Mitchell Richtmyre/Fourth Estate
Patriots win their last home game as the season ends
BY CHRISTIAN SEGOVIA, SPORTS EDITOR
After two road losses, the Patriots bounced back to win their final home game on Senior Night against the Duquesne Dukes, 86-63, on Mar. 1. The game honored senior guard Paula Suarez, graduate student Ta’Viyanna Habib, graduate student Khamya McNeal, graduate student Nalani Kaysia, head manager Connor Whitworth, and their graduate assistant Riley Childs.
“Seeing you know how much the team has grown every single year… You can feel the culture just being there… The teammates like getting closer, so much more fun when we’re playing, and just keep it improving,” said Suarez.
“I’m just grateful for all of it, the highs, the lows, the long days; it all just feels in this moment just worth it,” Kaysia added.
Five Patriots scored in double-digit against the Dukes. Redshirt Sophomore forward Zahirah Walton led the team with 16 points, sophomore guard Kennedy Harris scored 14, and Habib contributed 12 points. Kaysia and Suarez each finished with 10 points.
Kaysia also grabbed 21 rebounds out of the Patriots’ total of 47, seven more than Duquesne’s entire starting five and nearly matching their 29 rebounds for the night.
“The last two back-to-back on the road, they were tough,” said Mason head coach Vanessa Blair-Lewis. “To be able to be able to finish at home when we play well, and our crowd has really supported us, and I was just really happy for them, and you want to go into the tournament with some steam, and I just feel like this was a really good send-off for us.”
Wanda Durant was one of the honorary coaches on bench with the team during the game.
“You can just see why [Kevin Durant]’s so loved in the league because of just being around her,” said Coach Lewis. “How she was just caring about people, taking care of people, and she deserves all these moments for the sacrifices she made…as a single mom… We know her son, but it’s a reason why people grow up to be who they are because they have great parents.”
The Patriots finished second in the A-10 standings with a 24-5 overall record and 14-4 conference record. Having different players step up each night contributed to the team’s success. Coach Lewis was also named to the Mid-Major Coach of the Year Midseason Watch List.
Suarez earned the Most Improved Player award and was named to the All-Conference Second Team with Harris. Walton was selected for the All-Conference Defensive team.
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“We’re not just teaching basketball, we’re teaching life moments,” said Coach Lewis. “You’re going to have those moments where things are going really good. And then something’s going to come out the clear blue, something you didn’t prepare for, and how are you going to get over it? How are you going to get through it? For us, it’s our faith and then we can count on each other as sisters and the sisterhood that we can be there for each other.”
The Patriots finished first in offense of A10, averaging 73.7 points per game. The Patriots ranked fourth in defense, holding teams to an average of 56.9 points per game, giving them the best scoring margin in the conference at +16.8.
The team finished fifth in assists, averaging 13.66 per game, third in team percentage with 42.6% and fifth in holding their opponent field goal percentages to 38%. They also finished second in shooting three-point percentages with 36.4% and 12th in holding teams to shoot 33.1% from three.
The Patriots finished fourth in combined rebounds with an average of 38.5 per game. Third in blocks, getting an average of 3.93 per game, and fourth in steals, hitting 9.38.
Spirits are high for the Mason women’s basketball team heading into the A-10 tournament.
The Patriots will begin their tournament run on Mar. 7 against the winner of Game 6 at 5 p.m. EST on Peacock.