George Mason edges Tennessee out of NIT
FAIRFAX, Va. (AP) — George Mason won its first postseason game in 18 years.
The Patriots beat Tennessee 58-55 in the opening round of the NIT on Wednesday night, coach Jim Larranaga’s latest milestone in the steady climb he has produced with the Colonial Athletic Association school in the suburbs of Washington.
“If you go back to the 2001 NCAA tournament, we got so close to beating Maryland and fell short,” Larranaga said. “I did not want the first game of this tournament to feel like we did that night. … Winning tonight is another step in a line of crossing boundaries, establishing new goals.”
The victory gave George Mason (22-9) a school record for wins in a season and its first postseason win since a 65-63 victory over Lamar in the 1986 NIT. The Patriots had since gone 0-3 in the NCAA tournament and 0-2 in the NIT.
George Mason will play Austin Peay in the first round Friday night, giving Larranaga’s players a chance for the coach to come up with a new goal.
“They were kidding me afterward about the 22 wins being the most in my head coaching career,” said Larranaga, 122-83 in seven seasons with the Patriots. “I said, ‘I don’t want to tie that record.’ Let’s see if we can break coach L’s record.”
Tony Skinn scored 16 points, and Terry Reynolds got George Mason’s last eight points to finish with 15. Jai Lewis added 13 for the Patriots.
Brandon Crump scored 16 points to lead Tennessee (15-14). Scooter McFadgon, the team’s leading scorer coming into the game, made just 2 of 13 shots and finished with nine points.
The Volunteers were hurt by 18 turnovers, but they had a chance to tie at the buzzer when McFadgon hit the rim with a 3-pointer from the left baseline.
Coach Buzz Peterson, however, was more concerned with the next-to-last possession. Trailing 57-55, the Volunteers passed the ball around until C.J. Watson’s driving shot was blocked by Kevin Mickens.
“Watson, Crump and McFadgon each have a look at it, and neither of them wants to take it. That just tells you the personality of our ballclub,” Peterson said. “No one really wants to step up and be a leader and take the responsibility, take the blame if they miss a shot, and you can’t play the game like that.”
Neither team led by more than eight in a tense game marred by 31 turnovers. The Patriots also missed eight free throws, hurting their chances to put the game away down the stretch.
Reynolds’ 3-pointer with 5:36 remaining put George Mason ahead by eight, and his spin move in the lane with 4:27 left was the Patriots’ last field goal. He added three free throws in the final 90 seconds, and the Volunteers weren’t able to hit the big shots to tie or take the lead.
Lewis and Skinn were a combined 11-for-15 from the field. The rest of the Patriots were 10-for-33.