by David Cassilo / @dcassilo
With a resounding 71-51 victory over Virginia Commonwealth on Tuesday, George Mason ran it’s win streak to 12 straight games, the best in the country after Coastal Carolina fell to Gardner-Webb that same night.
Quietly, the Patriots are putting together what could possibly be their best season since their Final Four run in 2006. During its current streak, George Mason hasn’t just beaten everyone in its path, it has dominated them. Only one of those 12 wins have been decided by less than 14 points.
Entering Tuesday’s contest, George Mason was supposed to be given a tough test in having to travel to VCU to take on the Rams in a battle for first in the CAA. But a 34-19 halftime lead ended things early on, and the Patriots, behind 18 points from Ryan Pearson, continued to roll through conference play.
The Patriots are without question riding high after the statement they made Tuesday night.
From The Washington Post:
The Patriots (22-5, 14-2) moved a step closer to clinching their first outright regular season league title in 11 years, and thanks to Coastal Carolina’s loss to Gardner-Webb, they claimed the longest active winning streak in the country. They also tied the school record for consecutive road wins (six).
“It’s a great feeling, but you’ve got to understand, it just goes by how we play,” senior guard Cam Long said. “If we continue to do that, the streak will continue.”
Perhaps George Mason’s toughest test for the rest of the regular will come on Saturday when it travels to Northern Iowa as part of a weekend of Bracket Busters games. Although the Panthers have dropped three of their last four games and are without leading rebounder Lucas O’Rear, they still have one of the better home floor advantages in the nation and should give the Patriots a closer game than they have been forced to play lately.
