Florida Atlantic notches first Final Four appearance in school history with 79-76 win against Kansas State
The magical Cinderella run for Florida Atlantic lives to see another round as the Owls defeated Kansas State on Saturday to reach the Final Four for the first time in school history. In a game that came down to the wire, FAU edged out the Wildcats 79-76 behind 14 points and 13 rebounds from big man Vladislav Goldin.
After finding itself down 57-50 with around 11 minutes to go, nine-seed FAU battled back to take a 64-63 advantage on a big dunk from Goldin with 6:12 remaining. The Owls held the Wildcats without a field goal from the 8:39 mark up until 1:49 to play. They increased their lead to 72-64 with just under three minutes to play after a 3-pointer and a pair of free throws from Alijah Martin.
Kansas State refused to quit, however, battling back to cut the deficit to 77-76 with eight seconds remaining. But Michael Forrest made a pair of clutch free throws from that point as the Wildcats turned it over on the final possession to end the game.
Wildcats point guard Markquis Nowell did all he could in the loss, finishing with 30 points and 12 assists. Forward Keyontae Johnson battled foul trouble all game, fouling out with 2:44 to go with just nine points and two rebounds.
Florida Atlantic overcame 22 turnovers to come away with the win. The Owls achieved this with an efficient 26-of-54 (48.1%) shooting and with balanced scoring as four players reached double figures. Martin led the team with 17 while Bryan Greenlee chipped in 16 as the two combined to go 7-of-13 from 3-point range.
Not only does this mark the first time FAU has reached the Final Four, but this is also just its second appearance in the NCAA Tournament. They proved that their NCAA-best 31-3 record heading into the tournament were no fluke, becoming just the third No. 9 seed in history to reach the national semifinal.
Things were neck-and-neck throughout the first half, with FAU holding a narrow lead most of the way. The Owls got the momentum rolling early with a poster dunk from Martin and continued to fight on their way to a 42-38 halftime lead. Nowell assisted Desi Sills on a layup with three seconds remaining to cut the deficit to four heading into the break.
Florida Atlantic became the first team this year to punch its ticket to the Final Four its win against Kansas State. The Owls now await the winner of an Elite Eight matchup between San Diego State and Creighton on Sunday.