St. Bonaventure came out flat, as George Mason handed the Bonnies their fourth loss in their past five games. George Mason prevailed 75-62 to pick up its first win inside St. Bonaventure’s Reilly Center since December 2004.
After a scorching hot 14-1 start, the Bonnies have completely fallen apart, as they are now 3-4 in Atlantic 10 play. Both teams are now 15-5 and George Mason is 6-1 in Atlantic 10 play to sit atop the conference standings.
For the Patriots, Zach Anderson led the scoring with 17, hitting five 3s in the process. Darius Maddox added 14 and Brayden O’Connor tallied 13.
For the Bonnies, captain Melvin Council Jr. led the scoring with 18. The only other player to score in double figures was Duane Thompson with 16 off the bench.
“They made shots, and we couldn’t score,” said St. Bonaventure head coach Mark Schmidt in the post-game press conference.
A big problem for the Bonnies down the stretch has been the inability to guard the 3-point shot. Even though they held the Patriots to 8 for 20 from 3, they shot 6 for 8 in the first half.
Schmidt explained how George Mason won the last 30 minutes of the game, and a big reason for this was the Bonnies’ slow start offensively and defensively.
A significant blow for the Bonnies against George Mason was the loss of Chance Moore. Moore broke his pinky toe against Duquesne on Jan. 18. He can potentially return Tuesday against Dayton. Guard Dasonte Bowen, still struggling with a foot injury, can potentially return at the end of the month.
Bonnies’ players said they aren’t worried about the future of the season. They said how the team was pretty much unstoppable when fully healthy.
Nonetheless, Schmidt said the team must keep improving daily so this rough stretch doesn’t spiral beyond control.
