{"id":8264,"date":"2015-12-12T11:28:35","date_gmt":"2015-12-12T16:28:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/?p=8264"},"modified":"2015-12-12T11:28:35","modified_gmt":"2015-12-12T16:28:35","slug":"qa-with-masonhoops-com","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/?p=8264","title":{"rendered":"Q&A With Masonhoops.com"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"YoYo<\/a>It’s time to turn the page from football to basketball. There’s no better way to do that than with a renewal of the JMU – GMU rivalry. The Dukes haven’t played the Patriots since 2013. As a result, the matchup might not resonate with current students. For longtime fans of JMU hoops though, this is a big one. Mason was a great rival during its time in the CAA and it’s great to have the Patriots back on the schedule. To get ready for the game, our pal Alan Kelly from Masonhoops.com agreed to do this Q&A with us. We were also given the chance to do the same over on his blog<\/a>. Enjoy the game today everyone.<\/p>\n

1) How’s the A-10 working out?<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/span>In the long run, the move to the Atlantic 10 will almost certainly
\nbenefit George Mason University and its basketball program. We are
\nalready seeing some benefits in terms of exposure, and while the
\nbasketball team hasn’t won much of anything, Mason has won seven A10
\nchampionships in six other sports. It’s easy for outsiders to point to
\nthe disastrous final two seasons of Paul Hewitt’s tenure and say that
\nMason wasn’t ready to move up, but reality is more complicated. The
\nflaws and mistakes that doomed Hewitt’s teams likely would have doomed
\nthem in the CAA as well. But Mason has the facilities, budget, and
\ninstitutional support to compete at the A10 level, and with
\nsecond-year AD Brad Edwards and rookie coach Dave Paulsen, it seems
\nthat they now have the leadership to succeed as well.
\n
\n2) How’s the new coach?<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/span>Dave Paulsen has been a breath of fresh air for the program and the
\nfanbase. Transitions are hard, and I think we all know this is going
\nto be a bumpy season for Mason, but Paulsen has brought new energy and
\nsome much-needed attention to detail and accountability (on the court
\nand in the classroom). His entire freshman class has been impressive
\nthus far, and the remaining hold-overs seem to be buying in as well.
\nIt will be a process. Turnovers are down, and ball movement and
\nassists are vastly improved. There is a defensive plan. But there are
\nalso lengthy lapses where the team fails to score or defend. They’re
\nstill learning how to play a new style of basketball. We’ve seen
\nincredible highs like beating Ole Miss and Oklahoma State on a neutral
\ncourt, but we’ve also had deep lows like the blowout loss at Towson.
\n
\n3) Does this game against JMU register anymore with fans?<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/span>It does, but not as much as it once did. VCU is probably the most
\nimportant opponent to Mason fans, dating back even to the end of our
\ntime in the CAA, and GW and Richmond have gained attention now that
\nthey are conference foes. JMU is still an important opponent and
\nrivalry for alumni who are old enough to remember all of the old
\nbattles in the CAA, but it doesn’t register the same way with current
\nstudents as it did when I was an undergrad. The two years off from
\nplaying each other can’t have helped, either.
\n
\n4) Who should we look out for?<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/span>First of all, senior center Shevon Thompson. When he plays well
\noffensively and earns playing time, he is capable of grabbing 15+
\nboards on any given night. Last week, Penn didn’t have a single
\noffensive rebound until the final seven minutes of the second half.
\nSecond, watch out for freshman guard Jaire Grayer, who leads the
\nPatriots in scoring at 11.7 ppg, including dropping 23 points and 5
\ntreys against Oklahoma State. Mason doesn’t have a lot of offensive
\nweapons, and their offense is much better when Grayer is on his game.
\nThird, Mason as a team has struggled to shoot free throws. If they can
\nget that turned around, it could turn some of the close losses into
\nwins.
\n
\n5) Status of Mason football?<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/span>The official position seems to be to wait and see. Mason has a lot of
\nother facilities issues that need to be addressed before they can
\nreally talk about adding new sports. And to their credit, they have
\nbeen tackling those renovations. They have built new tennis courts and
\na new throwing field (for track and field), in addition to renovating
\nthe locker rooms in EagleBank Arena and some other cleanup tasks. In
\nthe near future, they will be breaking ground on an overhaul of the
\nbaseball stadium, and the next task after that is probably to build
\ndedicated practice space for men’s and women’s basketball. If Brad
\nEdwards is successful in fundraising for smaller projects, he can
\nbegin to think about bigger ones like a new basketball arena, or the
\nstartup costs for a football team. But the reality is, the barriers to
\nentry to high-level college football are very expensive, and it’s not
\ngoing to happen anytime soon unless Mason gets their own Kevin Plank
\nor T. Boone Pickens to contribute $50-100 million to kick off the
\nproject.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n