The Florida Atlantic Owls and San Diego State Aztecs are facing off in the NCAA Tournament's Final Four on Saturday in Houston. Tip-off from NRG Stadium is at 6:09 p.m. ET. The Aztecs are 2.5-point spread favorites and the game total is 131.5 points.
Florida Atlantic (35-3 SU and 24-11-1 ATS) beat Kansas State in the Elite Eight. The Owls have won 11 consecutive games straight-up.
San Diego State (31-6 SU and 19-15-2 ATS) beat Creighton in the Elite Eight. The Aztecs are on an eight-game winning streak.
The Owls are enjoying one of the most magical runs in NCAA Tournament history. FAU didn't get bounced from the tourney after taking care of 16th-seed Fairleigh Dickinson, as many expected, taking down a highly-favored Tennessee team and a heavily-bet Kansas State team to earn their first-ever Final Four appearance. Unlike those two teams, its next opponent carries itself like an underdog, too. It's the Owls, though, that are getting points in this game.
FAU overcame 22 turnovers in its win over KSU with a dominant rebounding performance. The Owls secured 44 rebounds, doubling the Wildcats' total, with 14 offensive boards. They also shot 48.1 percent from the field, including 9-for-23 (39.1%) from three, and knocked down their free throws (18-for-22).
.@FAUMBB have been turning heads all #MarchMadness on their road to the #MFina lFour ?? pic.twitter.com/d1OlLPPH9X
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 30, 2023
Sophomore guard Johnell Davis leads Florida Atlantic in scoring. He averages 13.9 points on 49.3 percent shooting and 5.5 rebounds per game. A few other Owls to watch on Saturday are sophomore guard Alijah Martin (13.1 PPG and 5.2 RPG), sophomore center Vladislav Goldin (10.3 PPG and 6.6 RPG), freshman guard Nicholas Boyd (8.9 PPG and 4.3 RPG), and senior guard Michael Forrest (8.4 PPG).
Florida Atlantic scores 79.3 points per game (26th) and shoots 47.2 percent from the field (41st), including 37.8 percent from three (22nd). It converts 71.2 percent of its free throws (205th) and averages 35.2 rebounds (30th) with a +5.4 rebounding margin. FAU is 24th in schedule-adjusted offensive efficiency, 25th in effective field goal percentage (54.3%), and 156th in adjusted tempo.
The Owls surrender 65.7 points per game on defense (60th), an d their opponents shoot 41.1 percent (40th), including 33.3 percent from three-point distance (145th). Florida Atlantic is 30th in adjusted defensive efficiency and 64th in assist-per-turnover ratio.
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