March Madness 2019: 10 teams with the toughest path to the Final Four

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MARCH 15: Head coach Steve Wojciechowski of the Marquette Golden Eagles discusses a call with a referee in the first half against the Seton Hall Pirates during the semifinal round of the Big East Tournament at Madison Square Garden on March 15, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /

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CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA – MARCH 16: Trent Forrest #3 of the Florida State Seminoles reacts after their 73-63 loss to the Duke Blue Devils during the championship game of the 2019 Men’s ACC Basketball Tournament at Spectrum Center on March 16, 2019 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /

2. Florida State

The Seminoles failed to claim the ACC Tournament title against Duke, and it may have cost them dearly. Instead of ending up on the 3-line, Florida State ended up with the most difficult path a 4-seed could have gotten.

First up for the Seminoles is a showdown with 13-seed Vermont, which won 27 games and cruised through the America East. Whoever comes out of the 5-12 matchup won’t be easy for the Seminoles, who have to deal with either Markus Howard and Marquette or Ja Morant and Murray State.

Surviving that gauntlet gets Florida State to Anaheim, where they would be staring down the Gonzaga Bulldogs. The Bulldogs have another potential lottery pick on their roster in Rui Hachimura and a loaded rotation behind him, putting the onus on Florida State to match up with them.

Florida State would then earn a showdown with Michigan in the regional final, who topped them in the Elite Eight last year as well. The Wolverines are just as experienced as the Seminoles, taking away the one key advantage Florida State had over other teams in the field as they try and get to the Final Four.

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