No. 6 Maryland picks up fifth straight win, defeats George Mason 86-63
Feature photo courtesy of Maryland Athletics
In a battle between two unbeaten teams, the visiting George Mason Patriots (5-1) had their way with No. 6 Maryland (5-0) for a while Friday night before the Terps pulled away to a 86-63 victory.
After being tied at 13 with a little under eight minutes into the game, George Mason took control of the game and had Terps’ head coach Mark Turgeon visibly frustrated on the sidelines.
The Patriots went on a quick 7-0 run to quiet the Xfinity Center crowd.
Senior guard Anthony Cowan attributed the slow start to a lack of focus from the team.
“We weren’t as locked in as we were supposed to be [in the first half],” Cowan said. “We just had a lot of mental mistakes.”
Although things looked shaky early, it was not something that Maryland has not already dealt with this season. It has taken about 10 to12 minutes for the Terps to get in gear and build the momentum needed to take over a game.
Like they did in the first four games, Maryland needed just a few plays to find its rhythm to pull away from George Mason.
Down 29-24, Cowan, sophomore guard Eric Ayala and sophomore guard Aaron Wiggins all had key plays during the final minutes of the first half that gave the Terps the much-needed momentum.
Cowan and Ayala scored 16 consecutive points and helped Maryland get its first lead since being up 6-2 with a little under two minutes into the game. Wiggins got the crowd on its feet after nailing a 3-pointer with about three seconds left in the half.
Cowan finished the night with 16 points, while Wiggins contributed with 15 points, three rebounds and a steal.
The Terps closed out the half on a 19-2 run and led 43-31 going into halftime.
“We made great improvement against a really good team that’s extremely well-coached,” Turgeon said.
Both Maryland and George Mason struggled from the field to begin the second half, shooting a combined 2-of-13. Neither could really find consistent offensive flow during the first five minutes of the second half.
After the Patriots chipped their deficit down to nine, the Terps got into the driver’s seat and dominated the rest of the game, proving their No. 6 ranking.
Freshman guard Hakim Hart found sophomore forward Ricky Lindo Jr. cutting to the basket for a big two-handed dunk that was part of a quick 7-0 run that helped the Terps ice the game.
Last game, Lindo Jr. and Ayala came off the bench and gave Maryland two key performances that attributed to its victory.
Freshman forward Makhi Mitchell played that role Friday night.
Not checking into the game until the second half, Mitchell was all over the place. He scored 10 points and grabbed five rebounds in his first seven minutes of action and finished the night with 12 points, eight rebounds and two blocks.
“He set the tone,” Wiggins said. “He drew fouls, he grabbed every rebound; his presence made a big difference.”
Sophomore Jalen Smith notched his third double-double of the season, finishing with 12 points and 10 rebounds.
The Terps will play Temple on Nov. 28 in the Orlando Invitational Tournament at 11 a.m. on ESPN 2.