Round 2 in Puerto Rico: Georgia Tech

After watching the game again last night, I was able to make rational analysis of what happened at the end. For one, it's tough to close out a game without your two players. Cam Long was hobbled on the sidelines again with leg cramps and Villanova was doing an excellent job keeping Ryan Pearson from scoring. And with what should being said it shouldn't have been a surprise that the young guys in the game late made some costly turnovers. Let's just hope they can learn from this. It's hard for me to believe that the Mason staff and all it's resources haven't sought out more help for this cramp issue with Cam Long, a specialist or something. Some of the blame at the end of the game though has to fall on Larranaga. I mean why did the team suddenly switch to zone on that game-winning three pointer from Armwood? Was that really the play he called to run on the last possession? It's a little head scratching, but I am sure there are some factors I am missing.

Today's game will really show this team's character. Will they be devastated from yesterday's crushing loss or will they come back strong against Georgia Tech. The team seemed unfazed by the #5 Wildcats yesterday and that swagger should carry over to today's game. Unlike the BCS teams in this tourney there is not a whole lot of pressure on the young Patriots for this trip. They got proof yesterday that they are a strong team despite their inexperience and will looking to build on that. Georgia Tech has some all-star freshmen recruits on there squad but didn't look great yesterday turnovering the ball 26 times, leading to 27 points for Dayton. Although the Yellow Jackets did manage to shoot over 50% from the field in that loss, they fell apart defensively to close the game. They have a size and experience advantage over our front court so some strong guard play today will be needed. But how much will Cam Long play today and will Cornelius be able to pick up some of the scoring load and point guard duties? The team needs more consistency out of Dre Junior and will also need guys like Mike Morrison to stay out of foul trouble. Hopefully the refs won't be as whistle happy as they were yesterday. Look for the Patriots to try to run an up-tempo game, something they weren't trying to do yesterday, with good reason.

If the Patriots can force turnovers and create easy scoring opportunities they can win this game today. If we see more sloppy fouls and numerous turnovers of our own they could get into trouble early. A low scoring affair would favor the Patriots today and a lot of their success will be tied to Cam Long's ability to play a decent amount of minutes.