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The Florida Atlantic men’s basketball team is in the Final Four for the first time in school history.
The Owls’ next opponent in the national semifinals at Houston’s NRG Stadium will be able to say the same. No. 6 Creighton and No. 5 San Diego State play Sunday (2:20 p.m. ET, CBS) in the Elite Eight after advancing out of the Sweet 16 for the first time.
No. 5 Miami also will look for its first Final Four appearance after reaching the Elite Eight for just the second time. The Hurricanes will face No. 2 Texas (5:05 p.m. ET, CBS), which last reached the Final Four in 2003. The winner will face UConn, which routed Gonzaga 82-54 on Saturday night.
Follow along for Sunday’s NCAA men’s tournament action:
Sunday’s Elite Eight slate
Follow the madness: Latest Men’s NCAA Tournament College Basketball Scores and Schedules
No. 5 San Diego State vs. No. 6 Creighton: San Diego State’s defense is off the charts – just ask Alabama. The Aztecs held the top overall seed to 32.4% shooting and completely bottled up future lottery pick Brandon Miller, who finished with just nine points on 3 of 19 shooting, including just one make in 10 attempts from deep. But Creighton could put this defense to the test. The Bluejays have scored at least 80 points in five of the past seven games and are shooting 50.6% from the field in tournament play.
No. 2 Texas vs. No. 5 Miami: After some early struggles, Miami’s backcourt has taken over games to help the Hurricanes earn a second trip in a row to the regional finals. Nijel Pack has been on point since the start of tournament play, averaging a team-best 19.7 points per game and dropping a season-high 26 points to lead Miami into the Elite Eight. Texas has gone 22-7 since Rodney Terry replaced Chris Beard in December and is in the Elite Eight for the first time since 2008 and just the second time since the tournament expanded from eight teams in 1951. Under Terry, the Longhorns have fought through off-court drama and injuries to peak at the right time.
— Paul Myerberg
Bluejays, Aztecs have familiarity
While in different regions of the country, Creighton and San Diego State are not unfamiliar with each other.
Months ago, the Bluejays and Aztecs shared a chartered flight to the Maui Invitational. Creighton coach Greg McDermott said he sat across from San Diego State coach Brian Dutcher and talked about wanting to face off in the championship because “we would be OK with one of us winning and one of us losing.”
Little did they know their meeting this season would be on a bigger stage.
— Paul Myerberg
Texas’ Dylan Disu dealing with injury
Dylan Disu, Texas’ best player this postseason, played less than two minutes in the Longhorns’ Sweet 16 win against Xavier with what team officials called a bone bruise in his left foot. He’s officially day-to-day.
He spent most of the game with a walking boot on his left foot. Team officials said he suffered the bone bruise in the win over Penn State in the second round last Saturday. He practiced some but aggravated the injury late in the week.
— Thomas Jones, Austin American-Statesman
Florida Atlantic most-surprising Final Four team ever?
It has become more and more common in recent years for an overlooked, out-of-nowhere tournament team to get hot at the right time and march all the way to the Final Four. Of the nine teams to reach the national semifinals as a No. 9 seed or higher, six have occurred since 2013.
The Owls’ run to Houston is among the most unexpected Final Four teams since the tournament expanded that same season. There are eight teams that have shocked the nation most by advancing from off the radar to the national semifinals.
— Paul Myerberg
UConn is now the team to beat — and Huskies know it
Parity in college basketball, huh? UConn didn’t get the memo.
All those close calls, all those middling years in the wilderness of the American Athletic Conference suddenly seem far away in the rear-view mirror. In his fifth season at UConn, Dan Hurley doesn’t just have the Huskies back in the Final Four, he has them playing in a way that should earn them the school’s fifth national title.
— Dan Wolken
Kansas State coach Jerome Tang shares message with FAU after game
Florida Atlantic may have eliminated his Kansas State team, but Wildcats coach Jerome Tang had nothing but praise for the Owls – and delivered his classy message in person in the celebratory FAU locker room.
“Your toughness, your togetherness, your ability to make plays for each other, the way you communicate with each other – nobody can beat ya’ll,” the first-year K-State coach told the Owls. “Just stay together, don’t get distracted between now and (the Final Four). Stay locked in, keep doing what you’re doing.”
“Ya’ll the toughest son-of-a-guns we’ve played all year long,” Tang added. “Just proud of ya and rooting for ya.”
Tang’s first year in Manhattan, Kansas, was a tremendous success after little was expected of the Wildcats in the preseason. They nearly made their first Final Four since 1964, falling to Florida Atlantic 79-76. The Owls are making their first Final Four appearance and will play the winner of Sunday’s game between Creighton and San Diego State.
— Jace Evans
Parity creating ultimate March Madness chaos
In a span of mere minutes Friday night, two programs that have had lots of good seasons but rarely seemed like they’re on the cusp of anything significant, evicted the last two No. 1 seeds left, from this NCAA men’s tournament.
And with those back-to-back results, this is officially the maddest March of them all.
— Dan Wolken
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