Box Score

I feel pretty good about this team.  They faced some tough circumstances tonight, not just in dealing with the absence of Tracy Smith, but in overcoming some questionable officiating in the first half and a very game George Mason team.  Two nights in a row now they've shown a killer instinct and removed all doubt in the second half.

Yesterday it was DeShawn Painter coming through with a big double-double, and tonight it was Richard Howell who scored 13 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in 24 minutes.  There was a bit of Javi Time, while Ryan Harrow and Lorenzo Brown again proved their legitimacy.  You can really tell those kids are friends--some of their connections are borderline psychic.  CJ Leslie had his moments as well.  Scott Wood found his shooting stroke and led the Pack to a 45-point first half.

Through three games NC State is establishing itself as one of the more proficient offenses inside the arc, largely without Tracy Smith's help.  They made 62.2% of their twos tonight.  That along with excellent FG% defense and defensive rebounding (Mason had all of one offensive board in the second half) keyed the win.

Whether they're good enough to be beat a very solid Georgetown team at this point, I don't know.  But they don't look far off.

This win should end up looking pretty good on the resume.  George Mason returned everyone that mattered from a team that won 12 CAA games last year.