Florida Atlantic Owls vs. San Diego State Aztecs: Final Four Prediction, Preview, Picks & Odds - 4/1/2023

by Chuck Sommers

Friday, Mar 31, 2023
NCAA Tournament, Final Four

Time: 6:09 p.m. ET
Venue: NRG Stadium, Houston, TX
Where to watch: CBS

Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks


DraftKings: San DIego State -3
BetMGM: San DIego State -3
Caesars: San DIego State -3

Season record
Florida Atlantic: 35-3
San Diego State: 31-6

March is here! March Madness! All the hoopla to get you ready for what should be a fun way to end the season. But as the season continues to progress with what seems like exciting action every week, you know our champion handicappers continue to put the work in each and every week to not only make money for them, but to ensure you get money in your pocket. All you need to do is look at the last 30 days. Scott Rickenbach has reeled in a net profit of $14,000 with a 24-9-0 run on the college hardwood. Team Del Genio has killed it with a 13-1-0 run at +$11,900. Will Rogers (28-15-0) and Matt Fargo (40-27-0) have also seen five figures over the last 30 days with college basketball. Surely, you want to get on this winning as well. All you need to do is go to bigal.com, check out our Best Bets page and make sure you are following along on the action. March will be here before you know it! Take advantage of our best plays and find out what our champion handicappers are doing at bigal.com!

FAU - San Diego State preview, prediction and analysis


We have arrived at the time where the basketball world is completely flipped on its axis. The Final Four is here, and one of Florida Atlantic or San Diego State will be competing for the national championship. I’m not sure what topsy turvy world we are in to get this, but here we are.
 
It will be the Owls and Aztecs fighting for a spot in the title game and will be the first game doing such with Miami and UConn following. In all honesty, this is the greatest Final Four we’ve ever seen because you couldn’t even pick these schools out of a hat and would’ve played against each other.
 
No one would’ve anticipated the 30-plus-win FAU squad that had a 21-game winning streak at one point this season to go into the tournament — benefit from Purdue losing to Fairleigh Dickinson, of course — but still beat them because they also proved to be there. The fact that they took every punch their way and got to the Final Four to show they are legit, led by head coach Dusty May, is going to be one of the greatest stories ever told. Better than Loyola, better than George Mason, better than any other school you can think of.
 
FAU is coming off a 79-76 win over Kansas State in the Elite Eight, days removed after beating Tennessee in the Sweet 16. Tennessee was a No. 1 team in the country once upon a time, and this FAU team is showing how for real they are. 
 
Now they have to handle perhaps the toughest test they’ll face, which is the defense of San Diego State, who is coming off a 57-56 win over Creighton in the Elite Eight. That also came days after taking down the No. 1 overall seed in the tournament, Alabama. San Diego State has given up just 57.3 points per game this season and has used that defense to get to the Final Four. For an FAU team that has been great all year, they haven’t faced a defense like this.
 
Alijah Martin is going to be the one that FAU relies upon to get a groove going offensively. He’s coming off a game-high 17 points in the win over Kansas State, while he also had the defensive duties of trying to slow down Markquis Nowell, who had 30 points and 12 assists for the Wildcats. The Aztecs don’t really have anyone of that star caliber. They are a team that relies playing like, well, a team, and really don’t have anyone that can take over a game. San Diego State might need that in order to get a victory here.
 
Prediction
 
It has been one hell of a season and one hell of a time to watch everything unfold, but if you’re not looking at FAU from a Cinderella lens and thinking they can beat anybody, you’re dead wrong and haven’t been paying attention. Give me the Owls to hoot hoot their way to the national championsip where I’ll be praying that Miami is on the other side to send the state of Florida into an unmitigated frenzy. FAU 62, San Diego State 58

Projected starting lineup

Florida Atlantic:
PG: B.J. Greenlee
SG: Alijah Martin
SF: Nicholas Boyd
PF: Johnell Davis
C: Vladislav Goldin

San Diego State:
PG: Darrion Trammell
SG: LaMont Butler
SF: Matt Bradley
PF: Micah Parrish
C: Keshad Johnson

Don't miss our champion handicappers' free picks and expert basketball picks today. And if you enjoyed this preview, be sure to drop by every day for our daily college basketball projections and previews.

Chuck Sommers

About the Author:

Chuck Sommers has camped outside of sportsbooks since he can remember, learning the tricks and nuances of the trade. He still has nightmares of betting $5,000 on the Raiders in the Tuck Rule game but has since turned that to 25 years of veteran handicapping greatness. You can find him mostly in the shadows at the Red Rock or Aliante casinos wondering if the over is cashing on any given Sunday.

All photographic images used for editorial content have been licensed from the Associated Press.

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