Underdogs SDSU, FAU gearing up for Final Four showdown
March Madness is at its best when the underdogs stir things up.
Loyola Chicago and Sister Jean. Butler's consecutive title-game runs with a near-miss against Duke. Saint Peter's ride a year ago.
Cinderellas are alluring, even if they shred brackets.
A massive March upheaval this season has created a rare sight: two midmajors playing for a spot in the national championship.
When Florida Atlantic faces San Diego State in the first of two national semifinal games tonight, it marks just the second time two mid-majors will meet in the Final Four since the NCAA Tournament expanded to 64 teams in 1985.
“I love to see it just because it's an opportunity for those outside of the national spotlight to be on the big stage and show what they can do,” FAU coach Dusty May said.
The Owls and Aztecs are the more unexpected guests to college basketball's ultimate party.
FAU (35-3) had never been to the NCAA Tournament since joining Division I in 1993. The Owls flew through the regular season, earning their first AP Top 25 ranking while racking up 31 wins. They have continued to soar in the NCAA Tournament, taking out Memphis and fellow March darling Fairleigh Dickinson the first weekend, then fending
off physical tests against Tennessee and Kansas State to reach their first Final Four.
May joked FAU was probably picked fifth in the Final Four. That may play right into the hands of a team that's been doubted all season.
San Diego State became a mid-major power under Steve Fisher, earning six straight NCAA Tournament appearances from 2009-15. His longtime assistant, Brian Dutcher, has pushed the Aztecs to unprecedented heights for the program.
The defensive-minded Aztecs (31-6) may not play a pretty game, but they make teams play their game, a method that has taken them to the Mountain West Conference's first trip to the Final Four.
FAVORITE UCONN TAKES ON MIAMI >>
All this buzz about how a wildly unpredictable March Madness led to a Final Four nobody could've possibly seen coming overlooked one small detail.
UConn.
When the Huskies (298) tip off against Miami in today's second semifinal, they will be two wins away from their fifth national title since 1999. No other school has won more over that span.
When the name “UConn” came up with a “4” seed next to its name three weekends ago on Selection Sunday, nobody raised too much of a stink. Four wins later — after no opponent came within 15 points of the Huskies — it's becoming apparent this is a team that might have been overlooked. Or underestimated.
Meanwhile, Miami (29-7) has had a successful run to the Final Four thanks to Isaiah Wong, whose agent put out word that Wong was considering the transfer portal if he couldn't get a better NIL deal, and a few others, Nijel Pack and Norchad Omier, who came from elsewhere to help Larrañaga fill in a few pieces from a team that made the Elite Eight last year. Many viewed an NIL deal worth a reported $800,000 as an obvious reason Pack left Kansas State and chose the Hurricanes.
Larrañaga thinks it was more than that.
“I hope, and I really do assume, and I'm pretty sure I know, that Nijel saw the opportunity he had with Charlie graduating,” Larrañaga said of the departure of 12-points-per-game guard Charlie Moore.