On the strength of a 37 point 2nd half, top seeded and #25 ranked George Mason sent the Georgia State Panthers home with a 68-45 defeating 2nd round action of the CAA Tournament in Richmond.
Georgia State was held without a field goal for nearly 16 minutes in the second half and could not stop the Mason duo of Cam Long and Andre Cornelius. Long scored a game high 15 points on 5-9 shooting from the field and Cornelius did his damage from deep with three big 3 point baskets.
The Panthers were led by leading scorer Eric Buckner with 10 points and 7 rebounds. Marques Johnson, playing in his final college game, scored 9 points and grabbed 5 points.
George Mason advances to Sunday to face the winner of the VCU and Drexel contest at noon ET.
Georgia State could return as many as 4 starters and nine players overall on this team for 2011-12 losing only PG Marques Johnson and SG Dante Curry to graduation. Who will replace Rod Barnes as head coach? Will any current players leave? Will freshman signee Jervon Pressley honor his letter of intent or force a release? These and many more questions will likely be answered before the Final Four.