Brendon Mulvihill is an RTC contributor. You can find him @themulv on Twitter. See bottom of the post for the Official RTC Star System.

The Colonial Athletic Association has its biggest game of the year tonight as two of the three teams that are tied for first place lock up in what could be an epic conference battle. While there is other conference action on Valentine’s Day, this is the match-up you should be focused on as BracketBusters looms and the mid-majors look to make a run in the tourney come March. With both teams having lost to Drexel already, this game is beyond crucial. It should be excellent showdown.

VCU coach Shaka Smart has the Rams surging at just the right time.

Virginia Commonwealth at George Mason – 9:00 PM EST on Comcast Sports (****)

• Don’t look now, but Shaka Smart has Virginia Commonwealth gearing up for the Tourney at just the right time again. VCU has won 11 games in a row and is in a three-way tie for first in the CAA with George Mason and Drexel. The Rams are relentless on the defensive end, causing turnovers on 27.1% of opponents’ possessions. George Mason happens to be one of the more turnover-prone teams in the country, so miscues will be a key stat to watch throughout the game. How will GMU handle the VCU pressure and limit empty possessions?
• George Mason has shot under 50% eFG in 11 of their games. Shockingly, they are 9-2 in those contests. Credit their defense for keeping them in games where the offense is struggling. Shooting over 50% eFG against GMU is no easy task, but if a team does, they pretty much walk away with a win. Unfortunately, VCU is a very poor shooting team. They have an eFG% of just about 47%. Keep a close eye on the Rams’ ability to hit the offensive glass on their missed shots, as it will most likely be difficult for them to get a clean first look.
• In what should be an extremely tight game, the key to this one is VCU’s ability to create turnovers and get easy baskets in transition. If George Mason limits turnovers and forces VCU to play halfcourt offense, their defense will make it a long night for Smart’s guys on offense.

Other Games to Watch:

• Florida at Alabama (7:00 PM EST on ESPN HD): Both the oddsmakers and KenPom seem to think this game is going to be close. If it is, Florida has all kinds of problems. With JaMychal Green and Tony Mitchell out due to suspension, this one should not be close.
• Ohio State at Minnesota (9:00 PM EST on ESPN HD): Look for OSU to bounce back in a big way against Minnesota. The Buckeyes are favored by eight on the road.

***** – quit your job and divorce your wife if that’s what it takes to watch this game live
**** – best watched live, but if you must, tivo and watch it tonight as soon as you get home
*** – set your tivo but make sure you watch it later
** – set your tivo but we’ll forgive you if it stays in the queue until 2014

bmulvihill (74 Posts)

This entry was posted on Tuesday, February 14th, 2012 at 12:12 pm by bmulvihill and is filed under Regular Features, set your dvr. Tagged: george mason, shaka smart, virginia commonwealth. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.