Mason faces Villanova with thoughts of 2006
The atrium at George Mason’s Johnson Center was filled with green and gold. Fans on three levels celebrated the school’s return to the NCAA tournament.
Upstairs, the George Mason pep band blared. Downstairs, cheerleaders high-stepped for the Big Dance.
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After coach Jim Larranaga introduced his players, they watched the selection show from green easy-chairs, awaiting their fate. It didn’t take long. The second matchup that flashed on the big screen was George Mason (26-6), a No. 8 seed, facing No. 9 Villanova (21-11).
Players rose, pumped their fists and congratulated one another, excited at the prospect of playing a traditional power in Cleveland, relatively close to home.
| UP NEXT |
| No. 8 George Mason vs. No. 9 Villanova |
| When » Friday, 2:10 p.m. |
| Where » Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland |
| TV » TNT |
“I just want to share this information with you,” Larranaga howled into a microphone. “It’s about a six-hour drive to Cleveland. Will we see you there?”
If going to Cleveland was good news, it had a flip side considering the Patriots’ possible opponent in the second round — No. 1 Ohio State (32-2), playing in its home state.
“That would be an atmosphere definitely on their side. We’ll have a smaller crowd,” senior Cam Long said. “But the only crowd that really matters is ourselves, our team and our coaches.”
George Mason fans stirred again Sunday when the Southwest Region was revealed and CAA foe Virginia Commonwealth was a surprise at-large selection. Larranaga pointed at the screen, whistled and held up three fingers, celebrating a first-time achievement for the conference — three teams in the tournament.
George Mason-Villanova will match teams going in different directions. While the Patriots have won 16 of their last 17, the Wildcats have lost five straight and 10 of their last 15.
George Mason lost to Villanova 69-68 in a tournament game in November 2009 in Puerto Rico. Most of the significant players from both teams are back, with the exception of Wildcats All-American Scottie Reynolds.
Selection Sunday is for dreaming. As a No. 11 seed in 2006, the Patriots went to the Final Four.
The significance of traveling to Ohio wasn’t lost on Larranaga. Five years ago, George Mason started its roll with wins in Dayton over No. 6 Michigan State and No. 3 North Carolina.
“How many things can repeat itself? Dayton in ’06, Cleveland in ’11,” Larranaga said.
“In ’06 we played Michigan State, a team we had played the year before in the BB&T.”
George Mason’s last game, a 79-63 loss to VCU in the CAA tournament, was a week previous. Friday’s game comes after an 11-day layoff.
“We’ve had a good week of practice. The guys are a little bit antsy,” assistant coach Eric Konkol said. “They went a long time without knowing who were we’re going to be playing. But they’re excited. They can’t wait to play Villanova.”
