NCAA
History Says FAU Has No Chance to Win in the Final Four
Luke Norris began his sportswriting career in 2013 and ed Sportscasting in 2020. The former Section Editor of the NFL and Motorsports sections, he now spends his time here in the role of Senior Writer-Programmer. His well-rounded sports knowledge allows him to cover the NFL, NBA, PGA Tour, MLB, boxing, WWE, and NASCAR for Sportscasting. Luke is an avid golfer who finds inspiration in the way sports can bring people together and provide a distraction from the real world. He hopes to provide a little entertainment or an escape from the real world with every article he writes, even if only for a few minutes. In addition to his work here at Sportscasting, Luke's work has appeared on The Sportster, Inquisitr, GiveMeSport, FanSided, Yahoo! Fox Sports, and Sports Illustrated.
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Coming into this 2023 edition of NCAA Tournament. In fact, FAU had only made a single appearance in the tourney since moving to Division I in 1993, qualifying as a No. 15 seed in 2002. The Owls lost to second-seeded Alabama that year in the opening round, 86-78.
But in one of the great Cinderella stories in NCAA Tournament history, FAU has become just the third No. 9 seed to reach the Final Four.
Entering the tournament with 300-1 odds to win the whole thing, the Conference USA regular-season and tournament champs began their journey with a dramatic one-point victory over eighth-seeded Memphis in the opening round, a game they trailed with just 2.5 seconds remaining.
In the Round of 32, FAU was down in the second half to 16th-seeded Fairleigh Dickinson before fighting back to take an eight-point victory. The Owls were down six to No. 4 Tennessee in the Sweet 16 but used an 18-2 run to take a 10-point lead, ultimately hanging on for a seven-point win.
And in their Elite Eight matchup against third-seeded Kansas State, FAU again came from behind to win, overcoming a six-point deficit with less than nine minutes to play to take a three-point win, punching their unlikely ticket to the Final Four.
Dusty May & Co. will now face San Diego State, and history says they have no chance of winning.
History says FAU has no chance of winning its Final Four matchup
As mentioned, FAU is the third No. 9 seed to reach the Final Four. But the Owls are also just the ninth team seeded ninth or lower to reach the Final Four since NCAA Tournament seeding began in 1979.
And do you know how many of the previous eight reached the national title game? Zero. So, again, history says FAU has no shot of beating the Aztecs on Saturday.
Here’s a look at those previous eight instances.
| Year | Seed | Team | Final Four Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | No. 9 | Penn | Lost to No. 2 Michigan State, 101-67 |
| 1986 | No. 11 | LSU | Lost to No. 2 Louisville, 88-77 |
| 2006 | No. 11 | George Mason | Lost to No. 3 Florida, 73-58 |
| 2011 | No. 11 | VCU | Lost to No. 8 Butler, 70-62 |
| 2013 | No. 9 | Wichita State | Lost to No. 1 Louisville, 72-68 |
| 2016 | No. 10 | Syracuse | Lost to No.1 North Carolina, 83-66 |
| 2018 | No. 11 | Loyola-Chicago | Lost to No. 3 Michigan, 69-57 |
| 2021 | No. 11 | UCLA | Lost to No. 1 Gonzaga, 93-90 |
| 2023 | No. 9 | FAU | vs. No. 5 San Diego State |
