George Mason Basketball: Guards will be emphasized against American

George Mason basketball will take on American in a game that features two top point guards from the DC area. What should the Patriots focus on?

When George Mason basketball battles American, it will feature two programs with “expectations”. The Patriots are expected to finish high in the Atlantic 10 while American is predicted to finish higher than they have in years. Both teams bring back a veteran group but their success will depend on the point guard position.

At George Mason (0-1), Otis Livingston II has grown perfectly in coach Dave Paulsen’s offense. When he needs to be a scorer, he’s certainly up to the task. As he has gained experience, he’s been a better distributor. He’s very good at using penetration to set up the Patriot perimeter shooters. He is consistently the go-to force of Paulsen’s offense.

Sa’eed Nelson might not be known nationwide but the Patriot League knows the Preseason Player of the Year very well. Nelson is in charge of running the American offense. He can dribble, drive, distribute and score. He does it all with a high level of basketball IQ. When American wants to push the ball up, he can do so and is also capable of finishing at the basket despite his 6-foot-1 frame.

What makes this matchup even more intriguing is the experience both players bring to the table. Livingston is a senior who has become more and more of an offensive threat each year. Not only has his scoring gone up but so has his ball distribution. He averaged a career-high 4.4 assists last season. He has the ball in his hands a lot with being a ball dominant point guard. You won’t see him dribbling the air out of the ball. Even in George Mason’s 72-71 loss to Penn to start this season, he was able to push the ball up in the last 4 seconds to give the Patriots a good look at a win.

Nelson, on the other hand, is in his third year in Tenleytown. He has started since the day he stepped on campus. Coach Mike Brennan has frequently played Nelson all 40 minutes and more if need be. Nelson has worked hard to improve his 3-point shot as opponents tried to take away his ability to get in the lane. He did that last season attempting and making more threes than he did in his freshman year. He also continued to trust his teammates, almost doubling the number of assists from the previous year.

So what should they take away from each other? When Nelson is on defense, he will need to control the space Livingston has on the floor. Making the senior guard give up the ball early in the shot clock would be the best way to limit his effectiveness. Sure, Livingston can operate off the ball but you want him to have to operate at the end of the shot clock.

Defensively, Livingston must turn Nelson into a jump shooter. If Nelson can get into the lane, he becomes a very dangerous finisher. Once you rotate the defense to take the finish away from him, Nelson’s unselfishness kicks in and he finds teammates for good looks. The Washington DC area is known as a fertile ground for great basketball. On Friday, that notion will be on full display.