The Blue Devils step outside of ACC play to battle the George Mason Patriots of the Atlantic 10 Conference at home in Cameron Indoor Stadium.
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Tuesday will be the fourth meeting between the Blue Devils and Patriots, with Duke winning all three contests at home. In the last meeting on Dec. 9, 2006, Duke freshman Jon Scheyer collected 18 points, six assists and two rebounds. Tuesday’s matchup features two of the top five field goal percentage defenses in the nation, with George Mason ranking third (35.4%) and Duke fifth (36.2%).
George Mason Patriots
The Patriots of George Mason have won 20 games for 2 years straight, including Coach Tony Skinn’s first season last year.
Skin is a forger George Mason standout (’06) and was named the 12th head coach in the men’s basketball program’s history in April 2023. Skinn played against the Blue Devils the last time the two teams faced off. A key starter on the 2006 George Mason Final Four team and one of the best all-around guards in program history, Skinn returned to his alma mater after nearly a decade of collegiate coaching.
In his first season guiding the Patriots in 2023-24, Skinn led George Mason to 20 regular season (pre-conference tournament) wins for the first time since 2011-12 and a top-100 NET/KenPom ranking for the first time since 2010-11. Those 20 wins ranked fifth-most amongst first-time head coach-led programs in the nation, and are tied for the second-most in school history by a first-year Mason head coach.
George Mason enters Tuesday with a 7-3 overall. George Mason has won five straight since a double-overtime loss at East Carolina on Nov. 16, including a road win at James Madison on Nov. 29 and a victory over Tulane on Dec. 7. GMU ranks third in the nation in field goal percentage defense (.354) and 15th in three-point field goal percentage defense (.273). The Patriots are also averaging 26.1 free throw attempts per game as well, good for 16th in the country.
The Patriots boast 4 double-figure scorers, led by senior guard Darius Maddox. Another senior guard, Jalen Haynes, is the leading rebounder for George Mason, he scores it at 11.6 points per contest. 6’10 Giovanni Emejuru scores 10.4 points per game off the bench along with 5 rebounds. Junior guard Brayden O’Connor, a 6’4 guard out of Canada, scores 10.1 points per game and is the leading assist man at 3 per game. George Mason has 9 players averaging double-figure minutes.
Duke Blue Devils
The Blue Devils enter Tuesday with an 8-2 record including a 1-0 record in the ACC. Duke is looking to extend their winning streak to 4 games. The Blue Devils have lost 2 games to top-15 teams but also have 2 wins against top-25 teams. George Mason is the last non-conference matchup for the Blue Devils until a February game at MSG against Illinois. Duke ranks fifth in the country in field goal percentage defense (.362), 11th in scoring defense (59.9), and 14th in scoring margin (+19.8). KenPom ranks the Blue Devils second nationally in adjusted defense efficiency (89.0).
Freshman forward Cooper Flagg leads the Blue Devils in points (15.9), rebounds (9) and assists (3.6). The Blue Devils have two other double-figure scorers in freshman Kon Knueppel at 12.2 and junior Tyrese Proctor at 11.7. Knueppel is also the number 2 assist man on the Blue Devils with 3.2 assists.
Final Thoughts
If you watched George Mason play the then number 18 Marquette Golden Eagles in Milwaukee, then you know they are not going to be intimidated by coming into Cameron Indoor. Yes, the Patriots were blown out by 19 points, but the way they responded to the initial Marquette run was impressive. Marquette began the game on a 16 to 2 run, but by the first half buzzer, the Patriots were up by 1. They are a well coached team with a good defense, and I expect them to come into Cameron on a mission.
Offensively, Duke will need to come out and play much better in the half-court, that’s a given and a work in progress. I don’t imagine there will be an early knock-out punch against this Mason team, they are battle hardened and do not fold. Defensively for the Blue Devils, they need to do what they didn’t do against Incarnate Word, they need to defend without fouling. The Patriots are top 20 in the nation at getting to the free throw line, averaging 26 attempts per game.
