updated 12:32 a.m. ET April 2, 2006

INDIANAPOLIS - George Mason finally acted its size.

America’s favorite underdog looked more like the mid-major it is instead of the spunky team that crashed the Final Four in a 73-58 loss to Florida on Saturday night. The Patriots missed dozens of easy shots inside, were dismal from 3-point range, and had none of the swagger and spunk that carried them through the first two weeks of the NCAA tournament.

Forget all those renditions of “Livin’ on a Prayer” the George Mason band played. The Patriots needed some shots to fall against the bigger Gators, and they came up woefully short.

“We were getting the shots we wanted. They just weren’t going down,” said Will Thomas, who scored 10 points on 4-of-12 shooting. “Hats off to their defense, but we just couldn’t make our shots.”

The Patriots endeared themselves to the entire country during their improbable run to Indianapolis. A commuter school from Fairfax, Va., that plays in the Colonial Athletic Association, George Mason had never even won an NCAA tournament game before this year. No way it could hold its own against the likes of North Carolina and Michigan State — half of last year’s Final Four — and Connecticut, the season-long favorite to win the title.

But that’s exactly what the Patriots (27-8) did — and more. George Mason knocked off all three powerhouses to become the first true outsider to reach the Final Four since Indiana State and Penn in 1979. It also was the lowest seed to reach the Final Four since LSU, also an 11th seed, made it in 1986.

“Just to be part of something great, this is history we’re living in right now,” said Lamar Butler, who finished with eight points, four below his average. “We changed the face of college basketball.”

But the Patriots swore they weren’t simply going to be happy to be at the Final Four. The players and their quirky, colorful coach, Jim Larranaga, oozed confidence all week, saying they wouldn’t be intimidated by basketball’s biggest stage or third-seeded Florida.

And they looked right at home at the start. Reserves Jordan Carter and Charles Makings joked around during warmups, and Butler took pictures with his family. When the players looked around the packed RCA Dome, the glances were nonchalant. They won the opening tip, and scored the first basket on a smooth jumper by Butler.

“Once you step out on the floor, you’re not worried about the crowd,” said Tony Skinn, who had 13 points. “You just want to play basketball.”

But maybe reality finally set in. Or, more likely, it was the obvious talent disparity between the little guys from the small league and the big boys from the power conference.

March Madness slide shows AP   Title time Best images from Florida-UCLA in men’s championship game. AP   Turtle wax Top images from Maryland’s overtime win over Duke for its first NCAA title. Reuters   The Final Four See images of Saturday's games where four teams become two. Getty Images   Eight is great Click to see images from the Elite Eight round of the 2006 NCAA tournament. Getty Images   Super Sweet 16 The best images from NCAA Tournament's second weekend. AP   Round 1 & 2 Best images from opening weekend of Big Dance.

The game quickly got away from the Patriots, and they could never really get it back. Anytime they got close, Florida found a way to open the gap right back up.

“We came into the game feeling very good about ourselves, feeling very good about our chances,” Larranaga said. “For some reason, we were never able to really establish our rhythm either offensively or defensively.”

George Mason got to Indy with stingy defense — opponents were shooting less than 40 percent — and a balanced, inside-outside offense. But the offense was anything but balanced Saturday.

The Patriots finished 23-of-56, and many of those misses came on gimme shots 2 or 3 feet from the basket. Burly Jai Lewis, whom the Patriots could always count on inside, clanged one layup after another off the rim, and finished just 5-of-13.

The scene was even uglier from 3-point range, where the Patriots were 2-of-11. They went almost 34 minutes before making a 3, and Butler, the school’s career leader from long range, was 0-for-2.

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