FAIRFAX, Va. – North Carolina Central University once again eclipsed the 50-percent mark from the field, but George Mason came away with a 78-63 win on Tuesday, Nov. 20 at Eagle Bank Arena in Fairfax, Virginia.
 
NCCU (1-4) made more than half of its shot attempts in back-to-back games for the first time since 2017, when the Eagles shot 56.0 percent in an 86-77 win at Coppin State on Feb. 6, and 52.6 percent in an 85-62 win at home against South Carolina State on Feb. 11.
 
The Eagles stormed out the gate against GMU (2-3), as the maroon and gray made their first six shots to open the contest on a 12-2 run.  The Patriots then went on a 15-4 run of their own to capture the lead at 17-16.  The Eagles were able to rally to take a 32-29 lead to the break, with help from shooting 60.9 percent over the first 20 minutes.
 
GMU kicked it into high gear after the break, and outscored the Eagles by 18 to pull away for a 78-63 final score.  Randy Miller Jr. (Odenton, Md.) led the Eagles with 19 points on 6-for-10 shooting, and Rashann London (Philadelphia, Pa.) picked up a season-high 12 points with a team-high four assists.  NCCU had a total of four players in double-digits, as Larry McKnight Jr. (North Miami, Fla.) put in 11 points with a game-high seven boards, and Zacarry Douglas (Bowie, Md.) chipped in 10 points and five rebounds.
 
Jared Reuter (Marion, Mass.) had a game-high 24 points with 10 made field goals for the Patriots, and Ian Boyd (Apex, N.C.) tossed in 11 points and five rebounds.  Otis Livingston II (Linden, N.J.) dished out a game-best seven assists.
 
NCCU next faces Nicholls State in the opening round of the bracketed portion of the Emerald Coast Classic in Niceville, Florida on Friday, Nov. 23.