Game 22: GMU (16-5 / 7-1) at Davidson (13-7 / 3-4) on Saturday, February 1, at 4:00 PM.

[Patriotsince81]

This is our 2nd matchup of the 24-25 season against Davidson. We beat the Wildcats 69-57 at EBA at 2:00 PM on New Years Eve. We were led by Braden O’Connor (19 points) and Jalen Haynes (16 points). One highlight was only having 10 turnovers. Reed Bailey paced Davidson with 20 points. Zach Laput chipped in 11 and Bobby Durbin added 10 points to go along with 9 boards for the Wildcats.

Box Score from Game 1: https://gomason.com/documents/2024/12/31/2551050.PDF

The game is on ESPN+.

KenPom: Gives us a 58% chance of winning.
GMU - 69
Davidson - 119
NET:
GMU - 72
Davidson - 127

We are 5-8 (.384) against Davidson and have won the last three meetings.

Davidson is currently 13-7 on the season and 3-4 in A10 play. They are 10-1 at home, 1-4 on the road, and 1-2 at neutral sites. Davidson is 0-3 against Quad 1 teams, 1-2 against Quad 2, 2-2 against Quad 3, and 9-0 against Quad 4 teams.

Schedule: https://davidsonwildcats.com/sports/mens-basketball/schedule

Wins: William Peace (88-47), Bowling Green (91-85), ETSU (76-70), VMI (93-66), RV Providence (69-58), Charleston Southern (73-72), Charlotte (75-71), Detroit Mercy (86-51), Bethune-Cookman (76-63), Eastern Michigan (86-64), Duquesne (77-71), Fordham (74-64), Richmond (72-66)
Losses: #24 Arizona (104-71), #3 Gonzaga (90-65), Temple (62-61), GMU (69-57), La Salle (79-76), Rhode Island (92-90), St. Joe’s (78-6

Probable Starters:
6’10” Reed Bailey - 20.3 ppg & 6.3 reb - Junior
6’5” Connor Kochera - 14.2 ppg & 4.1 reb - Grad Student
6’7” Bobby Durkin - 15.3 ppg & 6.0 reb - Sophomore
6’4” Zach Laput - 8.4 ppg - Grad Student
6’4” Mike Loughnane - 5.0 ppg - Sophomore

Reserves averaging double figure minutes:
6’10” Sean Logan - 4.3 ppg & 3.9 reb - Junior (Has not played since 12/18/24)
6’4” Roberts Blums - 4.9 ppg - Freshman
6’7” Hunter Adam - 2.6 ppg - Sophomore

Roster: https://davidsonwildcats.com/sports/mens-basketball/roster

Team Stats:

2024-25 Men's Basketball Cumulative Statistics

The official 2024-25 Men's Basketball cumulative statistics for the Davidson College Wildcats

davidsonwildcats.com

Davidson averages 75.9 points per game (6th in the A10) while giving up 71.1 (10th in the A10).

The Wildcats shoot 47.1% from the floor (3rd in the A10) and 36.1% from 3 (2nd in the A10).
Opponents are shooting 44.7% from the field and 35.8% from 3.

They shoot 72.0% from the free throw line (5th in the A10).

They have out rebounded opponents by .5 board per game and average 9.5 turnovers per contest.

Stats: https://davidsonwildcats.com/sports/mens-basketball/stats/2024-25

Thoughts: This will not be easy by any stretch of the imagination. Can we get another one on the road?

Discuss.

 

[DRK331]

Watch Party for the road game at Davidson on Saturday February 1st

Location: Velocity Wings Fairfax
Address: 10697 Braddock Rd, Fairfax, VA 22032 (located in University Mall)
Times:
3:30PM Watch Party starts
4PM tip off

Check out @ShopMason on Instagram

This is free and open to the public

 

[phoenix-arizona]

I've already been happily proved wrong with them on the road vs Dayton and Saint Bonnie but not expecting a W on the road at all. Losing this one and losing @ GW wouldn't surprise me and if they could split the next 2 road games,

 

[undertherock]

The last time we started 7-1 in A10 play was the 2018-19 season under Dave Paulsen. We ended the year 11-7 in the conference.

 

[Jack Strop]

This time it's Mason's opponent who hasn't played for a week. Rust & recuperation for Davidson. Bring 'em on! I'll be ecstatic if Mason can split the next four games.

 

[PDGL Hoops]

Just win.

 

[Leesburg Chankenstank III]

Just win.

Apparently according to many on the boards winning is the only thing we’re good at. And that’s not enough for them.

 

[GMUgemini]

Apparently according to many on the boards winning is the only thing we’re good at. And that’s not enough for them.

It’s just anxiety. We all desperately want to get back to the tournament and as good as they’ve been in conference, our only hope is to win it all. And we’ve had our hopes dashed in the quarters too many times to not have ptsd about an inconsistent shooting team.

 

[GMUgemini]

About this game, I was actually just rewatching this game a few days ago and Davidson really struggled with our physicality and intensity. Bailey feasted in the first half against I forget who it was (not Haynes, might have been Anderson now that I think of it), but really struggled against Gio in the second half.

I like our chances but we can’t shoot as badly as we did against Loyola, but we also aren’t going to be playing against as physical of a team in Davidson either.

Our motto for the season: just win

 

[Aldousflux]

Considering Jalen and Gio scored 14 and 4 while going a combined 0-7 from the line against a physical Loyola team, I’m not worried about them against Davidson. However, we need our guards to take a big step up from last night or it’ll be another close one.

I’ve been super impressed with Begg’s confidence levels as a true freshman. It’s something that can’t be taught. If Maddox or O’Connor are struggling, I expect Begg to get more minutes and he’s the type of player to show you why he should be on the court. I could see him having a similar situation to Tre Wood last year @ Davidson when he came off the bench and dropped 12 out of nowhere.

 

[Leesburg Chankenstank III]

Considering Jalen and Gio scored 14 and 4 while going a combined 0-7 from the line against a physical Loyola team, I’m not worried about them against Davidson. However, we need our guards to take a big step up from last night or it’ll be another close one.

I’ve been super impressed with Begg’s confidence levels as a true freshman. It’s something that can’t be taught. If Maddox or O’Connor are struggling, I expect Begg to get more minutes and he’s the type of player to show you why he should be on the court. I could see him having a similar situation to Tre Wood last year @ Davidson when he came off the bench and dropped 12 out of nowhere.

Begg clearly has an excellent ability to drive the lane and create shots on a level our other guards don’t have. And one of the 3s he made last night was beyond NBA range.

The way he shot that long a** shot looked effortless. Like he was shooting a mid range 2 point jumper.

 

[MasonSAE4]

It’s just anxiety. We all desperately want to get back to the tournament and as good as they’ve been in conference, our only hope is to win it all. And we’ve had our hopes dashed in the quarters too many times to not have ptsd about an inconsistent shooting team.

This. I think we're a good team but the offense can be so turgid at times that I think everyone is just kind of waiting for the wheels to fall off. They eye test is not kind to this team on a lot of occasions. This is a 7-1 team that could finish 15-3 or 9-9 and neither would surprise me.

 

[The Great PATSby]

Loved Begg last night and excited for the years to come. I think Begg should have taken up some of O'Connor's minutes last night who was having a tough night. But down the last stretch of regulation and OT, Skinn went with with experience and size.

 

[gmutom]

Loved Begg last night and excited for the years to come. I think Begg should have taken up some of O'Connor's minutes last night who was having a tough night. But down the last stretch of regulation and OT, Skinn went with with experience and size.

No to get too far ahead of ourselves, but the idea of O'Connor trying to break vcu's press literally makes me nauseous. He is admittedly playing out of position and is serviceable against average defenses, but bringing the ball up on their court against that pressure is like nothing he's faced. I hope Tony reconsiders the starting lineup for that game, because Maddox, Anderson and Woody will be little to no help.

 

[GMUgemini]

No to get too far ahead of ourselves, but the idea of O'Connor trying to break vcu's press literally makes me nauseous. He is admittedly playing out of position and is serviceable against average defenses, but bringing the ball up on their court against that pressure is like nothing he's faced. I hope Tony reconsiders the starting lineup for that game, because Maddox, Anderson and Woody will be little to no help.

I’ve watched vcu several times this season and they don’t press for 40 minutes like they used to. They are more like us and just play solid half court defense and challenge everything.

They can ramp up the pressure but it will be tame compared to what we faced against Marquette.

I’d be more worried about tipped passes leading to steals in our half court sets than I am about open floor turnovers trying to bring the ball up.

 

[The Great PATSby]

No to get too far ahead of ourselves, but the idea of O'Connor trying to break vcu's press literally makes me nauseous. He is admittedly playing out of position and is serviceable against average defenses, but bringing the ball up on their court against that pressure is like nothing he's faced. I hope Tony reconsiders the starting lineup for that game, because Maddox, Anderson and Woody will be little to no help.

I've had that exact same thought. Don't get me wrong, O'Connor is one of my favorite players, but I don't want him taking the ball up the court for that game. I can't remember if it was the UMASS or GW or both, but Skinn made an adjustment and started having KD primarily handle the press. I'd expect KD to play a major role in that game.

 

[mkaufman1]

As much as O’Connor starts as pg1, he sees a lot of time off the ball especially as Kd has settled in the last few games. I expect 75% or more to be Kd playing pg1 for most games going forward.

I agree with the concerns but I think with KD settling into his role more, we will be fine. We also have Begg to help out a bit if needed too.

 

[GMU79]

This. I think we're a good team but the offense can be so turgid at times that I think everyone is just kind of waiting for the wheels to fall off. They eye test is not kind to this team on a lot of occasions. This is a 7-1 team that could finish 15-3 or 9-9 and neither would surprise me.

Completely agree!

I’ve watched vcu several times this season and they don’t press for 40 minutes like they used to. They are more like us and just play solid half court defense and challenge everything.

They can ramp up the pressure but it will be tame compared to what we faced against Marquette.

I’d be more worried about tipped passes leading to steals in our half court sets than I am about open floor turnovers trying to bring the ball up.

But didn't they force about 27 turnovers against someone recently? Saw it in the RTD.

 

[GMUYoda]

But didn't they force about 27 turnovers against someone recently? Saw it in the RTD.

VCU 81-57 Rhode Island (Jan 21, 2025) Box Score - ESPN

Box score for the vcu Rams vs. Rhode Island Rams NCAAM game from January 21, 2025 on ESPN. Includes all points, rebounds and steals stats.

www.espn.com

Yes, against Rhode Island

 

[psyclone]

But didn't they force about 27 turnovers against someone recently? Saw it in the RTD.

Kenpom: vcu's defense is first in the A10 in TO% and in steal% (15th and 21st nationally, respectively).