Patriots disrupted Rams’ Senior Day ceremony
George Mason athletic director Tom O’Connor has apologized to Virginia Commonwealth for the Patriots entering the court when the Rams were honoring senior Bradford Burgess before Saturday’s game. O’Connor issued this press release Monday night:
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“On behalf of George Mason University, we apologize for the inappropriate behavior by our men’s basketball team before the game versus VCU on Saturday. Our team took the court for pre-game warm-ups prematurely during the senior night presentation for the Rams’ Bradford Burgess. Our players’ behavior was discourteous and showed a lack of respect for Bradford and his family, and for the VCU team and community.
“I have personally expressed our apologies to Athletic Director Norwood Teague and with his consent have attempted and will continue to reach out to the Burgess family. George Mason University and our athletic program hold dearly the concept of sportsmanship and respect, and our players understand that we did not exemplify these values during the presentation to Bradford.”
VCU won the game 89-77 as Burgess hit five 3-pointers and scored a career-high 31 points. Afterward, Burgess said he was “angry,” but refused to say why. VCU coach Shaka Smart said the Rams used the it for motivation. “We fed off it,” he said.
Provided both win in the CAA quarterfinals on Saturday, the teams are headed for a rematch Sunday at Richmond Coliseum. Last year, in the CAA semifinals, VCU won 79-63 to keep their NCAA tournament hopes alive.
On Saturday, reporters were seated nearby when senior Ryan Cornelius led Mason out of the tunnel. He stopped when he saw the ceremony and there was some discussion between the players. They waited, then decided to take the floor for layups as VCU fans booed. Hard to determine if Cornelius was urging the Patriots to take the court of if it was the other way around.
There was a mild controversy last year at the CAA semifinals as Cornelius led the Patriots onto the floor smiling ear-to-ear as the Rams ran past them to assemble their layup line. Moments later Brandon Rozzell of VCU and Isaiah Tate of GMU jostled near midcourt.
Both coaches downplayed the rivalry before Saturday’s game. But it’s clear there is growing animosity. Provided both win on Saturday, the semifinals will be interesting.
Mason has lost all five times it has faced VCU in the CAA tournament (all the games at Richmond Coliseum). In the last two meetings, the Patriots were the higher seed.
