The University of Richmond men’s basketball team finished its season with a 64-60 home loss on March 8 against George Mason University.
This marked the second meeting between the two teams this season, as George Mason got the better of UR at home, winning 64-58 on January 8.
Prior to tipoff, UR honored the team’s six seniors and graduates before the game, as they suited up for potentially their final time at the Robins Center.
UR came into the night riding a three game losing streak, but with wins in its previous two home games. Meanwhile, the Patriots looked to finish their most successful season since joining the Atlantic 10, coming into the night 23-7.
The game got off to a heated start as both GMU and UR were given flagrant fouls within the first three minutes of play, which set the tone for the physical game that was to come.
Despite the Patriot’s stifling defense, allowing just 63 points per game and limiting opponents to 30.2% shooting, the Spiders offense shot the ball well in the first half, shooting 50% from the floor. They were led by graduate guard B. Artis White, who shot three for four from behind the arc and junior center Mike Walz, who pitched in eight points of his own, giving the Spiders an 8 point lead going into halftime.
While the shooting was a strong point for UR, there were some crucial mistakes, as Head Coach Chris Mooney explained postgame.
“We had some turnovers in the first half that were a little careless, and as good as they [GMU] are defensively, and as long and as physical [as they are], they don’t necessarily pressure the ball as much so turnovers shouldn’t be as much of a problem as they were in the first half,” Mooney said.
The Spiders turned the ball over nine times in the first half, allowing for the Patriots to stay within striking distance despite shooting just 33%.
The Spiders continued to maintain control to start the second half, as senior guard Jason Roche connected on a pair of threes to give the Spiders their largest lead of the night, at 9 with eighteen minutes and thirty six seconds to play. Roche has been lighting it up from three point land this season, coming into the night making 40.8% of his three pointers, 8th best in the conference.
However, fouls quickly became a problem for the Spiders, as they racked up seven team fouls in the first seven minutes of the second half, putting Walz in foul trouble and limiting his minutes in the second half.
With many of the Spider’s key contributors on the bench and others injured, UR’s offense was forced to rely on other sources. Sophomore guard Collin Tanner delivered in a big way, supplying 10 points from off the bench.
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White also had an incredible effort on his senior night; leading the Spiders in scoring (16), as well as playing all 40 minutes of the game.
As has been the case frequently throughout the year, GMU was slowly able to chip away at UR’s lead, eventually tying the game up with six minutes and two seconds to play. The Spiders were unable to stop the onslaught of three pointers, as the Patriots shot 46.2% in the second half and struggled to match the Patriots’ physicality inside. The Spider’s offense began to falter, as Mooney said,
“We didn’t shoot nearly as well in the second half, you know, we had some opportunities that I wish we could have back, because we felt like we had run good offenses and got ourselves good opportunities and just weren’t able to knock them down.”
The Patriots and Spiders traded blows down the stretch, with GMU holding onto a one possession lead in the final minutes. UR had multiple chances to tie the game, but were unable to convert on a pair of three point chances to tie, the last one with nine seconds remaining, giving GMU a 64-60 win and a share of the A-10 regular season championship along with Virginia Commonwealth University as both teams finished 15-3.
Even with the loss, there were still some positive takeaways from the game. UR led for nearly 25 minutes to GMU’s 11 and stayed close throughout with one of the top teams in the conference.
“It [this game] definitely showed us that we can hang in there and we can compete with the best-of-the-best if we want to,” said White postgame. "It's just all about holding each other accountable and doing our jobs so we make that run.”
The Spiders look to make a run as postseason play begins on Wednesday, March 12 at 11:30 a.m. in the A-10 tournament. They face off against a familiar opponent in Davidson College; the Spiders and Wildcats have clashed twice this season already, with Davidson emerging victorious both times, despite close finishes.
Contact sports writer Jeremy Young at jeremy.young@richmond.edu
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