PHILADELPHIA – Despite taking a four-point lead to open the second half on eight straight points from Freshman AJ Brodeur, the University of Pennsylvania men's basketball team was not able to overcome George Mason's 22-5 run over the game's final 7:29 Saturday afternoon, falling 79-60. Senior Matt Howard led the way for the Quakers at The Palestra with 15 points and seven rebounds.

With the loss, Penn drops to 3-5 on the season. George Mason won its seventh straight and improves to 8-3 overall.

*Senior Matt Howard had 15 points, his third straight game in double figures

*Junior Matt MacDonald's five assists tied a season/career high at Penn; in the last two games he has 10 assists and just one turnover

*Freshman AJ Brodeur scored his first points of the game on a three-point field goal, his first career attempt and make

*Brodeur also recorded four blocked shots, all in the second half, tying George Mason's team total on the day

*Sophomore Jackson Donahue led all bench scorers off the bench with 11 points, hitting a trio of three-pointers 

*There were 12 lead changes and six ties in the contest

*GMU Senior guard Marquise Moore recorded a triple-double Saturday with 17 points, 16 rebounds and ten assists

The Quakers got out to a quick start on Saturday, taking an early 10-4 lead behind five points from junior Caleb Wood. George Mason was quick to get back in the game, riding an 11-0 run to take a five-point lead six minutes into the contest. Jackson Donohue provided a spark for the Quaker offense off the bench, draining three-pointers on consecutive possessions to cut the deficit to two.  

A back-and-forth scoring affair took place for the final seven minutes of the first half, as Penn was able to stay within one possession. Matt MacDonald got the Quakers even at 33-33 on a floater in the lane, and a Donahue steal on the other end set up a wide-open three for junior Darnell Foreman to give Penn a one-point lead. Kamari Newman provided an answer on the following possession, however, and that gave the Patriots a 38-36 lead at the half. 

AJ Brodeur set the tone for Penn to start the second half, scoring eight points on Penn's first four possessions and blocking two shots at the other end to lead the Quakers to a four-point advantage. The Quakers struggled to get anything going offensively from that point forward, however, and the George Mason offense came to life behind a triple-double from Marquise Moore along with a game-high 22 points from Jalen Jenkins. In particular, the Patriots dominated the game down the stretch, going on a 13-0 run (as Penn went scoreless for 5:35) and outscoring the Quakers 22-5 in the final 7:30 to seal the victory.

The Quakers head to Orlando, Florida to take on the University of Central Florida (UCF) Monday night. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. at the Knights' CFE Arena.