FAU basketball: 5 facts you need to know about the Owls

FAU will meet San Diego State this weekend for the right to play for the National Championship. Here are five things to know about the upstart Owls.

Businessman-turned-unsuccessful US presidential candidate Ross Perot once said, “life is never more fun than when you’re the underdog competing against the giants.” If Perot was right, then the Florida Atlantic Owls must be having a blast this college basketball season.

Before the Owls face off with San Diego State in the Final Four of March Madness, here are five things to know about FAU basketball.

FAU basketball has already made March Madness history for the program

From their inaugural season in 1988 as an NCAA Division II member up until last season, the Owls had never won a postseason game. I don’t mean an NCAA Tournament game, I mean any postseason game.

Florida Atlantic had only ever made the Big Dance once prior to this season – 2002. That year, FAU earned a No. 15 seed, losing in the opening round to Alabama. It wasn’t until nine years later the Owls would appear in the postseason again, this time in the NIT. They’ve also played in the College Insiders Tournament and CBI Classic, both ending in similar one-and-done fashion.

Thanks to their in-state counterparts Miami (FL), the Owls and Hurricanes become the first teams for the same state to reach their first-ever Final Fours in the same season.

In addition, San Diego State joins the Owls and Hurricanes in reaching their first-ever Final Four. That marks the first time since 1970 that three teams will all make their national semifinal debut in the same season.

Here comes the money: FAU basketball in line to cash a major check

Cue the Shane McMahon theme song because FAU is in for a serious payday.

According to the most recent budget information (which can be found here) from Fiscal Year 2020-21, the operating budget for FAU’s men’s basketball team was $1.6 million dollars. For simply reaching the Final Four, the Owls earn $8.3 million dollars.

I know your jaw is on the floor. Mine was, too, when I read that.

For those that are curious, the NCAA pays teams in what they refer to as ‘units.’ Those units come from an overall performance fund; this season, that fund was $170.3 million, per the NCAA. Last season, a unit was worth $337,141, according to a report from Sportico. The NCAA multiplies the units by how many rounds a team advances, meaning that teams who qualify for the final can receive as many as five units.

Little House on the Paradise

Affectionately known as “The Burrow” as a nod to their mascot, Abessino Court at FAU Arena is home to the Owls’ men’s and women’s basketball programs. The arena actually predates the men’s basketball program, since it opened in 1984.

It hosted its first-ever men’s college basketball game on November 18 of that season, a game that saw FAU welcome Palm Beach Atlantic. 23 years later, FAU arena recorded a new attendance record — 2,961 spectators to watch the Owls play FIU.

Yes, one of the final teams left standing in March Madness plays in an arena that seats less than 3,000 people.

To put it in perspective, the Owls will play San Diego State at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas. That arena, which is also home to the NFL’s Houston Texans, seats 72,220. For all you people who played Cool Math Games as a kid, that’s 24.5 times the size of the Owls’ home facilities.

All I do is win: FAU basketball has won more than anyone in 2022-23

FAU enters the Final Four 35-3 overall. Not only is that a new program record for single-season wins, it’s also the most wins for any DI team this season. The next closest is San Diego State, who is 31-6 this year and Florida Atlantic’s next opponent.

This isn’t the first team to cross the 35-win plateau, though. The Owls join Virginia in 2019, Villanova in 2018 and 2016, as well as 2015’s Duke squad and 2013’s Louisville team to all do it within the last decade.

The 2008 Memphis team, also a member of Conference USA at the time, holds the single-season record for most wins in a season with 38. The Tigers, then coached by John Calipari, advanced to the National Championship game, only to lose to Kansas in overtime. Another Calipari team, Kentucky in 2012, shares the record with his past Memphis squad.

While 38 is the benchmark, five other teams have all reached 37 wins in a single season. Illinois in 2005, Duke in 1986, UNLV in 1987, Kansas in 2008 and Duke (again) in 1999 all have accomplished the feat.

Interestingly enough, three of the previous six National Champions have all won at least 35 games. While a No. 9 seed has never qualified for the title game, the Owls do have some history on their side.

Going against the grain

The transfer portal may be all the rage these days, but FAU is proving you can still win the old-fashioned way.

That’s not to say the Owls don’t have transfers on their roster; they do, three to be exact. However, two of those three, Brian Greenlee and Vladislav Goldin, have spent at least half their careers in Boca Raton. The other is Jalen Gaffney, who transferred in from UConn this past offseason.

FAU’s roster is mostly comprised of former high school recruits. In fact, three of their top four minute-getters are former prep recruits – sophomores Alijah Martin and Johnell Davis, and freshman Nick Boyd. Both Boyd and Martin signed with FAU as part of head coach Dusty May’s third-ever recruiting class.

Bucking trends seems to be the trend this Final Four. Much like the Owls, their fellow Florida counterpart Miami boasts just three DI transfers. While San Diego State has five on their roster, only three of them rank as tops in minutes played for the Aztecs.

In the Hurricanes’ case, those three transfers, Nijel Pack, Norchad Omier and Jordan Miller, are a large part of why Miami (FL) qualified for their first-ever Final Four. It just goes to show there isn’t only one way to win in college basketball, which makes this year’s Final Four all the more intriguing.

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