FAIRFAX, Va. — George Mason will close out its regular season Saturday afternoon when the Patriots welcome No. 25 Saint Louis to EagleBank Arena for a 4 p.m. Senior Day matchup.
While the outcome will not affect George Mason’s seeding for next week’s Atlantic 10 Tournament, the game still carries plenty of importance for a Patriots team trying to regain full strength and finish the regular season with momentum. Locked into the No. 5 seed for the conference tournament in Pittsburgh, Mason enters Saturday looking to build on encouraging signs from its last two performances, even while battling injuries and a difficult late-season stretch.
The Patriots have gone 1-1 in their last two games, but both contests offered evidence that Mason may be finding its footing at the right time. Most notably, star guard Kory Mincy appears to be rounding back into form after playing through a thumb injury on his shooting hand for much of the past month. Mincy scored a game-high 18 points in Tuesday’s 70-65 loss at VCU, hitting 6 of 10 shots from the floor and 4 of 5 from three-point range in one of his sharpest outings in weeks.
That resurgence could prove pivotal for the Patriots as they head into next week’s A-10 tournament in Pittsburgh, where Mason will begin play Thursday at 2 p.m. against the winner of the first-round matchup between the No. 12 and No. 13 seeds.
George Mason, now 22-8 overall, has stumbled recently, losing six of its last eight games, but the Patriots have remained competitive and continue to show the defensive toughness that has defined Tony Skinn’s team. In Tuesday’s road matchup against VCU, Mason held the Rams’ high-powered offense 13 points below its season average and limited them to 43.6 percent shooting, nearly pulling off a key road victory.
The Patriots have also been especially strong at home under Skinn, posting a 48-8 record in Fairfax during his tenure. Mason is one of just 11 teams nationally with at least 16 home victories this season.
Senior forward Riley Allenspach also enters Saturday in strong form after recording his third double-double of the season against VCU with 17 points and 10 rebounds. Over his last three games, he is averaging 20.3 points and 7.0 rebounds while shooting 57.5 percent from the field.
Saturday’s game marks George Mason’s first home contest against a Top 25 opponent since the Patriots knocked off No. 16 Dayton, 71-67, on Feb. 21, 2024. It also renews a series with a Saint Louis team that has emerged as one of the Atlantic 10’s best. The Billikens enter at 27-3 overall and 15-2 in league play, ranking among the national leaders in shooting efficiency and three-point percentage.
Saint Louis holds an 11-6 lead in the all-time series, though George Mason has won the last two meetings. Last season, the Patriots earned a dramatic 76-74 overtime win in Saint Louis behind a career-best 27 points from Woody Newton.
For Mason, though, the larger focus is no longer the standings. With tournament positioning already set, the priority now is health, confidence, and rhythm. Saturday gives the Patriots one more chance to sharpen themselves against elite competition before the games in Pittsburgh begin to matter most.
The game will be televised nationally on USA Network. Bill Rohland will have the radio call on the GoMason Digital Network beginning at 3:45 p.m.
