Murray State vs. George Mason preview
WBB: The Racers open the Daytona Beach Classic against the Patriots
Murray State will play the first of two games in two days on Friday as they challenge George Mason in the Daytona Beach Classic. Here’s what you need to know:
Murray State (3-2 overall) vs. George Mason (5-2 overall) — 12:30pm CST at the Ocean Center in Daytona Beach, Florida
Bart Torvik national rankings: Murray State #93; George Mason #61
Series history: First meeting
You can watch the game on Baller TV — you will need to purchase a $20 event pass to watch both games online here
Jeremy Rose will have the radio call on WNBS 97.9 FM and GoRacers.com, with the pregame showing starting at 12:00pm
Murray State Scouting Report
The Racers will try to win back-to-back games for the first time this season as they challenge George Mason in the first of two games in two days in Daytona Beach. This is the first multi-team event for Murray State in nine years.
In their last matchup against UAB, the Racers started to emerge from their shooting slumber, making a season-high nine three-pointers and scoring 91 points. Haven Ford had her best performance of the year against the Blazers, scoring 24 points, grabbing 12 rebounds and dishing out six assists.
Sharneece Currie-Jelks continues to be the interior threat that Rechelle Turner hoped she would be when Currie-Jelks transferred to Murray State from Indiana. In five games this year, the 6’2 junior forward is averaging 18.2 points and 10.0 rebounds — one of three players in the country to be doing that this season. Currie-Jelks has scored in double-figures in every game this year.
Against UAB, for the first time this season, the Racers had more assists than turnovers in a game. If that trend can continue today against George Mason, the Racers will give themselves a chance to grab a win.
George Mason Scouting Report
The Patriots come into the Daytona Beach Classic 5-2 on the season, fresh off their 72-54 win over Rider on Tuesday. George Mason’s only two losses this year are to Temple and Maryland.
Leading the team in scoring is Zahirah Walton, who is averaging 19.4 points per game. The 5’11 forward is also grabbing 7.1 rebounds a night. Last season, Walton was named First Team All-Atlantic 10, and was the A-10 Tournament MVP. Her best game this year was a 31 point, 12 rebound performance in that overtime loss to Temple in the season-opener.
The matchup to watch today will be Murray State’s three-point shooting against George Mason’s perimeter defense. The Patriots are 6th in the country in three-point defense, allowing opponents to make just 21.1% from beyond the arc.
George Mason presents a Quad-2 opportunity for Murray State, and a chance for the Racers to pick up their biggest win of the season on a neutral-floor.
I’ll have a ‘Ride Home’ podcast posted after the game.