Gearge Mason Primer

[Stringmusic12]

Would anyone like to apprise me of the George Mason basketball team? What are your strengths and weaknesses? Keys to victory?

Austin Peay's strengths are their defense (really pressure the ball and play the passing lanes), Senior leadership (4 Seniors starting - all of whom have NCAA tourney experience), ability to rebound, and control the clock. They have had numerous close games this year so they are comfortable in a close game with the clock winding down.

Austin Peay's weaknesses are their offense and perhaps a lack of depth on the bench. Offensively, they have had flashes of brilliance at times but it is generally just a very inconsistent offense. It's a crapshoot as to how well or poor they will do and impossible to predict. They are an inside-out team meaning they prefer scoring in the paint as opposed to shooting the outside jumper.

Peay will play about four off the bench with Zac Schlader (C) and Maurice Hampton (G) getting quite a few minutes. Peay doesn't lose much when these guys are in and even gains in ability to score. Guard, Levi Carmichael (The Amish Assassin) will also get some minutes. Levi has a good outside shot but rarely shoots and his defense is not yet up to Peay standards; Also has a tendency to turn the ball over but, you know, he's young and learning.

I'm not sure what has happened to Josh Lewis (C) late in the season but he's not been himself for reasons beyond explanation. He has been a good scorer and dominant defender for the last two years but he's been rather 'lost' in the last 7 or 8 games. Lewis, though, is a blocking machine and despite his inability to do anything last night (he SHOULD have had a monster game against Belmont!), he came up with a thundering facial block late in the game last night and hit some clutch free throws down the stretch. So, I hope Lewis gets it together for Friday night. Still, Zac Schlader has been a force when he gets in there.

[Stringmusic12]

Oh My! So sorry. I mean, "George Mason Primer" and not "Gearge Mason Primer." I apologize for the incorrect spelling and meant no disrespect.

Stringmusic (hits self)

[GS]

as of late our shooting is off. butler missed all his shots last night. Jai Lewis is our most consistent player down low and is hard to stop when he gets the ball deep. good luck.

[Masonman]

Butler has not been himself since that Wilmington player poked him in the eye :cry: Before that he was on fire... :shock:

[Mr Sock]

if he hits the shots he normally makes we win by 10. i have never seen lamar shoot so poorly at home.

[Stringmusic12]

as of late our shooting is off. butler missed all his shots last night. Jai Lewis is our most consistent player down low and is hard to stop when he gets the ball deep. good luck.

A player down low who is difficult to stop is my greatest concern. A player who cannot be contained down low tends to break down the Peay defensive scheme and the whole house of cards begins to fall since that means doubling up down low, leaving someone open outside. For the most part, though, Josh Lewis has been able to hold his ground in the paint so this will be an interesting key to the game.

[titan coach]

How does Josh Lewis do against guys that are 6'7 and about 280... can he hold his own with a bigger guy I mean... just curious

[99 Patriot]

I'm not sure what Josh Lewis' build is, but Jai may be a tough match-up for him. Jai is not a traditional post, but instead is a 6'7'', 280 pound post. Despite his size he is surprisingly quick and nimble. He has put up big games against Jamar Smith (MD) and Sean May (UNC), so hopefully he can get his against Josh Lewis as well.

Of course, I really wish Jai's free throw stroke would come back. He's been killing me with that.

[Stringmusic12]

How does Josh Lewis do against guys that are 6'7 and about 280... can he hold his own with a bigger guy I mean... just curious

Lewis has been able to score against and block the shots of Centers and Forwards ranging from 6'4" (Cuthbert Victor of Murray State, For instance) to 7'0" or above (Murray State, Morehead). So, 6'7" is not a problem. Josh Lewis is 6'8". I'm not sure that Lewis has gone up against a 280 pound guy though. This may be a problem but Lewis has been excellent at gaining position in the paint and denying entry passes. He also has a very strong upper body. Josh Lewis might get his clock cleaned and he might not. We'll see. He certainly needs to come out of his late season funk.

[fro]

I am interested in seeing the matchup of Josh Lewis, who is by all acounts a tremendous shot blocker and Jai Lewis, our 6'7 275 big man who scores in bunches and often at will. Jai dropped 17 points (on 6 of 8 shooting) against UNC's Sean May, one of the best big men in the country, but was silenced by Kenny Adeleke, one of the best in the CAA.

I really think that Jai will pose a problem for Peay, though your apparent rebounding skills will hurt us in our most vulnerable area (we missed out on the NCAAs due to our inability to grab a board on the defensive end :cry: ).

Our guards are all legitimate scoring threats (except Heinen who has stopped taking shots despite averaging over 12 a game through the first 12 games).
Lamar Butler, despite recent woes, can shoot from anywhere across the halfcourt line.
Tony Skinn has been on fire and is one of the most athletic players we've ever had.
Mark Davis, preseason POY, ended up 2nd Team and can score in bunches or can be ice cold.
Terry Reynolds also is a threat when healthy, and he looked great during the UT game. He's a great passer too when he plays under control.

Down low, behind Jai is Kevin Mickens (more of a face the hooop player) who scores occasionally but is a big defensive presence, Trent Wurtz who can step out and knock down a 3 but rarely gets good inside looks, and Jesus Urbina who is very scrappy and good for a coupple of buckets against a smaller team.

[peayYman]

Boys and girls, if you think your team is just going to walk all over Austin Peay - think again. Remember please, this is a team that went undefeated in conference play and played UK, Alabama, Louisville, and Memphis all on the road in December. Granted, Peay lost those games, but the experience tested them; they know how to play against big teams in hostile environments.

The thing about Josh Lewis is he has some L-O-N-G arms. He blocks shots, alters shots, and discourages anyone from trying to shoot on him. That allows Peay to play great perimeter defense. Be prepared for a slow and sloppy game; "Peayfense rules!"

[gmuknow]

we never said we will "walk all over them"...we are just confident in our team. So what if you played UK, etc away? so did Tennessee...they also lost those games.

[Stringmusic12]

Fro,

Thank you for the information. It sounds like GMU is just a very well balanced and dangerous opponent! I think the Jai/Lewis matchup will be a key. Hopefully, Lewis can stay out of foul trouble but, again, Zac Schlader off the bench has been a real spark for the Governors so he will play a key role too.

Anthony Davis for Austin Peay is probably playing his best ball of his career. He is only about 6'1" (G) but he is a good defender who can score. He and Adrian Henning both have some serious hops (Henning is 6'6"). Henning, especially, is unstoppable when he is "on" because he just elevates and uses hangtime over defenders - very Jordanesque.

The Govs prefer a low scoring affair and setting up in the half court offense but they can also push the ball upcourt as they did last night on many occasions. I think you will see some great athletes on both teams Friday night which should be fun. Josh Lewis does not look very athletic. Kind of lethargic at first glance but he just has the ability to get the job done. Jai is probably the superior athlete to Lewis. Coach Loos has taken a gy out of Lexington Kentucky who was not highly recruited and developed him into a good college player. His ability to block shots is uncanny and I don't know how he does it. Lewis has had several games this year with 6 blocks.

[dr. gunnie]

8 of your 11 teams have RPI's above 215...

your conference is crap, so I'm not impressed about being undefeated in conference play.

[Stringmusic12]

Boys and girls, if you think your team is just going to walk all over Austin Peay - think again. Remember please, this is a team that went undefeated in conference play and played UK, Alabama, Louisville, and Memphis all on the road in December. Granted, Peay lost those games, but the experience tested them; they know how to play against big teams in hostile environments.

The thing about Josh Lewis is he has some L-O-N-G arms. He blocks shots, alters shots, and discourages anyone from trying to shoot on him. That allows Peay to play great perimeter defense. Be prepared for a slow and sloppy game; "Peayfense rules!"

Stringmusic
PeayYman!!!!!! Sorry you had to miss the game last night but good to see you here today.

Man, don't remind me of the Kentucky game. That was a heartbreaker as I honestly think Peay would have prevailed given another minute or two. Particularly in the second half, the Peayfense had Kentucky completely befuddled and frustrated prompting Tubby Smith to comment that this defense would be the best his team would face all year. I think it was the Kentucky game where the Peayfense really came to be a force.

Too bad the game is not in "Thugville." I think Peay would be the definite favorite if it were. With the game away from those friendly confines, I'm afraid the pendulum swings in the opposite direction and there is really no time for Peay to prepare for George Mason.

[fro]

Oh yeah, we're 13-1 at home this year, with wins over VCU (Sagarin #72), Tennessee (#73), Drexel (113), ECU (116), UNCW (136), Hofstra (145) and Delaware (148).

The only home loss was against ODU (105) after we blew a 20+ point second half lead. That was heartbreak. So we're pretty tough on our own court. I was VERY relieved to see us get a home game vs Peay cuz their gym is so tough to win at.

[peayYman]

All I'm saying is that they have experience. There is no team or environment they haven't encountered. Don't even try to tell me George Mason is as good as any of those four teams or Murray for that matter.

String, sorry I couldn't make the game. Too bad you had to use your vacation to go. At least it was worth it, right?

I may hang out on this board for a while, or at least jog between here and the espn board. Some jerk over there is trashing Peay; Racerlover was sticking up for us.

[Patriot_Bill]

*yawn*

[Stringmusic12]

All I'm saying is that they have experience. There is no team or environment they haven't encountered. Don't even try to tell me George Mason is as good as any of those four teams or Murray for that matter.

String, sorry I couldn't make the game. Too bad you had to use your vacation to go. At least it was worth it, right?

I may hang out on this board for a while, or at least jog between here and the espn board. Some jerk over there is trashing Peay; Racerlover was sticking up for us.

Stringmusic12
Definitely worth it, PeayYman, although this vacation had been scheduled a year in advance. If Peay were playing at home on Friday night then I would not be able to go.

I didn't see APGrad there last night in his usual seat but despite there being only 4,000 to 4,500 in the Dunn (the 2,509 figure is grossly inaccurate), the fans got rowdy late in the game. It is easy to see how Belmont knocked off Mizzou and Air Force. Very well coached and disciplined team with some outstanding shooters. The Govs did a good job on them defensively until the final minute when they, in desperation, launched a barrage of treys to get them back in it. Lewis block on Adam Marc was one for the hi-lite reel! Marc went up strong and Lewis just shoved the ball back in his face without ever leaving the ground. LOL, Lewis outstretched arm was stronger than Adam Marc's entire body! The SPIDERMAN does it again!

[peayYman]

The crowd sounded much bigger on the radio. Maybe the "voice" planted a few mics in the stands.

Looks like there might be several 12-5 upsets.

[SEA33HAWK]

If you rest mainly on your defense, GMU has played against thugball "D" all year. Our conference on the whole is a thugball conference. UNCW was 13th in the nation in scoring defense this year and has a history of holding teams below theie average. GMU beat us three times this year. They bang with anyone. Doesn't mean they will win. I know nothing about this year's AP team. But I believe you will have a tough time winning, especially in their house. 8)

[hemloche]

I expect a very good game between the teams. I dont expect GMU to walk over AP but I do expect GMU to win. GMU goes about 11 or 12 deep where Peay goes about 8 deep. GMU is very very tough to beat at home going 13 and 1.

But stick around PeayMan, we are a good bunch of guys and gals on here. Yeah we like to talk smack and most of us take it as well except when you try and come strong to the mic but belly flop instead (just ask the twits from St. Bonaventure that tried earlier this year). Stick around you may like what you see here

H~

[The old PF]

And our crowd was more like 6K last night, not 4,200. GMU played UMD and UNC this year, who are also very tough opponents.

I don't think AP is a push over. If a team is good enough to get a NIT bid, and win the game they are a good team.

[alligator]

GMU goes about 11 or 12 deep where Peay goes about 8 deep.

And I'll take an 11th man as good as Tynes any day of the week. I had a feeling we were gonna use him last night. He made the most of his minutes. Great to have an experienced senior you can call on during a tough run of games.

Also, look what he did against UNCW in the tourney. 4 Rebs in 6 minutes plus a bucket.

[boundlssambition]

i agree with you gator, i've actually thought all season that tynes should see more minutes... at least 5-10 a game IMO

also to the Peay poster who said that MURRAY STATE is better than mason is crazy. first of all that's not true, and the OVC sucks, we beat up morehead state and they were 3rd place in your conference!!!

[TJ Reaper]

I covered Murray State for a part of the season, and I wouldn't say that they were better than Mason or that Mason is better than them. Only a head to head would prove that.....

But.....

Murray State=12th seed in the NCAA's.......they did get crushed by Illinois, however :)

They also beat Southern Illinois....

[fro]

Murray St also likes the herb. That, more than anything the Illini threw at em, hurts.