Junior guard Carlos Rivera (San German, PR - pictured) matched his career high with 25 points and added 10 rebounds while the Pride defense held George Mason to only 16 second half points as the Hofstra Men's Basketball team captured a 58-49 win on Sunday evening in the Colonial Athletic Association semifinals at Richmond Coliseum.

With the win, the Pride improves to 24-5 and reaches the championship game of the CAA Tournament game for the first time since joining the league in 2001-02. Hofstra will face top-seeded UNC Wilmington on Monday evening at 7 p.m. (ESPN), after the Seahawks defeated Northeastern 69-54 in the first semifinal on Sunday. Hofstra also stretched its winning streak to six games, two of which came against George Mason. The Patriots slip to 23-7 and must now await their postseason fate when the NCAA and NIT fields are announced next Sunday.

Hofstra also stretched its winning streak to six games, two of which came against George Mason. The Patriots slip to 23-7 and must now await their postseason fate when the NCAA and NIT fields are announced next Sunday.

The 24 wins also ties for the second most that the Pride has ever had at the NCAA Division I level, matching the 24-7 final record of the 1999-2000 team. The 2000-01 team set a Hofstra record at the Division I level by finishing 26-5. Hofstra's current win streak is its third of six games this season, and the fifth at least six games in the last two years.

Unlike the quarterfinals, when the Pride jumped out to a 10-0 lead over Virginia Commonwealth and led wire-to-wire, Hofstra trailed the entire way until taking its first lead on a three-point play from Rivera with 8:37 left in the contest. The Pride trailed 33-27 at the break, but held George Mason to only 4-23 shooting in the second half (17.4 percent).

Rivera's three-point play was part of an 8-0 run that gave Hofstra a 44-40 lead with 6:33 left. After George Mason pulled within 46-44 on a lay-up from sophomore forward Will Thomas, Rivera nailed a three-pointer in the corner off a pass from junior guard Loren Stokes (Buffalo, NY) to put the Pride ahead 49-44 with 4:49 left. A floating jumper from Stokes stretched the lead to 51-44 with 2:26 left, and the Partiots could come no closer than four points.

Rivera's 25 points matched his career high set in a road loss at Towson back on Jan. 12. He also added 10 rebounds, one shy of his career high set as a freshman in a win over Saint Peter's, four assists and no turnovers in 40 minutes. Rivera also played 40 minutes in the quarterfinal round. 

Stokes added 20 points for the Pride, before leaving the game in the final minute with an injury. Thomas led George Mason with 17 points in a losing cause.  

Hofstra and UNC Wilmington split their regular season series, with the Pride capturing a dramatic 92-87 triple-overtime win at Hofstra Arena back on Jan. 14, behind 30 points from Stokes. The Seahawks won the rematch in Wilmington on Feb. 15 by a 77-68 final. The Pride dealt with injuries in both games, as senior forward Adrian Uter (Queens, NY) did not play in the first meeting, while Rivera was injured in the first five minutes of the game in Wilmington and did not return.

Hofstra has never been in a CAA championship game, but it has won its last three conference championships. The Pride captured back-to-back America East Conference championships in the two years prior to joining the CAA. The Pride also won the East Coast Conference title in 1993-94 in its final season in that league.