Feb. 13, 2008

The George Mason women's basketball team will try to reach double-digit wins on Thursday when it closes out a two-game road trip at Georgia State. The two teams have met just twice before, with GSU taking a 70-57 win in Fairfax last season. In their first matchup two years ago, Mason came away with a 83-70 victory in Atlanta. Tip time at GSU Sports Arena is 6 p.m.

Georgia State enters the game with a 6-16 record, 3-8 in the CAA. The Panthers have lost two in a row in conference play. They are led by Brittany Hollins, who is averaging 13.8 points per game.

Last time out, Mason held the University of Delaware to 19.6 percent field goal shooting (11-56) as the Patriots defeated the Fightin' Blue Hens, 52-42. Mason snapped a four-game losing skid with the victory and improved to 9-13, 3-8 in the CAA, while Delaware (6-17, 5-6) was unable to complete the season sweep with a win on their home court. Senior Lateisha Wade led the Mason offense with 15 points, her 16th time this season reaching double figures, while junior Jessica Smith chipped in nine points. Senior Moni Akintunde pulled down eight boards to lead the Patriots off the glass, as they out-rebounded the Blue Hens by a 43 to 31 margin.

Thursday's game against Georgia State is Mason head coach Debbie Taneyhill's 300th game at the helm of the Patriots, dating back to a 61-53 win over Maryland-Eastern Shore on Dec. 30, 1997. Taneyhill is 144-155 all-time as head coach of the Green and Gold.

Besides surpassing its win total from the 2007-08 season with seven games left to play, Mason found its way into the history books with its win at Delaware on Sunday. The 19.6 percent field goal shooting by the Fightin' Blue Hens was both the lowest total by Delaware in its school history, and the smallest percentage allowed in Mason's all-time records. The Patriots held the Blue Hens without a 3-pointer for the second time this season, as UD went 0-15 from beyond the arc on Sunday.

Mason returns home to host UNC Wilmington on Sunday. The game, which is set for 2 p.m., is WBCA "Think Pink" Day for the Patriots. In honor of the event, which is a global, unified effort for the Women's Basketball Coaches Association's nation of coaches to assist in raising breast cancer awareness on the court, across campuses, in communities and beyond, the first 500 fans will receive a free pink George Mason hat.