Florida Will Try to Ruin a Good Story

Even seeing the logo displayed around the RCA Dome is so incongruous, it seems like a prop from a Hollywood movie about the Final Four, some piece of sentimental fiction.

“Mason Patriots” has taken its place alongside the cursive UCLA, Florida’s toothy Gator and Louisiana State’s Tiger.

George Mason is a victory over third-seeded Florida from playing for the NCAA championship Monday. Yes, it’s improbable, but considerably less improbable than the upset of top-seeded Connecticut that got the Patriots here.

“Everybody’s going to be cheering for George Mason,” Florida swingman Corey Brewer said. “It’s a great story. If I were a fan, I’d probably be cheering for them too.”

The Patriots (27-7) will take their place on college basketball’s biggest stage today against Florida (31-6) in a national semifinal, but guard Lamar Butler was like a mischievous boy Friday, peeking through the curtains at Coach Jim Larranaga’s news conference with an incandescent smile on his face.

“I was looking at how big the room was, how many media people were here,” Butler said. “I saw Coach ‘L.’ He was serious, answering questions, bobbing his head, and I was laughing, that was all.”

A while earlier, Butler and his teammates stepped onto the court of the cavernous dome where about 43,000 will watch them play today as they try to pull yet another incalculably big upset.

“I’ve never even been inside a dome,” Butler said. “I’ve played football in a basketball gym, but never basketball inside of a football arena.”

Looking toward the basket for the first time in the capacious space, he momentarily lost his bearings.

“I think I shot an airball on my first shot,” he said.

The 11th-seeded Patriots are the once-obscure team from a 29,000-student school in the Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C.

They earned their fare to Indianapolis, beating Michigan State, North Carolina, Wichita State and Connecticut along the way.

“We don’t consider them a Cinderella,” Florida forward Adrian Moss said. “They beat some incredible teams.

“Those guys are good.”

The George Mason players represent a Founding Father, playing for a school named for a Virginia statesman who helped write the U.S. Constitution.

Florida’s players represent famous fathers.

Joakim (“Don’t call me Joe”) Noah, a gifted 6-11 sophomore NBA prospect, is the son of former French Open champion Yannick Noah.

Guard Taurean Green is the son of Sidney Green, the former Nevada Las Vegas star and NBA player who was an assistant coach at Indiana this season.

Center Al Horford is the son of former NBA player Tito Horford.

The George Mason players’ fathers are dear to them, but not so well known.

Butler’s father is a high school assistant coach and owns a sporting goods store. Beefy forward Jai Lewis’ father is retired from the Army. Forward Will Thomas’ father is a project manager for a bank.

“We’re a bunch of no-name guys playing in the biggest sporting event in the world and loving it,” Larranaga said.

“Did you see the movie, ‘Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid?’ Butch and Sundance were being chased by these detectives or what have you. They keep trying to lose them. They can’t. They just keep asking themselves, ‘Who are those guys?’

“I think basically that does represent George Mason University men’s basketball team,” he said. “Nobody knows us.”

Until this season, George Mason had never won an NCAA tournament game, and now the Patriots are royalty, even if it’s of Cinderella lineage.

Florida Coach Billy Donovan knows a little about underdog stories. He played for the 1987 Providence team that made the Final Four.

“Providence had gone [eight] years without going to the NCAA tournament,” Donovan said. “All of a sudden it was just an incredible ride, getting to the Final Four.”

The Patriots are enjoying their ride, but they are dead serious about winning.

“We didn’t come here just to come to the Final Four, visit, take pictures,” Butler said. “We came here to play the Florida Gators and win the game. That’s the obstacle in front of us. We’re ready for it.”

Florida’s players don’t seem to doubt it.

“It’s us against the world right now. Nobody wants us to win,” Brewer said.

“I think we’re definitely going to be the villain,” Noah said. “[But] at the end of the day, like my teammate Adrian Moss says, there’s 10 players out there, two buckets, and one ball. That’s what it’s all about, just playing basketball.”

That, and gathering souvenirs from what Larranaga called an “absolutely fantastic magic carpet ride.”

Butler stood up after his news conference and glanced back at the card on the table that identified him.

“Can I have my name tag?” he said.

“After the tournament is over,” the moderator said.

After all, they still might need it Monday night.

*

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX)

How Florida, George Mason match up

STARTERS

GEORGE MASON: Ht; Wt; Stats; Pos; FLORIDA: Ht; Wt; Stats

Will Thomas: 6-7; 220; 7.3 rpg; F; Joakim Noah: 6-11; 227; 14.2 ppg

Jai Lewis: 6-7; 274; 13.7 ppg; F; Corey Brewer: 6-8; 185; 12.5 ppg

Folarin Campbell: 6-4; 200; 3.5 apg; G/F; Al Horford: 6-9; 242; 7.4 rpg

Tony Skinn: 6-1; 175; 12.6 ppg; G; Lee Humphrey: 6-2; 192; 45.6 3-pt%

Lamar Butler: 6-2; 170; 38.2 3-pt%; G; Taurean Green: 6-0; 177; 4.8 apg

*

RESERVES

GEORGE MASON: Ht; Wt; Stats; Pos; FLORIDA: Ht; Wt; Stats

Gabe Norwood: G; 6-5; 185; 20.9 mpg; Adrian Moss: F; 6-9; 247; 3.1 ppg

Sam Hernandez: F; 6-5; 230; 3.1 rpg; Walter Hodge: G; 6-0; 170; 4.1 ppg

Jordan Carter: G; 6-0; 170; 36.4 3-pt%; Chris Richard: F; 6-8; 255; 6.1 ppg

* Offense -- George Mason doesn’t have stars, but in Butler, Skinn and Campbell it has three guards who can shoot the three or put the ball on the floor and go to the basket, which helps create openings for Lewis and Thomas inside. Still, it’s hard to dismiss the Gators’ three legacy athletes whose fathers played pro sports. Edge: Florida.

* Defense -- Florida hasn’t allowed an NCAA tournament opponent to score more than 62 points and forces almost 16 turnovers. Both teams hold their opponents under 40% shooting. It’s hard to forget that George Mason handled Connecticut’s offensively talented lineup, but Noah looks like a problem for the Patriots. Edge: Florida.

* Coaching -- Florida’s Billy Donovan, 40, has been to the Final Four as a Providence player in 1987 and as Florida’s coach in 2000. But George Mason’s Jim Larranaga, 56, is an under-recognized veteran coaching talent who was on the bench as a Virginia assistant for the 1981 and ’84 Final Fours. Edge: George Mason.

* Key to the game -- Florida has to deal with the George Mason mystique, and a team that exceeds the sum of its parts. But George Mason must contain the 6-11 and athletic Noah, and doesn’t have a player over 6-7.

* Prediction -- Florida, 70-63.

ROBYN NORWOOD