Score: George Mason 72, VCU 67
Location: Richmond, Va. (Stuart C. Siegel Center)
Records: VCU 17-7 (7-4 Atlantic 10), George Mason 14-10 (3-8)
Attendance: 7,637 (149^th consecutive sellout)

The short story: Senior guard De'Riante Jenkins supplied a game-high 16 points for VCU, but George Mason built a big second-half lead and held off a late charge by the Rams Wednesday night.

OPENING TIP

• Jenkins provided 13 of his points in the first half as VCU built a 33-30 lead. He knocked down 6-of-9 from the field, including 2-of-3 from 3-point range
• Senior guard Issac Vann supplied 13 points, four assists and three rebounds for the Black & Gold
• Freshman guard Bones Hyland scored eight of his 11 points in the second half for the Rams, while junior forward Marcus Santos-Silva kicked in 11 and seven rebounds
• George Mason forward AJ Wilson powered the Patriots with 14 points, 11 rebounds and five blocks

THE DIFFERENCE

• VCU led 33-30 at the break, but a slow start to the second half snowballed into a 10-2 George Mason run; VCU closed to within 42-41 on a jumper by senior guard Malik Crowfield at the 11:27 mark, but the Patriots responded with a backbreaking 16-0 run over, punctuated by a pair of Josh Oduro layups in transition, to take a commanding 58-41 lead with 6:31 remaining
• Hyland led a late VCU blitz with eight points down the stretch, and Jenkins hit a 3-pointer from the corner with 42 seconds left to pull the Rams within 67-64, but they could get no closer
• George Mason outrebounded VCU 48-27 and collected 15 offensive boards. The Patriots were 20-of-29 at the line

NOTABLE

• The Rams lead the all-time series record against the Patriots 42-21
• The Black and Gold are 13-2 at home this season
• VCU forced 19 turnovers

NEXT UP
VCU will head to the Robins Center Richmond on Saturday, Feb. 15 to face crosstown rival Richmond for the second meeting of the season. The game is slated for a 4 p.m. tip and will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network.