Cinderella trying to claim March Madness

Cinderella is no stranger at March Madness.

From George Mason to VCU to Loyola of Chicago, there are some scintillating Final Four runs that keep hope alive for the little guys.

But winning a national title? That’s a far taller mountain to climb. So daunting, in fact, that not one of our beloved underdogs has done it. Not even Loyola, which seemingly had a higher power on its side with Sister Jean.

Which brings us to Florida Atlantic, a school that finds itself in the midst of one of those magical runs. The Owls are one win away from the Final Four as they get set to face Kansas State in the East Regional final at hallowed Madison Square Garden on Saturday. Let’s get one thing straight before we go any further: Florida Atlantic is a darn good basketball team, no matter its No. 9 seeding. The Owls have lost only three games all season, which is dwarfed on the record line by their 34 wins.

“We don’t feel like we’re Cinderella,” guard Alijah Martin said. “We feel like we’re supposed to be here, doing exactly what we’re supposed to do.”

They’ve been fortunate, too, which is usually required for a deep tournament run.

After winning the first NCAA Tournament game in school history with a last-second basket against Memphis, the Owls caught a break in the second round when they drew an even bigger underdog than themselves: Fairleigh Dickinson, just the second No. 16 seed in tournament history to bounce a No. 1.

Facing the undersized Knights instead of Big Ten powerhouse Purdue, Florida Atlantic advanced to the penultimate weekend with a 78-70 triumph.

There was nothing fluky about the Owls’ 62-55 victory over fourth-seeded Tennessee at MSG on Thursday night, and it wouldn’t be a major surprise if they knock off No. 3 Kansas State to earn a chance to play on the biggest stage of all in Houston.

Since the NCAA began seeding every tournament team in 1979, the largest number to win it all was No. 8 Villanova.

Since then, seven teams from the bottom half of the bracket have made it all the way to the Final Four, including the aforementioned George Mason (2006), VCU (2011) and Loyola, which all were No. 11 seeds.

The others were 11th-seeded LSU in 1986, No. 9 Wichita State in 2013, No. 10 Syracuse in 2016 and No. 11 UCLA two years ago.

But here’s the thing: None of those seven teams got past the national semifinals.

Now, this band of vagabonds is three wins away from the most unlikely of national titles.

And they all feel right at home. “We’re where we’re supposed to be,” guard Nick Boyd said. “We’re going to keep moving, keep working. We’re going to stay humble and hungry. I can’t count us out no more. We’re here to stay and we’re going to keep fighting no matter who we line up against, who we play.”

Maybe this is the year Cinderella finally stays out past midnight.