Nearly 7,000 fans showed up on Saturday evening at Eagle Bank Arena to see George Mason drop their biggest rival.

FAIRFAX, Va — George Mason has had big games this season at home, yet the attendance numbers at Eagle Bank Arena never got over 6,000. Even their opener, a non-conference game against an Ivy League school, brought in fewer than 5,800 fans. But when you’re the hottest team in the Atlantic 10, things are a bit different.

On Saturday evening, a season-best 6,683 fans trotted into Eagle Bank Arena to see a DMV showdown between George Mason and George Washington. And let me tell you, it was pretty much all green and gold out there — it was a beautiful thing to see, hear, and experience.

Aided by enthusiastic fans in every section on Saturday, the Patriots took care of business and beat their rivals by a 62-55 score. Justin Kier, the most popular man in Fairfax, had another double-double for Mason with 11 points and 11 boards, while his partner in crime, Otis Livingston II led the way with 15 points. Mason, as they did frequently in their upset win at Dayton, ran the offense through Jarred Reuter at the top of the block and the University of Virginia transfer answered the bell, yet again. Reuter is proving to be a fine decision-maker and passer, finishing with 10 points and a team-best four assists.

“I’d like to acknowledge our tremendous crowd – it’s the best we’ve had all year and I attribute that to our great students and the support of our community.” – @PaulsenDave Thank you, #MasonNation! 💚💛 pic.twitter.com/2mpmj49A0g — George Mason Men's Basketball (@MasonMBB) January 27, 2019

It was close in the first half, largely because the Patriots missed their first nine shots (seven field goals and two free throws), but they recovered to take a 27-25 lead into halftime. In the second half, they immediately started to put the game away. Freshman Jordan Miller made two key defensive plays right off the bat, Reuter couldn’t miss, and by the time Justin Kier made back-to-back buckets midway through the half, they built their lead to a game-high 15 points (48-33).

Though it never seemed like they really had a chance after Mason’s run, George Washington did inch back late in the game (with some help from a pair of phantom calls against the Patriots). With nine seconds left in regulation, Mason had the ball out of bounds with a 62-55 lead, and this is where things got weird. Justin Kier was inbounding the ball but was called for a five-second violation (after just two or three seconds, in my opinion). Then, GW was handed another gift when Otis Livingston II was pegged for a foul on a three-point shot by Terry Nolan Jr. — it was not a foul, like at all. Luckily, the ball don’t lie, and George Mason fans let out their biggest and most raucous cheers of the night as Nolan Jr. missed every…single…free throw.

Patriots win 62-55, life is good in Fairfax.

George Mason is now 7-1 in conference play, putting them atop the Atlantic 10 standings. They’ll now travel down the road on February 2nd to play at VCU. Sounds like a road trip, right?