George Mason 85, Hofstra 78

1/17/2008 8:54 PM

HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. (AP) -Will Thomas scored five of his career-high 29 points to start the second overtime and George Mason went on to an 85-78 victory over Hofstra on Thursday night.

Thomas, a starter on George Mason's Final Four team in 2006, was 12-for-15 from the field, 5-for-5 from the free throw line and grabbed nine rebounds.

He scored down low for the first points of the second overtime and his three-point play with 2:34 left gave the Patriots (12-5, 4-2 Colonial Athletic Association) a 77-72 lead.

Antoine Agudio made two free throws with 2:19 to play to bring the Pride (3-12, 1-5) within 77-74 but Folarin Campbell went 8-for-10 from the free throw line the rest of the way for George Mason.

Agudio's drive with 24 seconds left got the Pride within 80-78 but Campbell, who finished with 20 points, closed the game out from the line.

Agudio, the nation's fourth-leading scorer with a 25.1 average, had 19 points, 15 after halftime. George Mason's John Vaughn did an outstanding job of defending Agudio, holding him to 6-for-20 shooting including 2-for-7 from 3-point range.

Freshman Charles Jenkins also had 19 points for Hofstra, which lost for the seventh time in eight games, while Dane Johnson had 14 points, 12 rebounds and eight blocked shots.

Johnson, who entered the game shooting 56 percent from the free throw line (9-for-16), went 3-for-4 in the first overtime to give the Pride a 71-69 lead. Agudio, a 75 percent free throw shooter, made one of two with 13 seconds left and Vaughn, who finished with 18 points, hit a 3 with 4.1 seconds left to tie the game at 72.

George Mason, which has won three of four, tied the game at 64 with 1:02 left in regulation on a three-point play by Vaughn. Agudio missed a jumper with 30 seconds left and the Patriots missed three possible game-winners in the final seconds.

Thomas' previous career high was 25 points against Cleveland State last season.