MENS AND WOMENS TEAMS WON NINE OF 14 GAMES SINCE LAST SEMESTER
By Liam Griffin, Staff Writer
Although most students have been away from campus since the end of the fall semester, Mason’s men’s and women’s basketball teams have been busy representing the Patriots on the court from Houston, Texas to Kingston, Rhode Island. Mason’s basketball teams won nine of the fourteen games they played since the end of the fall semester.
For the men’s basketball team, winter break was full of intense, heart-pounding moments. After a win at home against Morgan State and a lopsided loss at Rhode Island, the Patriots raised their fans’ blood pressure in back-to-back games starting with an overtime thriller at the University of Massachusetts.
The game in Massachusetts was tight from start to finish, as the two teams were separated by two points at halftime, and were tied at 66 at the end of regular play. However, the Patriots pulled away in overtime in large part due to a career-high 30 points and nine assists from junior guard Otis Livingston II.
After a loss to Davidson, the Patriots returned to winning form against St. Joseph’s. Although Mason led for most of the second half, St. Joseph’s Hawks stormed back and took a 79-78 lead with just five seconds remaining. Fortunately, Livingston was prepared to save the day again for the Patriots. As time expired, he drained a three-point shot that brought the Mason faithful to their feet. His buzzer beater sealed an 81-79 victory for the Patriots, and kept them near the middle of the pack in the Atlantic 10 conference.
Meanwhile, Mason’s women’s basketball team took home more comfortable victories. The Patriots won five of their seven games over the winter break, including a 39-point blowout victory against Rhode Island’s Rams. Most recently, the Patriots defeated Richmond at home by 21 points.
The women’s basketball team is currently in fourth place of the Atlantic 10’s standings, but they will face some stiff competition before the end of the season. The Patriots still have to face each of the three teams that are ahead of them in the standings before the season’s close.
As the spring semester revs back into gear, the Patriot basketball teams are hitting the home stretch. The men’s and women’s teams both have about ten games left in their season, and all of these games are against opponents in the Atlantic 10 conference. Coming out of the winter break, the Patriots are in a solid position approximately two-thirds of the way through the season.
Photos by Morgan McCarthy and Billy Ferguson