ST. BONAVENTURE vs. GEORGE MASON
Wednesday, Jan. 31 - 7:00 p.m.
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Complete Game Notes (PDF)
WELCOME BACK, MCKENNA: Junior Mckenna Maycock made her return to action Thursday night at Fordham, her first on-court action since suffering a leg injury on Dec. 15 vs. Buffalo. Prior to her injury, she was one of the Atlantic 10's breakout success stories this season, ranking among the league's leaders in scoring (13.6 ppg), rebounding (8.4 rpg), field goal percentage (48.6%) and three-point percentage (47.1%) through the year's first 10 games. During that span, she registered four 20-point games, including a career high of 23 points in a Dec. 9 win over Penn State, her final game before suffering injury. In doing so, she became the first Bonnies player to post four 20-point contests in the season's first 10 games since Dana Mitchell did so in 2008. Mitchell ranks second all-time in the program record books for scoring and is the only Bona player to have her number retired.
- Her 16 points at Duquesne on Sunday rank as the fifth-highest scoring output of her career, all coming in her 13 games played this season. She went 7-of-12 from the floor Sunday, raising her field goal percentage to 49.2 percent for the season. Her 48.6 percent shooting percentage from long range (18-for-37) leads the A-10 for the year.
DOWNTOWN ARIELLE: Arielle Harvey had her best three-point shooting performance as a Bonnie on Sunday, going 4-of-7 from beyond the arc at Duquesne. She had not previously hit more than two 3s in a single game this season.
DOWNTOWN BONNIES: Harvey's outing led the Bonnies on the perimeter as the team struck for eight total 3s, including a 6-for-8 start from long range before settling for an 8-for-21 total for the day Sunday. Bona has now hit eight of more treys in a game 14 times this season - it was a number the team reached just once last season (the 2016-17 regular season finale at Duquesne on Feb. 21, 2017).
TAKING CARE: St. Bonaventure finished with just eight turnovers in Sunday's game, a season-low for the team. During Atlantic 10 play, the Bonnies are averaging 12.6 turnovers per game, a total that ranks fifth-lowest in the league.
ALL-CONFERENCE CASE: Bonnies senior Mariah Ruff continues to make her case to make the Atlantic 10 All-Conference squads at season's end. A preseason All-A-10 selection, Ruff has again been one of the league's best players this year. In A-10 play, she is tied with George Mason's Nicole Cardano-Hillary for the league lead in scoring at 19.8 ppg, though Ruff has played one additional game. For the year, the Oneonta, N.Y. native stands 10th in A-10 scoring (15.7 ppg), second in assists (4.6 apg) and fourth in 3s made (56).
BONA VS. GEORGE MASON - SERIES HISTORY
- The Bonnies and Patriots face off for the fifth time with the two squads having split the first four games at two wins apiece.
- The home team has won all of the previous four games.
- George Mason built a 16-point third quarter lead then held on late for a 52-49 win in Fairfax, Va. on Dec. 31, 2016. A 19-0 Mason run spanning the second and third quarters gave the Patriots a 37-21 lead with 5:26 left in the third, but the Bonnies chipped away late and closed within a bucket with 21 seconds to play. The Bonnies had a chance to tie on the final possession, but an effort at the tying three went around the rim and out.
- In the last meeting between St. Bonaventure and George Mason at The RC, the Bonnies came away with a 70-55 victory on Jan. 16, 2016. The Bonnies also captured a 57-53 win on home court on Feb. 22, 2014 in the first-ever meeting between the squads during George Mason's first year in the Atlantic 10.
ABOUT GEORGE MASON
The Patriots have been one of the most improved teams in the A-10 this season with an overall record of 16-6 and an Atlantic 10 mark of 5-3. One of the brightest players for the Patriots has been graduate student Natalie Butler. A transfer from UConn, Butler is averaging an impressive 17.9 points per game and 15.6 rebounds per game. With 21 straight double-doubles, Butler has the fourth-longest such streak in Division I history. Freshman guard Nicole Cardano-Hillary has also been a difference maker as the A-10's leading scorer at 18.2 ppg. Since 2012, the team's highest win total had been 14, which has already been surpassed by this year's team.
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