carolina Gamecocks 69-68 Sunday in the third place game.
One reason for the overall success in the tournament was the play of two of Mason’s young players, sophomore forward Louis Birdsong and freshmen guard Cam Long.
Birdsong, who came on strong during the Patriots run to the Colonial Athletic Association Championship game last season, scored 13 points and grabbed six rebounds against South Carolina to go along with two blocks. Birdsong scored the game winning basket against the Gamecocks, putting back a rebound off a John Vaughan miss with under a minute to play. He played 28 minutes against the Gamecocks after playing 18 minutes against Villanova and 11 against Kansas State.
“I’ve certainly seen an improvement over last year,” said Larranaga of Birdsong’s mental improvement. “It’s still an area we talk about all the time with him, and maybe not basketball IQ as much as making the mental part of the game very important. Louis knows he’s very capable physically and sometimes relies too much on his physical ability rather then combine his physical ability with the mental side of the game.”
For the tournament Birdsong averaged 19 minutes, six points and four rebounds per game.
Long, like Birdsong, enjoyed his best performances of the season during the tournament. After playing just five minutes against Kansas State, Long played 18 minutes against Villanova and 26 against South Carolina, scoring a season high 13 points against the Gamecocks to go along with five assists, four rebounds, one block and a crucial steal.
With less then 10 seconds to play, South Carolina’s Zam Frederick mishandled the ball while going up for a game-winning shot. Long grabbed the ball to seal the Patriots win.
“I can’t take full credit for the steal because that was from the help of my teammates,” said Long. “I was just their at the right time.”
Coming into the tournament, Long had averaged 5.3 minutes per game and just 1.6 points per game. However, he averaged 16.3 minutes and 7.6 points per game during the tournament.
“It’s what I wanted,” said Long of his increased minutes. “Everybody wants a lot of minutes and I just went in their and played hard and coach always says the harder you play you will have a chance at getting more minutes.”
Larranaga said Jordan Carter suffering from a calf strain played a role in Long’s increased minutes, however he acknowledged the improvement in Long’s play as well as a greater comfort level in having him on the floor for longer periods of time.
“One of the things freshmen have to understand is I’m trying to learn what they can do and when to have them in and when not to have them in,” said Larranaga. “As I’m getting more comfortable and confident with them they are able to develop their confidence because they see they are not going to be given anything and they will be rewarded for there efforts.”
The Patriots follow their impressive performance in the Old Spice Classic with their first conference game. They welcome the University of Drexel Dragons and senior center Frank Elegar to Patriot Center tonight.
Elegar comes in averaging 16 points and eight rebounds as the Dragons have gotten off to a 5-1 start. The Patriots lost their only meeting with Drexel last season, falling 61-49 at Drexel on Dec. 28 2006.
“All you have to do is look at the CAA and know how good every team is,” said Larranaga. “We are 5-1, but so is Drexel and everybody knows Frank Elegar is one of the best players in the country, so I fully expect our players to be ready.”
Birdsong was unavailable for comment due to a conflict with his class schedule.
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George Mason 