FanHouse Folarin Campbell

In their loss to George Mason on Tuesday night, Virginia Commonwealth turned in an uncharacteristically weak defensive performance. The Patriots took over in the second half and cruised to a 12-point win that kept the CAA a two-team race. Rams coach Anthony Grant couldn't have been happy with that performance and must have done something about it in practice this week. Yesterday VCU was impenetrable during their 65-42 win against Towson.

Only one Tiger had more than six points and they made fewer shots than the Rams had steals. Towson was 14-of-55 from the floor while VCU stole the ball 17 times, including seven by Joey Rodriguez. Larry Sanders had seven blocks, which makes you wonder if the Tigers might have been better off just taking shot clock violations every time down the floor. The Commonwealth offense never took off, they shot just 36.8%, which is why the specter of Mason's win wasn't completely erased.

The Patriots turned in a defensive effort almost as impressive in their 72-46 win against James Madison and complemented it with an offensive showing that's beyond the Rams. Folarin Campbell had 20 points and John Vaughn scored 19 in a 53% showing from the floor. Their early season struggles look well behind them after a strong week.

GMU's offensive depth is unrivaled within the league, as is VCU's defensive prowess. When the CAA tournament final comes, it will be a shock and disappointment if we don't get a rematch between the league's best offense and its best defense.

It's been a season of spurts for the George Mason Patriots. A 6-1 start featured wins over Cleveland State, Kansas State and Dayton but was followed by a 4-4 stretch. Four straight CAA wins came next with the Patriots flashing ample evidence of the athleticism and depth that makes them the most talented team in the conference. That string of strong play looked to end during a desultory loss at UNC-Wilmington over the weekend but it may have been a momentary lapse. The Patriots put on their best show yet last night with a 63-51 win over Virginia Commonwealth.

The Rams entered play as the best defensive team in the CAA but couldn't stop GMU during the second half. Will Thomas and Folarin Campbell combined for 11 points during a 20-4 run that erased a VCU lead and put the Patriots in position to stay unbeaten at home. The Colonial's odd scheduling deprives us of a rematch between the two clubs in the regular season but it wouldn't be a stretch to imagine them meeting in the tournament final.

If Mason loses there, they may still be able to make a case for tournament inclusion. VCU is their fourth victim in the RPI's top 65 and their own ranking of 59 can continue to rise. They'll need to step up their play on the road. Five of the final nine, including their bracket buster, will be away and winning them will give their resume some added punch.

When preseason prognosticators turned their attention to the Colonial Athletic Association, most of their crystal balls returned a picture of George Mason as the league favorite. Some may have seen Virginia Commonwealth and even Old Dominion may have been the result of a tarot reading or two but you didn't hear much support for the Blue Hens of Delaware. Yet another reason not to trust palm readers. Delaware is 4-0 in the CAA after knocking off George Mason 73-68 in overtime last night.

They did it in impressive fashion as well. Mason led by nine at the half and extended their lead to 47-28 in the early moments of the second half before Delaware turned up the heat. They went to a full-court press which rattled the Patriots into 15 second half turnovers and reopened the door to the game. Folarin Campbell, a senior guard who should be adept against all styles of defense, was the most profligate. He turned it over eight times as the Hens went on a 27-8 run to tie the game.

Marc Egerson led Delaware's offensive attack and finished with 23 points but it was foul shooting that gave them the win. They hit 10-of-12 from the stripe in the extra session, after going 12-for-22 up to that point. Delaware is 4-0 in the CAA for the first time since '98-99 and are the only undefeated team in the conference.

Elsewhere on the mid major hardcourts:

In wins against Ohio State and Detroit, Butler was able to overcome poor games by A.J. Graves and Mike Green. Freshman forward Matt Howard had strong games and Butler prevailed without playing their best. The third time wasn't the charm, however, as Graves played poorly again and the Bulldogs were knocked from the ranks of the unbeaten at Wright State. To be fair, his teammates weren't much better in the 43-42 loss. They shot 32% from the floor as a whole, led by their backcourt's 4-of-23 brickfest. Graves had a chance to win the game at the buzzer but missed a three and Wright State's fans flooded the court in a frenzy after knocking off the nation's 13th ranked team.

Unlike those previous games, though, Howard couldn't pick up the slack. He finished with just five points to complete a defensive effort that should make coach Brad Brownell very proud of his Raiders. Offensively, Wright didn't do much to overwhelm the Bulldogs but they moved the ball, found the open man and made the most of their limited opportunities.

Elsewhere on the mid-major hardcourts:

I've already voiced my displeasure with the inclusion of teams like Xavier among the mid-major morass. They have the tradition, the size and the talent to hang with any of the big boys but the Atlantic 10 is still a bit of a redheaded stepchild. The only way they can defy their label is by winning games, something they've done seven out of eight times this season after beating Creighton 79-66 last night. The deep Musketeers got a typically well-balanced scoring night, led by 28 from Drew Lavender. The 5-7 sparkplug usually finds one of his five teammates who score in double figures but took matters into his own hands from the opening tip. He scored 17 in the first half, hit four threes and still found the time to dish out 10 assists.

XU remains under the radar but is a team that can't be slept on. C.J. Anderson, Josh Duncan and Derrick Brown can beat you inside while Lavender, Stanley Burrell and B.J. Raymond control the perimeter. Few teams, regardless of conference, can match that kind of balanced scoring. We'll see who among Tennessee, Kansas State, Auburn, Virginia and Arizona State can, but first the Musketeers will face Cincinnati in a battle for city bragging rights next week.

Elsewhere on the hardwood:

George Mason will never blindside anybody again. Teams that break the glass ceiling and introduce the Final Four to the Colonial Athletic Association don't get to experience that twice. That doesn't mean that they won't get to have another deep run in the NCAA Tournament. Early indications are that 2007 might provide them with another opportunity.

The Patriots beat South Carolina 69-68 yesterday to take third in the Old Spice Classic and end a weekend that saw them knock off precocious Kansas State and lose to 20th ranked Villanova in the semifinals. Will Thomas led them yesterday with 22 points and 11 rebounds, the kind of effort they're used to receiving from the senior forward who helped them make history in 2006. He's joined by another starter from that team, Folarin Campbell, in making GMU one of the most experienced teams in the country.

Unlike Thomas, Campbell didn't have a fantastic 2006 as he moved from wing to point and back again. That erratic usage helped the Patriots to a fifth place finish but a truer picture of the team may have been painted in the CAA tournament. GMU almost knocked off Virginia Commonwealth after their league-best defense carried them past higher seeds to the final.

That defense and experience fueled their upset of the talented youngsters from Kansas State and could help buoy their shot of an at-large bid if they should stumble in the deep CAA. However they get to the dance they'll be dangerous once they get there even if everyone in your pool knows who they are this time.