The history of No. 11 seeds in the Final Four
No. 11 Seed | Year |
|---|---|
Virginia Commonwealth | 2011 |
Five years later, another mid-major would make an unlikely run to the Final Four as a No. 11 seed. That team was VCU led by young head coach Shaka Smart, who became a rising star in the industry thanks to his team's wild March ride.
Like GMU in 2006, VCU had a strong regular season but faltered in the conference tournament. That's one reason why they were seeded No. 11 in their region. In fact, they had to play in one of the First Four games to open the tournament. That meant their run to the Final Four was the longest run any team had ever made to get to the National Semifinals.
In the First Four game, VCU took down fellow No. 11 seed USC 59-46. Then, in the Round of 64, the Rams handled No. 6 seed Georgetown 74-56.
No. 3 seed Purdue was VCU's next victim in a 94-76 drubbing. In the Sweet 16, VCU downed No. 10 seed Florida State 72-71 in overtime and in the Elite 8 they stunned blue-blood Kansas 71-61.
VCU's run would end in Houston at the Final Four. That night, they fell to No. 8 seed Butler 70-62 in a battle of mid-major powers. Butler would then go on to fall in the title game to UCONN.