George Mason University - Athletics

Athletics

Main article: George Mason Patriots See also: George Mason Patriots men's basketball and 2005–06 George Mason Patriots men's basketball team

The school's sports teams are called the Patriots. The university's men's and women's sports teams participate in the NCAA's Division I, and are members of the Colonial Athletic Association, or CAA. The school's colors are green and gold. George Mason has two NCAA Division I National Championship to its credit; 1985 Women's Soccer and 1996 Men's Indoor Track & Field.

George Mason University was catapulted into the national spotlight in March 2006, when its men's basketball team advanced to the Final Four of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament by defeating the Michigan State Spartans, the defending champion North Carolina Tar Heels, the Wichita State Shockers, and the top-seeded Connecticut Huskies. Their "Cinderella" journey ended in the Final Four with a loss to the eventual tournament champion Florida Gators by a score of 73–58. As a result of the team's success in the tournament, the Patriots were ranked 8th in the final ESPN/USA Today Poll for the 2005–06 season. The New York Times, The Washington Post, Baltimore Sun, and USA Today featured the story on their front pages, and was ranked by several publications as the sports story of the year.

The Patriots, who had never won an NCAA tournament game before 2006, became the first team from the CAA to crash the Final Four and were the first true mid-major conference team since 1979 to do so (that year, the Larry Bird-led Indiana State Sycamores as a #1 seed, and the Penn Quakers as a #9 seed both reached the Final Four). As #11-seeds, the 2006 Patriots also tied the 1986 LSU Tigers as the lowest-seeded team ever to reach the Final Four.

In 2008, the Patriots returned to the NCAA Tournament after winning the CAA Tournament. They were given a 12 seed and matched up against 5th-seeded Notre Dame. The Patriots were unable to make another miracle run, losing to the Irish by a score of 68–50.