For a brief second, the moment appeared too big for the Florida Atlantic Owls.
With less than three minutes to play in the second half, Owls guard Alijah Martin nailed both his free throws to give FAU an eight-point cushion over the Kansas State Wildcats.
However, K-State climbed back into the contest, going on a 10-3 run to make it 75-74 with 24 seconds to play.
That was as close the Wildcats would get as Michael Forrest was the Ice Man from the charity stripe, cinching the win for Florida Atlantic.
FAU IS GOING TO THE FINAL FOUR!!!!@FAUMBB | #CUSAMBB | #MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/VzzUKAqYeg
— Conference USA (@ConferenceUSA) March 26, 2023
Four of the five Owls’ starters had 13 or more points, with Martin setting the high mark at 17. The sophomore guard has been a steady contributor, recording ten or more points in all but one of his past six games.
Now, Florida Atlantic awaits the regional winner from the South bracket to determine its Final Four opponent.
The San Diego State Aztecs enter Sunday’s battle against the Creighton Bluejays as +2.5 point underdogs, per the line info from FanDuel Sportsbook.
