George Mason will advance to a Colonial Athletic Association Tournament semifinal against VCU after a 61-59 victory against Georgia State in a quarterfinal on Saturday. But the Patriots' win was very much about survival.

Georgia State held a five-point lead at halftime, but the Patriots took it back with an 11-4 run after the break. Then Mason built it up to 10 points midway through the second half, only for the Panthers to whittle it to two points in time to launch a potentially game-winning 30-footer as time expired. But it missed without incident, giving George Mason, which got 12 points from Mike Morrison and at least four points from all nine Patriots who scored, a date with the CAA's other Final Four Cinderella in the CAA Tournament semifinals.

The Panthers' James Fields had 15 points off the bench to lead all scorers.

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