Men’s Final Four Preview: Perennial powerhouses absent for end of March Madness

Some people call it the worst Final Four ever. 

Others call it a refreshing change of pace, showcasing the new way of the NCAA. 

However you describe it, there’s no doubt this will be an unusual Final Four – minus the usual bluebloods of U.S. men’s college basketball. 

After basketball behemoths Kansas, North Carolina, Duke and Villanova qualified for the final weekend of the year last season, this year we have a random grab bag of UConn, Florida Atlantic, Miami and San Diego State playing in Houston. 

This year’s title contenders have combined for four national titles – all by UConn. The other schools have never even played in a Final Four. 

It marks the first Final Four ever where no top-three seeds have qualified. 

Parity certainly has hit college basketball as the past four Final Fours have featured 16 different teams. 

If you're expecting all four No. 1 seeds to be at the Final Four every year, it doesn't work that way,” Miami coach Jim Larranega said. “There's too much parity in college basketball. There's too many changes in rosters every year now. The transfer portal has created that. We've got transfers, every team has transfers. 

“So even how your season starts is not really reflective of how you might be in February and March. And it's an impossible task for the committee to seed 1 through 68 and for everything to fall into place.” 

The semifinals go Saturday with the final Monday at 9:20 p.m. ET / 6:20 p.m. PT 

Let’s take a look at the semifinal matchups. 

No. 9 Florida Atlantic (35-3) vs. No. 5 San Diego State (31-6), Saturday, 6:09 p.m. ET / 3:09 p.m. PT 

The Florida Atlantic Owls hadn’t won a single March Madness game before this year, and now here they are in the Final Four. 

Based in Boca Raton, Fla., about an hour up the coast from Miami, Florida Atlantic carries the best record in the country (35-3) into the weekend. 

Johnell Davis (averaging 17.2 points in the tournament) is the star scorer, while seven-foot-one Russian Vladislav Golden anchors the middle. 

In a sign of how far outside the spotlight FAU usually is, coach Dusty May has said one of the key moments of the season came when the Owls beat reigning Division II champion Nova Southeastern of Davie, Fla. in a pre-season scrimmage. 

However, the Owls have not embraced a Cinderella label. 

“I guess growing up, Cinderella -- and I don't know if it's something I've said or what our players believe -- it's a group-think in our locker room. We're very like-minded and we roll with each other's thoughts if we agree with it. Usually, we agree with each other,” May said. 

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       “But the term Cinderella has always been that team that maybe hit a spurt late in the season and got hot where they average five made threes a game, and then over the over course of five games they make 12 a night. Whatever the case. It's more a flash in the pan versus a five-month body of work.” 

      The San Diego State Aztecs, Kawhi Leonard’s old college team, may play in a gorgeous location, but their brand of basketball doesn’t necessarily inspire the same idyllic feelings. 

      The Aztecs knocked out top-ranked Alabama in the Sweet 16, forcing Crimson Tide star (and expected top-three NBA pick) Brandon Miller into a 3-for-19 shooting night. 

      No team in the tournament has scored more than 90 points per 100 possessions against SDSU.  

      “Just our culture is such where early in the year we say we do a shooting drill, and if we don't make those numbers in the shooting drill, we might go down to the baseline and do defensive slides instead of running it down and back,” coach Brian Dutcher said. “And we'll just say there are going to be games where the shot doesn't go in as much as we're open. How are we going to win those games? We're going to win them with our defence. It's just setting a mindset.” 

      Many thought the Aztecs had a real chance to go on a run to the Final Four in 2020 when they had a 30-2 record and looked like a top seed before COVID-19 cancelled the tournament. 

      Now, with some of those players still around, they have a chance to play for the title. 

      No. 4 UConn (29-8) vs. No. 5 Miami (29-7), Saturday, 8:49 p.m. ET / 5:49 p.m. PT 

      The UConn Huskies look like the team to beat. 

      While they have won four national titles since 1999, the last one came in 2014 – and in recent years, the school’s ultra-successful women’s team has been a far bigger national story. 

      The Huskies won their first four games by at least 15 points and crushed Gonzaga by 28 points in the Elite Eight, the biggest win in that round since 1992. 

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          Big man Adama Sanogo (averaging 20 points and 9.8 rebounds in the tournament) has been the dominant player in the first four rounds of the event. 

          UConn coach Dan Hurley, he of the famous coaching family, has a real shot to make his mark here. 

          “I think we all hit our stride. And we all understand what's behind it,” UConn guard Andre Jackson Jr. said. “We know if we lose one game, your season's over. We're playing with a desperation like it's nothing we've played before. 

          “And so every single time we go out there, we know it could be our last. Really trying to do every single thing possible to stay out there on the floor and try to survive with each other. 

          Miami was a popular pick to lose in the first round to Drake, but the Hurricanes rallied for a victory and are still standings. 

          The Hurricanes also came back from 13 down against Texas in the Elite Eight. 

          Larranega, 73, is used to the national spotlight. He coached George Mason when the No. 11 seed reached the Final Four in 2006. 

          The Hurricanes are an example of the new world order in college sports with billionaire booster John Ruiz reportedly making a significant impact on the roster with NIL (name, image and likeness) deals. The team also has had success with the transfer portal. 

          While some may not like it, this is where we are in 2023 – and the Hurricanes have made it work. 

          Former Kansas State guard Nijel Pack and ex-Arkansas State big man Norchad Omier have played big roles for the Hurricanes. 

          They’ll be underdogs against UConn. 

          “I think their team reflects the Hurley clan philosophy of play really hard and aggressive at both ends of the court. And you have to be impressed with their size, their physicality, but also their skill,” Larranega said.

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