NCAA Tournament: Houston and Auburn ensure all No 1 seeds make men’s Final Four
Johni Broome had 25 points and 14 rebounds, and Auburn took command with 17 unanswered points in the first half to beat Michigan State 70-64 on Sunday and complete a sweep of No 1 seeds advancing to the Final Four.
Auburn earned their second Final Four trip, while Michigan State fell short in their bid to send coach Tom Izzo to his ninth national semi-final. Auburn’s only previous Final Four appearance came in 2019, also under coach Bruce Pearl.
The South Region champion Tigers, the top overall seed in the NCAA Tournament, became the last of the No 1 seeds to advance to the Final Four – joining Florida, Duke and Houston.
It’s the first time all top seeds have reached the Final Four since 2008, which was the only previous year of all No 1-seeded semi-finalists since seeding began in 1979. And higher-seeded teams went 12-0 in regional semi-finals and finals for the first time since the tournament expanded in 1985.
Auburn will face Florida, who beat Texas Tech 84-79 in the West Region final, in an all-Southeastern Conference semi-final on Saturday in San Antonio.
Jaxon Kohler led the Spartans with 17 points and 11 rebounds. Jaden Akins had 15 points. Broome fell on his right arm while attempting to block a shot with 10:37 remaining and left the game. Broome, the Associated Press SEC player of the year and a first-team All-America selection, appeared to hurt his right elbow on the fall.
Broome returned with 5:29 remaining, drawing an immediate ovation from Auburn fans. He had the elbow wrapped and sank a three-pointer less than a minute later.
“It was a scary moment,” Broome said. “I went down but my team had my back.”
Earlier on Sunday, Houston’s relentless defense confused and harassed Tennessee and carried the Cougars into their seventh Final Four and first since 2021, with LJ Cryer scoring 17 points in a 69-50 victory.
Emanuel Sharp scored 14 of his 16 points after halftime for top-seeded Houston and was named the region’s Most Outstanding Player.
Houston extended the nation’s longest active winning streak to 17 games. The Cougars had been eliminated as a No 1 seed in the Sweet 16 in each of the past two years, but this time coach Kelvin Sampson’s team have a shot at the program’s first national title.
The Cougars will face Cooper Flagg and five-time national champ Duke on Saturday in San Antonio. The Cougars have reached the national title game twice, losing in 1983 to North Carolina State and in 1984 to Georgetown in the Phi Slama Jama era.
