Griffin Wong gives his college basketball analysis and pick for George Washington vs. George Mason on Friday, Feb. 13.

Less than a month remains before the start of conference tournaments, which, for several mediocre mid-major teams, is a last-ditch chance to get hot at the right time and sneak into the NCAA Tournament by way of an automatic conference champion bid.

George Washington (14-11, 5-7 Atlantic 10) certainly qualify as a team that desperately needs to start hitting its stride if it wants a chance at making its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2014. But the Revolutionaries have a pretty difficult test tonight when they host George Mason (21-4, 9-3 Atlantic-10), which hasn’t made the Tournament since 2011 but famously advanced to the Final Four in 2006 as a No. 11 seed, which is still tied for the lowest seed ever to make a semifinals run. The game will tip off tonight at 7 p.m. ET.

George Washington is a 2.5-point favorite at DraftKings Sportsbook (-135 on the Moneyline), with the point total set to 148.5. The Patriots are +114 on the Moneyline. Below, I’ll break down tonight’s battle of “George” teams.

George Washington vs. George Mason (7:00 p.m. ET)

The Revolutionaries have been pretty inconsistent this season, and they don’t enter this matchup in the greatest form, having lost four out of their last five games, including one to George Mason in Fairfax, Va. on January 19. To be fair, though, most of their losses have been close, as three of the four defeats were decided by fewer than 10 points, including the game against the Patriots. George Washington also only lost to No. 18 Florida by 10 points, which is a pretty impressive result. It didn’t have the most difficult non-conference schedule, but it did a good job navigating it. The Revolutionaries win through their offense, which ranks 56th by KenPom’s opponent-adjusted offensive rating metric.

Four different players are averaging at least 10.0 points per game, including Rafael Castro, who’s averaging 15.3 points and 9.0 rebounds per game while making more than 63% of his field-goal attempts. Castro is averaging a double-double in conference play. Plus, Trey Autrey and Tre Dinkins have both made nearly 40% of their three-point attempts, and Jean Aranguren leads the team with more than three assists per game.

George Mason has been stronger. The Patriots went 12-1 in their non-conference schedule — though, to be fair, it was one of the nation’s easiest, per KenPom — and have picked up lots of narrow wins in conference play, though they are coming off of a loss against Richmond (an opponent that George Washington beat). Then again, they have also beaten Davidson, whom the Revolutionaries lost to. While George Mason doesn’t have a standout side of the ball, it has been solid on both offense and defense, ranking 102nd in offensive rating and 80th in defensive rating.

Just as they did during that 2006 run to the Final Four, the Patriots have had a fairly well-rounded scoring approach, with four different players averaging at least 11.0 points per game. Junior guard Kory Mincy leads the team with 34.6 minutes and 15.6 points per game, and he’s done it quite efficiently, shooting 40.6% from beyond the arc. Riley Allenspach has been tasked with cleaning the boards, averaging 6.1 rebounds per game, and Jahari Long is the leading assister.

The two schools could hardly have more differing offensive styles: George Mason ranks just 328th in three-pointers made and George Washington ranks 32nd. However, the Patriots have been somewhat more efficient from the field and have turned the ball over less, and both teams are solid on the boards, though the Revolutionaries have been slightly better. Given that both teams have been elite three-point defenses and George Washington relies more on its perimeter play, that should give George Mason the slightest of edges, even against a Revolutionaries team that is 10-3 at home.

College Basketball Pick: George Mason Moneyline (+114)