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Cavaliers Play George Mason at JPJA on Tuesday
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CHARLOTTESVILLE-The Virginia men’s basketball team plays its fourth consecutive home game on Tuesday (Dec. 6) when the Cavaliers host George Mason University at John Paul Jones Arena.
The game is the final one for UVa before its semester exam break. After the game with George Mason the Cavaliers don’t play again until Dec. 18 at Oregon.
Tuesday’s game is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. It will be broadcast on the Virginia Sports Radio Network and carried on ESPN3.
Single-game tickets for the Virginia-George Mason game are available and can be purchased online at VirginiaSports.com/tickets. Tickets may also be purchased on game day at the JPJA box office starting at 5:30 p.m.
Fans may also purchase tickets for the Virginia-George Mason game through the Virginia Athletics Ticket Office by telephone and in person. The Athletics ticket office is located in Bryant Hall at Scott Stadium and is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. Telephone purchases can be made by calling 1-800-542-UVA1 (8821) or locally at 434-924-UVA1 (8821).
Virginia brings a five-game winning streak and a record of 7-1 into the game with George Mason after an 86-53 victory over Longwood at JPJA last Saturday (Dec. 3). Senior forward Mike Scott scored 20 points, had nine rebounds and tied a career high with four assists in the victory over the Lancers. Senior guard Sammy Zeglinski added 14 points, seven assists and five rebounds for UVa and sophomore guard Joe Harris had 13 points.
Scott continues to lead the Cavaliers with averages of 15.9 points and 10.0 rebounds a game. He is shooting 56.8 percent (42-74) from the field and 78.8 percent (41-52) from the free-throw line. Scott ranks first among Atlantic Coast Conference players in field goal percentage, second in rebounding and seventh in scoring and free throw percentage.
Harris is averaging 12.6 points a game and ranks first among ACC players in free throw percentage at 93.5 percent (29-31).
Zeglinski is now third on the team in scoring with an average of 7.5 points a game after scoring in double figures in each of the last two games.
Four other players are averaging between 7.1 and 5.9 points a game for UVa including freshman guard Malcolm Brogdon (7.1 ppg.), sophomore guard KT Harrell (6.4 ppg.), senior center Assane Sene (6.3 ppg.) and junior guard Jontel Evans (5.9 ppg.).
Evans leads Virginia in assists with 23 (2.9 apg.) and is tied for seventh among ACC players.
UVa has held each of its eight opponents to under 60 points. The Cavaliers lead ACC teams in scoring defense (47.9), defensive rebound percentage (78.9 percent) and rebounding defense (26.9), rank second in field goal percentage defense (35.4 percent), rebounding margin (+7.6) and steals (7.3 spg.), and third in three-point field goal percentage defense (26.4 percent ) and turnover margin (+2.5).
Virginia also ranks first among ACC teams in free throw percentage at 76.0 percent.
George Mason enters Tuesday’s game with an overall record of 6-2 and a 1-0 mark in the Colonial Athletic Association. The Patriots have won their last four games, including a 65-53 conference win at Towson on Saturday (Dec. 3).
George Mason’s two losses have both been in overtime to Florida International (79-76) and Florida Atlantic (80-75).
Senior forward Ryan Pearson leads the Patriots in scoring (19.8 ppg.) and rebounding (8.4 rpg.). Also averaging in double figures in scoring for George Mason are sophomore guards Sherrod Wright (12.0 ppg.) and Vertrail Vaughns (11.9 ppg.). Senior forward Mike Morrison is averaging 8.4 points and 6.6 rebounds a game, while sophomore guard Bryon Allen is averaging 7.8 points and has a team-leading 28 assists.
Paul Hewitt is in his first season as George Mason’s head coach. Hewitt previously was the head coach at Georgia Tech (11 years) and Siena (three years). Hewitt’s Georgia Tech teams compiled an overall record of 190-162 and participated in the NCAA Tournament five times, including finishing as the runner-up in the NCAA Tournament in 2004. His overall record as a head coach is 262-191.
Virginia leads the series with George Mason 6-0 and five of the games have been played in Charlottesville. The teams have not met since the 1997-98 season when the Cavaliers won 60-45 at University Hall.