George Mason Beats James Madison

Patriots 61, Dukes 53

RICHMOND, March 7 -- For an instant during the second half of George Mason's 61-53 victory over James Madison on Saturday night, Mike Morrison's emotions got the best of him. The Patriots' 6-foot-9 freshman forward had used his energy and noodle-like arms to change the complexion of the Colonial Athletic Association quarterfinal at Richmond Coliseum.

But with the second-seeded Patriots ahead by four and 8 1/2 minutes remaining, Morrison excessively celebrated one of his four second-half blocked shots and was assessed a technical foul.

It could have altered the tightly contested game and forced Morrison to change his defensive approach. However, "All my teammates and coaches kept repeating the same thing" about keeping cool, he said. "I was like, 'Listen, I am not going to say anything else to anyone.' "

From that point, Morrison expressed himself with two more blocks and an inside presence that forced the seventh-seeded Dukes to modify repeated shot attempts. In a season-high 23 minutes, he helped compensate for senior starter Darryl Monroe's foul trouble with those four blocks as well as six points and eight rebounds.

Junior forward Louis Birdsong added nine rebounds and three blocks for the Patriots (21-9), who will face 11th-seeded Towson on Sunday at 5:30 p.m. Virginia Commonwealth, the top seed, will play fourth seed Old Dominion at 3 p.m.

Monroe and Cam Long scored 12 points apiece as George Mason, the reigning champion, reached the semifinals for the fourth straight year.

Long made three crucial plays in the final three-plus minutes, drawing a charge, making a 12-foot bank shot and swishing a three-pointer for a 56-50 lead, but the inside work by Morrison and Birdsong had an equal impact and contributed to the Dukes' 27.4 percent accuracy.

"You think, 'Well, you've got inside position, you are going to the rim, you are going to get a basket out of it,' and next thing you know, it is their ball and you get nothing out of it," Dukes Coach Matt Brady said. "Those plays are a kick in the stomach."

Morrison played in all but two regular season games but averaged just 9.1 minutes and never blocked more than two shots in a game. His free throw shooting continues to be frightful -- 0 for 4 against the Dukes and 12 of 41 overall -- but Patriots Coach Jim Larranaga sees progress.

"He really had to adjust to our style of defense -- to keep the ball out of the post using his feet and quickness to front" his man, Larranaga said. "And if someone on your team gets beat, you have to get over there and either take the charge or, if you wait a little bit, try to make him miss. And in his particular case, making him miss means he is going to elevate and try to block the shot."

Said Patriots guard John Vaughan: "He is very athletic and very emotional, and that's what you need down there. A lot of times, Mike cleans up our mistakes."

Pierre Curtis had 16 for the Dukes (19-14), who were seeking their first quarterfinal victory in eight years. They led by seven early, by one at intermission and, despite trailing most of the second half, were in position to execute the upset. But time and again, Morrison and Birdsong turned easy shots into misses.