Sears dribbled down court, bullied his way into the key for a point-blank, straight- on chip shot—and missed it, adding to a frustrating evening that saw him shoot just 2-12 from the field with a single three-pointer (forget about double-digits). With that miss, Alabama was done for.

The water got choppy, but the Florida Gators climbed back from a double-digit lead to secure their first Final Four appearance in over a decade.

Cooper Flagg and the Blue Devils defeated Alabama 85-65 in Saturday night's regional final action to earn a trip to the Final Four in San Antonio. Duke last made it to the national championship game when Tyus Jones and the Blue Devils won it all in 2015.

The Elite Eight features the cream of the crop. For the first time since 2016, all four No. 1 seeds have advanced to the finals of their respective regions. The combined sum of seeds is 13, tied for the lowest since 2007.

The Blue Devils’ trip to San Antonio, after Saturday’s 85-65 win over Alabama, was the product of years of planning to build around Cooper Flagg, and hard-learned lessons.

Kevin Hovde had a thrilling last hurrah alongside longtime friend and Florida coach Todd Golden before the Gators assistant departs to begin leading the Columbia program at age 36.

San Diego State’s men’s basketball team made the NCAA Tournament in ’75, but the Aztecs would not advance to the Sports Arena (now Pechanga Arena) for the Final Four. The Aztecs lost 90-0 to UNLV in the West Regional, played in Tempe, Ariz.