Florida Atlantic University’s dream season is over after a bitterly disappointing finish on Saturday night.
The Owls men’s basketball team, which led by 14 points with as little as 13:37 left in the game, saw Lamont Butler hit an 18-foot jump shot as time expired to give San Diego State a shocking 72-71 win in a NCAA Tournament national semifinal.
“It’s unbelievable,” Butler said. “This is what I came here to do. I’m glad the shot went in. I’m just happy for my team right now.”
The Aztecs (32-6) appeared to be in trouble as the free-flowing Owls (35-4) picked them apart while building a 14-point lead.
San Diego State got back in it, as it always does, with defense.
The Aztecs shut down FAU and pulled within one when Jaedon LeDee hit a short jumper with 36 seconds left. After FAU’s Johnell Davis missed a contested layup, the Aztecs didn’t call timeout and got the ball to Butler.
The clock ticking down, Butler dribbled to the baseline, found that cut off and circled back. He stepped back to create a little room and hit a jumper that sent the Aztecs racing out onto the floor — and into Monday’s championship game against UConn or Miami.
“The plan was just to get downhill,” Butler said. “They cut me off a little bit. I looked up, there was two seconds left, so I got to a shot that I’m comfortable with. And I hit it.”
San Diego State’s defense has played a key role in its run to the final. It clamped down on four straight opponents to open the NCAA Tournament.
The Aztecs had no answer for the swaggy Owls in the first half, allowing them to hit 5 of 11 from 3-point range to build a 40-33 halftime lead.
FAU stretched the lead to 14 midway through the second half.
Then the Aztecs got gritty.
The Owls, who were the first school in the men’s tournament’s history to have reached a Final Four without ever having won a tournament game previously, led 65-60 with 6:45 left. However, the Aztecs then piled up nine offensive rebounds off missed shots in a 2:02 span, leading to a 65-65 game with 4:43 remaining.
Matt Bradley led the offense in the second half and finished with 21 points after struggling with his shot in the previous three games.
Alijah Martin kept FAU in it, scoring 19 of his 26 points in the second half, seeming to have an answer for every Aztecs move.
He didn’t get a chance for a final one.
