Huskies, Owls storm into Final Four

Nobody was mentioning Uconn as a national championship contender when March Madness began, so the Huskies have bulldozed their own path.

Uconn stands two victories away from surprisingly winning the title after steamrolling Gonzaga 82-54 on Saturday night to punch their ticket to the Final Four.

The West Region final in Las Vegas transformed into a one-sided beatdown in which Uconn repeatedly threw haymakers and the Bulldogs wilted under the assault.

The fourth-seeded Huskies (29-8) have won their four NCAA Tournament games by an average of 22.5 points, including three by more than 20.

"Just sticking to our script and doing what we do every single game," Uconn guard Andre Jackson Jr. said. "We have the best coaching staff in the country. These guys get us ready for every game. The scouting reports are always on point."

Jordan Hawkins carried the offence, matching his career high with six 3-pointers and scoring 20 points to lead the Huskies' charge.

Uconn will face either second-seeded Texas or fifthseeded Miami in the Final Four. Those clubs played Sunday in the Midwest Region final.

The Final Four trip is the sixth overall for Uconn and the first since it won the 2014 national championship.

Uconn is 15-0 this season against schools not in its conference (Big East), and coach Dan Hurley said the toughness of the league helped prepare his team for this month's dominating efforts.

"What a performance by the boys to do what we did to a team of that caliber, a program of that caliber," Hurley said. "Obviously we were just playing at a super high level. But I don't think we were - obviously surprised by the margin of victory but not surprised about where we're going next because this is who we've been for a large part of the season."

Alex Karaban added 12 points and Adama Sanogo contributed 10 points, 10 rebounds and six assists for the Huskies, who trailed for just 47 seconds. Jackson had a solid all-around outing with eight points, nine rebounds and 10 assists.

Florida Atlantic 79, Kansas State 76: At New York, ninthseeded Florida Atlantic Owls are headed to their first Final Four in just their second-ever NCAA Tournament appearance after toppling third-seeded Kansas State 79-76 on Saturday in the East Region final at Madison Square Garden.

Alijah Martin scored 17 points, Greenlee scored 16 and Michael Forrest made four pivotal free throws at the end of the game. Vladislav Goldin posted 14 points and 13 rebounds and Johnell Davis had 13 points and eight rebounds as FAU had an enormous 44-22 rebounding advantage (14 offensive).

FAU (35-3) will face either fifth-seeded San Diego State or sixth-seeded Creighton, who played Sunday in the South Region final. The Owls will head to Houston on an 11-game winning streak.

FAU is the third No. 9 seed ever to make the Final Four, joining 2013 Wichita State and 1979 Penn, and the ninth team seeded No. 9 or lower to go this far.

Star guard Markquis Nowell scored 30 points and dished 12 assists for Kansas State (2610). Nae'qwan Tomlin had 14 points and Keyontae Johnson scored nine before fouling out.