San Diego State had a buzzer-beating winner to make it to the title game
Semifinal result of the Cinderella team against No. 3 and No. 4 in the All-Mid-major NCAA Tournament
The conclusion of the NCAA men’s college basketball season is rapidly approaching, with just four teams contesting to be crowned national champion.
It is the first time since seeding was introduced 44 years ago that there was no top seed remaining in the final round of March Madness.
The Cinderella team of the tournament, Florida Atlantic University, will play San Diego State in the first semifinal on Saturday.
A go-ahead basket with 2.5 seconds in the opening round against Memphis got the ball rolling, before victories against No. 16 Fairleigh Dickinson and No. 4 Tennessee set up an Elite Eight clash with No. 3 Kansas State.
Bluejays guard Ryan Nembhard was called for a foul on Aztecs guard Darrion Trammell with 1.2 seconds left in the game. Trammell jumped up for the shot attempt with a hand on his hip that was visible in the replays.
It was the defense that pushed San Diego State to the final stop in the NCAA tournament. The first all-mid-major national semifinals have taken place in the past, but the Aztecs bumped and harassed opponents all season.
The team has done well off its excellent defense, holding Creighton to 2-for- 17 shooting from behind the three-point line, including 0-for 10 in the second half, two days after holding Alabama to 3-for-27.
San Diego State has always talked about making the next step and I am certain some people doubted we could do it, but they never doubted for a second.
The Miami Hurricanes and Longhorns in the Preliminary March Madness Semi-Supergiant Final Four: Alex Karaban, Adama Sanogo, and Jordan Hawkins
The Hurricanes started off the year poorly, going 3-4 in January and suffering a damaging home loss to Florida State.
Miami has not been challenged since the start of the tournament, winning its first three games by a combined winning margin of 37 points.
But a key 37-17 run the last 13 minutes against the Longhorns helped steer the Hurricanes to a famous 88-81 victory and sealed their place in the final four.
For Larrañaga, who remembers many of the seismic shocks over the years, positivity at the beginning of the year has been vital in their run through the tournament.
“It’s the same exhilaration, just the jubilant attitude, because you just love when your players accomplish a goal they set out before the season,” Larrañaga said.
“What we said the first day of practice, we’ve got to start visualizing right now what we want to accomplish and be working toward that every single day. And that’s what these guys have done.”
After losing in the first round in two of the last three years, the fourth-seeded Connecticut was considered to be a better team for March Madness.
The Huskies got off to a quick start Saturday, going up 9-0 within the first five minutes of the game. The Miami Hurricanes tried to come crawling back into the game but ultimately the shots did not fall for the team. Up 10 points, UConn forward Alex Karaban knocked down a three-pointer at the buzzer to give the Huskies a 37-24 lead heading into the half.
The Mountain West’s first Final Four team will play for the national title on Monday night against Connecticut, which moved on with a 72-59 win against Miami.
The Hurricanes’ shots started to fall in the second half, after they had extended the deficit to 20 points. After Miami cut the lead down to 10 points, the Huskies regained their footing.
Huskies star center Adama Sanogo, who has been observing Ramadan and said earlier he would be eating oranges and coconut water before tip-off, was his dominant self. He finished the game with a double-digit rebound performance. Guard Jordan Hawkins, who was questionable to play with a non-Covid illness, added 13 points.
“It’s a miracle,” said Butler, and the Huskies beat the Padres with a 19-11 shot at the LHC
In the CBS broadcast, he said he was happy because he was able to attract the right type of people. I would just like to express my gratitude to the coaching staff of the University of Connecticut. Someone took a chance on a guy that was once a high school coach. I’m thankful and I’m a blessing. We have been trying to get five for a while.
The Huskies now look to win the program’s fifth national championship when they face off with San Diego State on Monday evening at NRG Stadium in Houston.
Butler’s winning buzzer-beater was the first for the Final Four since Jalen Suggs for Gonzaga against UCLA in 2021 and No. 5 overall. But it’s the only one when the winning team was trailing at the time of the shot.
He didn’t know how big the shot was, but he calmed himself after seeing it. “We’re going to the national championship. It’s not something that a lot of people do.
The vaunted defense of San Diego State was solved by the Owls’ movement and ball reversals.
When FAU’s Johnell Davis missed a contested layup, San Diego State coach Brian Dutcher opted to not call timeout, joking that he didn’t have any plays left.
The clock was about to run out, when he dribbled to the baseline and found that the cut off was back. The Aztecs raced out onto the floor after he hit the jumper and the Padres fans went nuts at Petco Park.
“We have always been knocked down,” said San Diego State’sMatt Bradley, who had 21 points after struggling in the previous three games. “But the biggest thing we always do is get back up and keep fighting.”
San Diego State had been building toward this since coach Brian Dutcher took over for his longtime mentor Steve Fisher. Dutcher followed the mold made by Fisher and added a nasty dose to the defense.
Once the NCAA Tournament started, the Aztecs ramped up their defense even more, holding their first four opponents to an average of 57 points per game and 17% shooting from the 3-point arc.
The Owls hit 5 of 11 from 3-point range in the first half against a defense that held their two NCAA Tournament foes to less than 45% shooting from the line.
Contesting nearly every shot and pass while pulling down a string of offensive rebounds, including six in 59 seconds, San Diego State rallied to tie it at 65-all.
“They went on a run and got extra possessions, and that’s what they did,” said Nick Boyd, who hit three early 3s and finished with 12 points. “That was really the turning point of the game.”
FAU kept San Diego State at bay most of the second half thanks to Alijah Martin, who seemed to have an answer for every Aztecs move by scoring 19 of his 26 points in the second half.
