George Mason men’s basketball, also known as Team 60, prepares for their opening game against Wofford Nov. 3, 2025. (Mitchell Richtmyre / Fourth Estate)
‘The state of Mason basketball has never been stronger,’ Associate Head Coach Steve Curran said
BY BRIAN A. HAYUM, SPORTS EDITOR
Coming off a historic 2024-25 season that saw George Mason men’s basketball win their first A-10 regular season title and earn a bid to the NIT for the first time in 15 years, a new-look Mason gave its fans a season that ended with 23 wins (23-10, 11-7 in conference) and the team’s second straight postseason appearance.
“It was a great year; a phenomenal year,” Associate Head Coach Steve Curran said. “Obviously, it didn’t end the way we wanted to … but we found a way, and we rallied.”
Despite a second-round exit in the A-10 tournament and a loss in the first round of the NIT, it was a record-breaking year for Mason. “Team 60” became the fastest team in school history to reach 20 wins, winning 20 of their first 22 games.
That stretch includes a nine-game winning streak to start the season, and a win over UPenn on Dec. 28 gave the Patriots 12 non-conference victories for just the second time in school history and first since 1983-84.
Going into conference play, Mason sported a sparkling 12-1 record with the sole loss coming at the hands of in-state rivals Virginia Tech.
Mason had opened the season on Nov. 3, 2025 with a 24-point win over Wofford, but it came at the expense of first-team preseason All-A-10 selection Brayden O’Connor, who suffered a season-ending injury 15 minutes into the season.
“That was scary,” Curran said. “It gave an opportunity for certain guys that weren’t getting started minutes to get started.”
In came junior guard Kory Mincy. A transfer from Presbyterian College, Mincy stepped in for O’Connor, scoring 18 points in his debut on 6-of-9 shooting from the field, including 4-5 on 3-pointers.
“I know that one guy being down like that, I now have to step into his role as well,” Mincy said. “So it’s just really the next man up, and knowing that I can keep leading my team.”
Mincy would continue to lead the Patriots in O’Connor’s absence, scoring 29 points in the following game: a thrilling 96-90 win over Winthrop.
The win was an early test for Mason, as O’Connor, senior guard Masai Troutman and senior guard Fatt Hill all missed the game due to injury.
“The carry over for me, really, with the hot streak is not really just more so with the points of score, but it’s just my teammates and my coaches having that trust and faith in me,” Mincy said.
“We have dogs, we have winners, we have players that want to win,” graduate guard Jahari Long said after the win against Winthrop.
The Patriots put their faith and trust in Mincy as their primary option on offense for the rest of the year, but the star guard sustained a thumb injury on his shooting hand during a home loss against Duquesne on Feb. 4 that would derail Mincy’s and Mason’s season.
The Patriots would win their following game, a homecoming win over St. Joes, before losing their next four games. Mincy was not himself after the injury, averaging 4.5 PPG on 23.5% shooting from the field and 14.3% from deep. Mason only won two of their final eight games.
“We were relying so much on [Mincy’s] scoring, and one of his biggest strengths was his shooting, but he just couldn’t shoot the ball the same way,” Curran said.
Mincy ended the season averaging a team-high 14.3 ppg, shooting 44% from the field and 38.9% from 3-point range in 32 games.
Junior center Riley Allenspach, who averaged 6.6 ppg before transferring from Samford to Mason, became an offensive focal point for the Patriots. Allenspach finished the season averaging a team-high 14.8 ppg and 5.8 rebounds per game while shooting a team-best 39.4% from 3pt range in conference play.
“I feel like my confidence, that was kind of the main thing,” Allenspach said about his development during the season. “Coach [Skinn] and the team giving me the freedom to be myself, that’s what has helped me grow so much.”
Allenspach’s breakout season may have been a surprise for Mason fans, but not for Skinn and his staff. The 6-foot-11 native from Charlotte, N.C., caught Mason’s eye after being a part of a Samford team that lost to Mason in the first round of last season’s NIT.
“We knew who he was because he played at Samford, and we got a first-hand evaluation on what he could do,” Skinn said. “Watching film of Samford when we scouted, I was impressed with what he did. And so when his name kind of popped up, we went all in.”
“He’s now 1-1 against George Mason,” Head Coach Tony Skinn said after his team’s opening-night win against Wofford.
In their home finale, the Patriots ended the regular season with momentum on their side with a 33-point win over #25 Saint Louis. After a long and arduous February, the win felt like the light at the end of the tunnel heading into the conference tournament the following week.
“The win really helped us get our confidence back, and reminded us that we’re still the team we were in the beginning of the year,” Allenspach said after the win.
Despite a woeful February, Mason entered the conference tournament as the 5-seed, awaiting the winner of the tournament’s first round matchup between St. Bonaventure and La Salle. The Bonnies would take care of the Explorers handily, setting up a date with Mason the following day.
The Patriots seemed to ride the momentum from their game against the Billikens, taking a 10-point lead into the half. However, the Bonnies, who were playing for a bigger cause in light of their retiring head coach Mark Schmidt, stifled the Patriots in the second half. The Bonnies would erase the double-digit deficit, going on a 13-2 run to end the game that would end Mason’s tournament aspirations.
Mason earned a spot in postseason play despite the loss, but would fall in the first round to the Liberty Flames 77-71.
With Skinn’s third year in the books, Team 60 proved that Mason is not only a basketball school; it’s an ascending one.
“The state of Mason Basketball has never been stronger,” Curran said. “We have phenomenal support from the administration. A coaching staff that’s working tirelessly to build this roster up again … We have a good foundation, and we’re going to build around that.”
