Prince William Reporter

Patriots Dominate Bonnies in 65-51 Victory

 In front of a season-high crowd, the George Mason women's basketball team jumped out to a 7-0 lead and never trailed St. Bonaventure en route to their fifth Atlantic 10 victory of the season, 65-51.

 

Senior Nalani Kaysia posted her fourth double-double in the last five contests to lead the Patriots on both ends of the court with 15 points and 10 rebounds to go along with three blocks. Sophomore matched Kaysia's point total for career-high 15 points and career-high-matching five rebounds. 

 

The Patriots (12-13, 5-7) jumped out to a 7-0 lead less than two minutes into the first quarter and never looked back. St. Bonaventure then scored seven of the next nine points to pull within two, 9-7, at the 5:56 mark, but it would be the closest it would get for the remainder of the game as the Patriots rebuilt their lead back to 10 at the end of the first quarter. Kaysia and Suarez combined for 15 of Mason's 21 points in the stanza. 

 

The two teams traded points throughout the second quarter, but Mason held SBU to just 1-5 shooting and 10 points to extend the lead to as many as 15 and hold a 13-point advantage at the halftime break.

 

The Bonnies (4-23, 1-11) came out firing in the third quarter, scoring a game-high 23 points in the stanza. Back-to-back three-pointers cut the lead to six with 4:22 remaining in the quarter, but Suarez responded with five-straight points of her own to bring the lead back to double-digits. However, St. Bonaventure top producer of the night, Breauna Ware, scored six-straight points down the stretch to get back within seven, 51-44, with one quarter remaining.

 

Mason's defense locked down in the fourth, holding the Bonnies to just seven points and just 2-14 shooting from the field. Senior Sonia Smith chipped in five points and the Patriots converted eight free throws down the stretch to seal the 14-point victory.

 

PATRIOT POINTS

• Smith's 14 points extend her double-digit scoring streak to seven. The senior has tallied double-digit scoring in all but two league games.
• Mason out-rebounded St. Bonaventure 41-27, leading to a 12-5 edge in second-chance points.
• The Patriots' 42.9% shooting is their second-best percentage in A-10 play this season. They shot over 52% from two-point range.
• Freshman Nekhu Mitchell had a solid game off of the bench, chipping in seven points, eight rebounds, an assist and a block.
• Mason committed just nine turnovers against the Bonnies, their second lowest turnover count this season.
• With the win, the Patriots swept St. Bonaventure 2-0 in the home-and-home regular season series, their first time doing so since the 2018-19 season when they swept George Washington.

Original source can be found here