NCAA Tournament 2023: Ranking all remaining Sweet 16 teams

Mar 17, 2023; Denver, CO, USA; Gonzaga Bulldogs bench players including center Efton Reid III (15) and guard Nolan Hickman (11) celebrate with forward Anton Watson (22) during the first half against the Grand Canyon Antelopes at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Michael Ciaglo-USA TODAY Sports /

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NCAA Tournament Florida Atlantic Owls guard Alijah Martin Joseph Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports /

14. Florida Atlantic Owls – 33-3 (18-2 Conference USA)

Wins over Memphis and Fairleigh Dickinson

What makes FAU any but a fluke this season is the impressive amount of depth they have. They do have a pair of talented 13 ppg scoring guards in Johnell Davis and Alijah Martin that can go off but there are another 5/6 guys that also contribute at a high level.

The star of the game against Memphis was actually bench forward, Giancarlo Rosado led the team with 15 points on a perfect 6/6 shooting from the field. They needed all of them as the Owls prevailed via a game-winning layup for the 66-65 win.

The score wasn’t as close against 16 seed Fairleigh Dickinson but the Owls were certainly on upset alert, trailing by as many as five points in the second half. But Florida Atlantic stayed poised and made some big shots of its own in the final 10 minutes, including Davis who went for a game-high 29 points and 12 rebounds in the team’s 78-70 win.

Florida Atlantic has proven that it earned the fairly high seed for a mid-major program and made its first Sweet 16 appearance in program history. They’ll look to make some noise against Tennessee, who along with Houston is the best defense remaining in this NCAA Tournament field.

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