George Mason is about to go through a crucial 4-game stretch in CAA

This team has started to show more of their potential recently and it is coming at a great time.  During these next ten days the Patriots are about to go on the toughest four game stretch of their CAA schedule. They first travel to ODU, a place where they haven't won since February of 2004, against a Monarchs team that is much more battle tested. However, they looked god awful in the beginning of their last game against JMU before getting the win in OT.  Despite what ever kind of season ODU is having, they always bring their best when the Patriots come to town and I expect no different this season.  After that they host a resurgent Georgia State team who just beat Drexel by 14.  Georgia State is looking more and more like a top 4 team in this conference.  Then there's Drexel, the preseason favorites, who have at times this season looked terrible on offense but remain a tough team at home.  Last is the game at JMU, who have a bunch of bad losses (19 point loss to URI) on their schedule that I don't think reflect how good of a team they are.  The Dukes can score and have two very good three-point shooters lighting it up this year, so it will be another dangerous road game for Mason.

Mason needs to continue playing better defense and limiting their turnovers to be successful during this stretch. Andre Cornelius appears to have given this team the lift they needed but they will need to continue getting support from other bench players during this stretch.  Rebounding has still been an issue, especially when Ryan Pearson isn't on the court.  They are yielding way too many offensive rebounds to weaker front courts this season and that is an area they should be controlling.  Bryon Allen seems to have brought some stability to the point guard position and has been looking more comfortable.

Going 3-1 on this stretch of games would be huge but it will be tough for a team that hasn't shown much consistency.  It will be a great opportunity for Hewitt and his bunch to prove wrong the naysayers.