Only teams seeded #9 or higher to make the Final Four:
#11 LSU (1986) #11 George Mason (2006) #11 Virginia Commonwealth (2011) #9 Wichita State (2013) #10 Syracuse (2016) #11 Loyola Chicago (2018) #11 UCLA (2021) #9 Florida Atlantic (2023)
No #9 or lower has ever made the championship game. 2023 is already the first time that no #1s made the Elite Eight. Will more history be made by FAU? They will face either #5 San Diego State or #6 Creighton.
Crazy that one of FAU SDSU or Creighton will be in the final. But we should anticipate motored unpredictability like this going forward. One and done format makes it such an intriguing tournament where anything can happen.
Who likes to showboat and run up the score and goes for flashy dunks with the game no longer in doubt. There's not a hopeful bone in my body for them to reach the Final.
They might be a Cinderella team but FAU's starters are old and experienced, they have 2 transfers and 3 players who are in their 3rd year of playing. NIL allows players who aren't good enough to play in the NBA to continue to play in college while the 1 and dones go to the NBA and the bluebloods reload every year. We should expect more bracket breakers like them every year.
Creighton did well last year and was a preseason top 10 for many. It's not a big surprise they're in the elite 8.
Who likes to showboat and run up the score and goes for flashy dunks with the game no longer in doubt. There's not a hopeful bone in my body for them to reach the Final.
so you're the same guy that was hating on them in the other thread and predicted Tennessee would beat them? Now, they'll almost certainly lose in the final four, but that doesn't make you any more right now than you were previously
Is this a result of NIL deals? Big school guys get NIL money and get complacent?
Miami's success is totally about NIL.
What NIL does is that it spreads the talent out to places it usually doesn't go...like Alabama and Miami.
Also the parity in college basketball has been on the rise for a while now. There really are no blue blood programs any more. HS recruits from 3 to 5 star are becoming very similar due to AAU ball developing these kids all the same. There are 5 star recruits riding the pine and 3 star recruits staring for Final Four teams.
Is this a result of NIL deals? Big school guys get NIL money and get complacent?
Miami's success is totally about NIL.
What NIL does is that it spreads the talent out to places it usually doesn't go...like Alabama and Miami.
Also the parity in college basketball has been on the rise for a while now. There really are no blue blood programs any more. HS recruits from 3 to 5 star are becoming very similar due to AAU ball developing these kids all the same. There are 5 star recruits riding the pine and 3 star recruits staring for Final Four teams.
Alan
Oh. Also the transfer portal. Kids can play immediately now instead of sitting out. College basketball is basically a mini-NBA now.
Who likes to showboat and run up the score and goes for flashy dunks with the game no longer in doubt. There's not a hopeful bone in my body for them to reach the Final.
so you're the same guy that was hating on them in the other thread and predicted Tennessee would beat them? Now, they'll almost certainly lose in the final four, but that doesn't make you any more right now than you were previously
Who likes to showboat and run up the score and goes for flashy dunks with the game no longer in doubt. There's not a hopeful bone in my body for them to reach the Final.
Who likes to showboat and run up the score and goes for flashy dunks with the game no longer in doubt. There's not a hopeful bone in my body for them to reach the Final.
I just read that FAU had never won a tournament game before. Any more wins by them could make them one of the greatest sports stories of all time. They have no history of success, no NIL money, no fans. Their home gym holds 3k, similar to a large high school.
They might be a Cinderella team but FAU's starters are old and experienced, they have 2 transfers and 3 players who are in their 3rd year of playing. NIL allows players who aren't good enough to play in the NBA to continue to play in college while the 1 and dones go to the NBA and the bluebloods reload every year. We should expect more bracket breakers like them every year.
Creighton did well last year and was a preseason top 10 for many. It's not a big surprise they're in the elite 8.
Do we know how much NIL the FAU players are getting?
I saw a list of how experienced the starters were on Elite Eight teams. There was 1 freshman among the 40 starters. Lots of jrs, srs, grads and COVID year players.
Experience and probably playing together for a while. Willingness to play as a team and not be worried about individual glory I suspect is a big factor.
They might be a Cinderella team but FAU's starters are old and experienced, they have 2 transfers and 3 players who are in their 3rd year of playing. NIL allows players who aren't good enough to play in the NBA to continue to play in college while the 1 and dones go to the NBA and the bluebloods reload every year. We should expect more bracket breakers like them every year.
Creighton did well last year and was a preseason top 10 for many. It's not a big surprise they're in the elite 8.
Do we know how much NIL the FAU players are getting?
I saw a list of how experienced the starters were on Elite Eight teams. There was 1 freshman among the 40 starters. Lots of jrs, srs, grads and COVID year players.
Experience and probably playing together for a while. Willingness to play as a team and not be worried about individual glory I suspect is a big factor.
FAU, doubt there is NIL money but they are older, experienced and good. Miami is the team with money. You don't win 32 games in a season. even in a decent mid major conference, unless you're good.
Experience has been a huge factor this season. 22, 23, 23. 24, and 25. These are the ages of the SDSU players.
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