St. Joe’s women can’t keep up with George Mason
The Patriots are unbeaten in Atlantic 10 play. Guard Rhian Stokes led St. Joe's with 15 points.
St. Joseph’s fell behind in the first half and could not come up with enough offense Sunday in 66-59 women’s basketball loss to George Mason at Hagan Arena. The Hawks have lost two straight.
St. Joe’s (12-6, 3-4 Atlantic 10) never led. The Hawks cut George Mason’s lead to five points in the opening minute of the fourth quarter, but the Patriots responded with five straight points and the Hawks never recovered.
“I thought we responded in the second half and did a much better job containing [Kennedy] Harris,” St. Joe’s coach Cindy Griffin said. “I was pleased with the second half. The way we came out and continued to fight and if we make a couple plays here and there, the outcome may be different.”
Guard Kennedy Harris led George Mason (12-6, 7-0) with 22 points. St. Joe’s had three players score in double figures, led by guard Rhian Stokes with 15 points.
Can’t stop Harris
St. Joe’s brought the second-ranked scoring defense in the A-10 into the game, but Harris had few problems cracking it. She poured in 12 points and went 5-for-5 from the field in the first quarter as the Patriots grabbed a 24-16 lead.
Harris got free at the top of the key for a three-pointer as the halftime buzzer sounded, which sent the Hawks to the locker room down 38-26.
“Kennedy Harris was really, really good,” Griffin said. “We had to make some adjustments and we did that much better in the second half.”
The Patriots went the first five minutes of the third quarter without a point before Harris made consecutive jumpers to push their lead back to 43-32.
Battle on the boards
George Mason entered the game with a rebounding margin of -2.3, while St. Joe’s had the fourth-best rebounding margin in the conference at 4.3.
However, the Patriots battled on the glass as each team finished with 33 rebounds. George Mason used the glass to stay ahead in the final quarter, outrebounding St. Joe’s by 9-4. Hawa Komara led the visitors with nine rebounds while Gabby Casey had 10 for the Hawks.
The Hawks missed the presence of guard Jill Jekot, who averages 3.6 rebounds. The injured sophomore has not played since Jan. 3 but could be getting closer to coming back.
“I would love to have had her today,” Griffin said. “Hopefully as the weeks go on she gets stronger because it’s really not about the next game, it’s about the longevity of the season.”
Next up
The Hawks visit Duquesne (7-11, 0-7) on Sunday (2 p.m., ESPN+).