George Mason men's basketball beats UMBC 82-54 in season opener

George Mason men's basketball opened its season with an 82-54 win over UMBC on Monday at EagleBank Arena in front of 3,290 fans.

The Patriots (1-0) never trailed. They built their largest lead of 28 points and pulled away after a 33-27 halftime edge by outscoring the Retrievers 49-27 in the second half.

Oliogu-Elabor leads the scoring

Efeosa Oliogu-Elabor led George Mason with 17 points on 7-of-12 shooting, adding six rebounds, three assists and two steals. He also committed seven of the team's 10 turnovers.

Elijah Jones scored 13 points with eight rebounds, hitting three of his seven three-point attempts. Makhai Valentine had 12 points off the bench, going 5-of-7 at the line. Brayden O'Connor added 11 points and eight rebounds, and Shane Pendergrass scored 11 points in 15 minutes.

Emmanuel Kanga grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds, five of them offensive, and Baraka Okojie handed out a team-high five assists.

Rebounding and the paint

George Mason outrebounded UMBC 54-40, including 37 defensive boards. The Patriots scored 36 points in the paint to the Retrievers' 12 and had a 19-4 edge in fast-break points. They also scored 22 points off turnovers to UMBC's 19.

The Patriots shot 28-of-68 (41 percent) from the field and 9-of-30 from three. They went 17-of-22 at the free-throw line and were called for 11 fouls to UMBC's 19.

UMBC struggles from the field

The Retrievers (0-1) shot 20-of-72 (28 percent) and 8-of-31 from three-point range. Aidan Able led them with 13 points and four assists, while Flash Burton and Devin Ceaser each scored 11. Burton went 5-of-17 and Ceaser 4-of-18. Riley Jacobs had a team-high six rebounds, four of them offensive.

UMBC never led, and there were no lead changes in the game.

Next up

George Mason returns to EagleBank Arena on Friday, Nov. 6, 2026, at 7:00 p.m. ET against Coppin State.