Inconsistency continues for Mason men

FAIRFAX -- Against visiting Dartmouth College Sunday, the George Mason men's basketball team on Sunday looked quite a bit like the squad that took the court two days earlier for the first time this season.

The problem was that it was the look Mason showed in the second half against Liberty Friday when the Patriots nearly blew a 19-point lead.

Inconsistent defense, out-of-control offense and even bickering between the head coach and a player all plagued GMU in the first half yesterday.

Perhaps the Patriots were simply playing down to their competition -- the Big Green was picked to finish last in the Ivy League and were routed by 31 points in their opener against Boston College -- or it could be attributed to the team's well-reported youth playing too fast for its own good.

Whatever the reason, Mason solved it in the locker room at halftime, collecting itself enough in the second period to earn a 60-44 victory and open the season 2-0.

Though Ryan Pearson led the team with 19 points and 10 rebounds -- his first double-double of the year -- it was Luke Hancock who continued to impress the coaching staff, his teammates and the Mason faithful with heady play on both ends of the court.

The 6-foot-5 freshman fast becoming a fan-favorite with his versatility -- he can play the off-guard and both forward positions for the Patriots -- eliciting exaggerated calls from those in attendance of his first name every time it's called by the Patriot Center public address announcer.

The Roanoke product spent a year at Hargrave Military Academy before joining the Patriots this season and the additional seasoning shows. In 27 minutes against Dartmouth (0-2), Hancock scored 12 points and had 11 in his collegiate debut Friday. He added four rebounds, an assist and two steals in addition to a 3-pointer.

"He's done some things in the exhibition [against Virginia State] and the first two games to earn those minutes," Mason head coach Jim Larranaga said. "He's very active at both ends. He's hard to guard, he's good and driving and scoring. The other night he had a beautiful drive and he dumped it off to Ryan [Pearson] -- that was a three-point play."

Larranaga said Cam Long even passed along that the team was impressed with Hancock's summer workouts.

The game emphasized that that Long is not just a leader for Mason, but he may be the only leader on the club. The team struggles to find its way the most when the junior point guard is not on the court, either while taking a short break or dealing with periodic bouts with leg cramps that have afflicted him since his freshman year in Fairfax.

In fact, his absence during the second half against the Flames was a big reason Liberty was able to claw its way back into the game, resulting in a four-point GMU win.

And on Sunday he was again slowed by cramps, twice leaving the game to imbibe fluids, stretch his legs and ride the team's cycle behind the Patriots' bench.

"We think we've discovered some of the things that can help him," Larranaga said. "One of the things was he was having a salad for his pregame meal. There's not a lot of energy coming from lettuce. He was able to get a little more nourishment [Sunday] and I think that helped him have a good all-around game today."

Long, eschewing the salad this time, partook of the buffet lunch offered at nearby Brion's Grille.

"He thinks what happens when he comes out or when we go in at halftime," Larranaga added, "he's one of those guys that when his body cools down, it's hard for him to heat back up. He was riding the bike in the locker room at halftime and he looked like Lance Armstrong pedaling."

"That kept me warm," said Long, who played 26 minutes yesterday. "At halftime I usually just sit down and drink fluids, but then I come out and I'm stiff."

"They eased up today and hopefully we can keep that going and we can get to the point where I'm not cramping at all," he added.

When he is on the floor, Long controls the tempo of the offense and defense deftly, picking his jump shots carefully and taking them when the Patriots need to break an opponent's scoring run or create one of their own.

The 2007 Freedom High School grad used the threat of his dribble penetration on several occasions to employ a step-back jumper on his way to nine points on 4 of 7 shooting.

Adding to the excitement of the young, unpredictable season was a short spat between Larranaga and Ryan Pearson over a miscommunication regarding the sophomore forward's defensive assignment.

After Pearson was subbed out in favor of Kevin Foster, the two worked out the issue and Pearson returned shortly after.

The two joked about the incident in the postgame press conference, though, the issue clearly resolved.

"He's from New York and he has a certain way of communicating with another New Yorker," said Larranaga laughing, a Bronx native himself. "It's like one-upmanship. But as I told him, 'The last thing is if you don't listen to me, you sit on the bench.'"

Staff writer Joe Conroy may be reached at 703-878-8047.