Florida Atlantic University had not won a NCAA tournament game in school history entering this 2023 tournament, now they are one win away from making the Final Four. As a #9th seed in the Eastern regional FAU knocked off #4th seeded University of Tennessee 62-55 at Madison Square Garden on Thursday night. FAU guard Johnell Davis scored a game high 15 points and backcourt mate Nicholas Boyd scored 12 points. Said Boyd when asked how it sounds the Elite 8 sounds, he replied, “it sounds just right, man. We’re where we’re supposed to be. We’re going to keep moving, keep working. We’re going to stay humble and hungry. I can’t count us out anymore. We’re here to stay and we’re going to keep fighting no matter who we line up against, who we play.”
Harlem Product Takes K-State To Elite 8
Tennessee had a rough shooting night and that ultimately cost them the game. Their two highest scorers on the night had just 10 points apiece and they shot just 33% from the field as a team.
The game was held at Madison Square Garden which is a rare tournament site for the NCAA. This is just the second time since 1961 that the NCAA tournament has held games at the World’s Most Famous Arena.
This sets up a matchup with the Kansas State Wildcats who are the #3 seed in the region. As a 9th seed FAU has become one of the darlings of the tournament, but they could find themselves up against an overwhelming Kansas State crowd in the regional championship Saturday night as the Wildcats have four players from Harlem including guard Markquis who set an NCAA for assist in a game 19. Nowell also scored 20 points.
Sports Editor Andrew Rosario contributed to this article.
