Defensive Effort Falls Short at George Mason

W&M held the Patriots 11 points below their season scoring average in a narrow setback on the road.

02/27/08 11:55PM

Fairfax, Va. - Despite a strong defensive effort, the William and Mary men’s basketball dropped a hard-fought road battle at George Mason, 60-54, on Wednesday night. The College held the Patriots 11 points below their season scoring average, but could not overcome GMU’s substantial, 16-4, advantage at the free throw line. W&M fell to 14-14 overall and 10-7 in CAA action, while Mason upped its ledger to 20-9 on the year and 12-5 in league play.

Sophomore David Schneider finished with a game-high 19 points, including a career-best five 3-point field goals in a losing effort. The Phoenix, Ariz., native turned in a solid all-around effort with a team-best six rebounds as well as five assists compared to only one turnover in 35 minutes of action. Fellow classmate Danny Sumner finished in double figures as well with 10 points, all in the second half. Senior guard Nathan Mann tallied seven points and became the 30th member of the W&M 1,000 career point club.

On its senior night, George Mason scored the opening four points of the contest and took what proved to be its largest lead of the game, 10-3, at the 15:41 mark following back-to-back 3-pointers from John Vaughan. W&M quickly closed the gap as Schneider drilled his second longball of the game, before Mann’s opening points of the contest on a jumper from the left side cut the deficit to 15-14 midway through the opening half.

After a Vaughan jumper at the 5:31 mark gave GMU a 21-17, the Tribe went on a 10-2 run over the next four minutes to seize its first lead of the game. Schneider found junior forward Peter Stein for a lay-up, before senior Laimis Kisielius scored eight straight Tribe points to push the College over the top. The Vilnius, Lithuania native’s leaning bank shot in the lane pulled W&M even for the first time at 21, before his only 3-pointer of the contest from the left wing gave the College its first lead at 26-23 with 2:28 left in the opening half.

The lead reached 27-23 after a Kisielius free throw at the 1:36 mark, but the Patriots took the advantage to the locker room scoring the final five points of the half. Vaughan scored on a lay-up, before GMU freshman Cam Long hit a trey from the right wing with 27 seconds left to send the Patriots to the intermission with a 28-27 lead.

Folarin Campbell, who finished with a team-high 17 points including 14 in the second half, scored the opening five points of the second stanza to push the GMU lead to six, 33-27, three minutes into the period. The lead reached seven once again after a free throw from Long at the 16:33 mark. The Patriots were able to maintain the advantage over the next three minutes and led 42-35 after a pair of free throws from Campbell.

The Tribe slowly began to chip away at the Mason lead and pulled to within a single possession, 43-40, on a spectacular follow-up dunk from Sumner. Following a bucket from the Patriots, Schneider connected on another 3-pointer from deep on the right side to cut the deficit to two points.

The two teams traded baskets before Schneider’s arcing lay-up off the glass over two defenders once again narrowed the margin to two points, 49-47, with 7:44 remaining. A steal on the defensive end results from a three-ball from the left side by Mann to give W&M its first lead since the first half, 50-49, with six minutes remaining in the contest.

Mason answered right back to regain the lead less than a minute later. A pair of Campbell free throws gave GMU the lead for good at 51-50. From that point, the Tribe went cold and the Patriots hit just enough shots to keep W&M at arm’s length. A big 3-pointer from Vaughan, who finished with 15 points for the Patriots, at the 3:23 mark push the GMU lead to 55-50. Despite its gritty effort in a hostile environment, the Tribe could get no closer than five points the rest of the way.

Stein finished with eight points for the Tribe, but did his best work on the defensive end. The Houston, Texas native limited Mason’s leading scorer and the CAA’s leading rebounder Will Thomas to just 10 points and eight rebounds. Junior forward Chris Darnell shared team-high rebounding honors with Schneider pulling down six in the loss.

The Tribe will return to action for Senior Night against VCU on Saturday, March 1, at 7 p.m. W&M will honor seniors Kyle Carrabine, Laimis Kisielius, Nathan Mann and Chris Stratton for their hard work and dedication to the Tribe program over the last four years. Fans can catch the action on the Tribe Radio Network with Jay Colley, Bill McDonald and Charlie Woollum on the call. The broadcast can also be heard over the Internet at TribeAthletics.com. Live statistics for the event will be available at the home for W&M Athletics.

Box Score