STATE COLLEGE, Pa.—Talor Battle scored eight of his game-high 24 points in overtime and tied the game with a 3-pointer at the end of regulation as Penn State defeated George Mason, 77-73 last night in the first round of the NIT. Dre Smith hit two foul shots with five seconds left in regulation to give George Mason a 65-62 lead before Battle hurried down the court for his buzzer-beating 3 for Penn State (23-11). It was Battle’s first bucket of the second half after missing his first seven shots.

For two of the state’s men’s college basketball teams, it’s not a matter of whether they will make the NCAA tournament, it’s a matter of where they’ll play and the seeding they’ll receive. Virginia Commonwealth University’s Rams and Radford’s Highlanders—and fans of the two teams—will be watching the NCAA selection program this evening to see what bracket slots they will occupy.

OMAHA, Neb.—Booker Woodfox scored 22 points on 8-of-10 shooting to lead Creighton past George Mason 76-63 in an ESPNU BracketBusters game on Saturday. The nation’s leading 3-point shooter hit five of his six attempts from beyond the arc, including a pair during a 21-7 run by the Bluejays to break open a tight game in the second half.

There are players who shy away from taking game-deciding shots. And then there’s Eric Maynor. Virginia Commonwealth University’s superlative senior point guard lives for those times. He has made so many during his career that they have become known as Maynor Moments. Another one presented itself yesterday in an electric atmosphere at the sold-out Siegel Center. And Maynor did what he always seems to do, making a momentum-changing basket and more clutch plays that kept the Rams atop the Colonial Athletic Association with a 76-71 victory over George Mason.

When you’re outrebounded by 13 and give up 22 points off the offensive boards, you better find a way to do something extremely well if you want to win. The VCU men’s basketball team had those shortcomings yesterday against George Mason. VCU still won. The short answer for VCU’s success is Eric Maynor. He was incomparable as always.

Where: Siegel Center (cap. 7,500)
  On the air: TV—ESPN2; radio—WBBT (107.3), 3:30 p.m.
  Tickets: Adults $15, youth $10 (call (804) 828-7267 or go online to http://www.vcuathletics.com)
  Projected starting lineups:
  Notable: Showdown to retain at least a share of first place in the Colonial Athletic Association. VCU (7-1, 14-5), George Mason (7-1, 14-4) and Northeastern (7-1, 12-6) are tied at the top. Winner will get a tiebreaker edge since this is the only regular-season meeting. The Rams have not trailed in their past two games. VCU point guard Eric Maynor has 15 assists and no turnovers in those games. Maynor needs two assists to become the Rams’ career leader and 19 points to take over fourth place in career scoring. VCU is using its trademark press a little less, but in six straight wins, it has ramped up its defense and allowed an average of 55 points. Opponents are shooting just 35.7 overall and 26.2 percent from behind the 3-point line during that stretch. Six consecutive opponents had shot under 40 percent against George Mason before Northeastern shot 54.8 percent in a 58-57 win.

FAIRFAX—Louis Birdsong scored 15 points to lead George Mason to a 71-57 win over James Madison yesterday to remain perfect in the Colonial Athletic Association. After leading by six points at halftime, George Mason unleashed a 10-0 run to open the second half to keep the game out of reach for James Madison. The Patriots (7-0 CAA) won their 10th consecutive at home and sixth consecutive overall. The loss was the 10th consecutive in the series for the Dukes. The Patriots, the conference’s top defensive team allowing just 59.7 points a game coming in, held James Madison to 32 percent shooting, including just 6 of 26 on 3-pointers.

JAMES MADISON (3-2, 11-6) has a three-game winning streak in the CAA for the first time since 2002-03. First-year coach Matt Brady said that’s created a little bit of a buzz among JMU fans starved for basketball success, but he’s not putting much stock in it. The Dukes haven’t had a winning season since finishing 20-9 in 1999-2000. “The three-game winning streak, if you want to call it that, is something that is really enjoyed more by our grads who have followed the program through the years,“ he said. “I think our players, especially our seniors, have not enjoyed a lot of success. They’re really pleased and happy with where they are. I think there’s a fine line with getting caught up with a three-game winning streak. I don’t think that’s something to be overly excited about.

James Madison (3-2, 11-6) has a three-game winning streak in the CAA for the first time since 2002-03. First-year coach Matt Brady said while that’s created a bit of a buzz among JMU fans starved for basketball success, he’s not putting much stock in the streak. The Dukes haven’t had a winning season since finishing 20-9 in 1999-2000.

Dre Smith and Cam Long each scored 15 points and George Mason never trailed during a 74-65 victory over Ohio yesterday.

COLLEGES DIVISION I TOURNAMENT
  FIRST ROUND
(Yesterday)
Boston University 1, Fairleigh Dickinson 0 California 3, San Francisco 0 Boston College 2, Colgate 0 William and Mary 3 , Winthrop 1 UNC-Greensboro 2, Duke 0 George Mason 1 , Penn 0

COLLEGES DIVISION I TOURNAMENT
  FIRST ROUND
(Today)
Fairleigh Dickinson (13-5-2) at Boston University (11-5-3), 4 p.m. San Francisco (9-9-2) at California (10-3-5), 4:30 Winthrop (14-5-1) at William and Mary (10-6-3), 7 Colgate (12-5-3) at Boston College (9-8-2), 7

Division I Tournament - First Round

VCU received the preseason nod in the CAA. But several coaches suggested they had a hard time determining the pecking order on their ballots. Almost every team has some question marks, from youth to transfers to taking the next step. Several coaches said the league is so balanced they don’t see clear-cut favorites. “I see nightmares,“ Delaware coach Monte Ross said. “For a team like us, we think we’ve gotten better. But we may not see any rewards for our work because the league is so tough and so difficult.“

Virginia Commonwealth University won’t surprise anyone during the upcoming Colonial Athletic Association women’s basketball season. The Rams, coming off a school-record 26-win season, were picked to finish second in the CAA in 2008-09 in a poll of coaches, sports information directors and selected media members. Results were announced at yesterday’s preseason media day in Washington. The top spot was awarded, predictably, to Old Dominion’s Lady Monarchs, who are chasing their 18th consecutive CAA championship.