The 2024 men's NCAA Tournament Final Four features three top-four seeds and one outlier.
No. 11 NC State kept its Cinderella run going with yet another upset on Sunday, this time taking down No. 4 Duke in the Elite Eight. The Wolfpack are now headed to their first Final Four since 1983 thanks to what's been an unbelievable postseason showing.
The Wolfpack entered the ACC Tournament as the No. 10 seed following a 17-14 regular season. Since then, they've rolled off nine straight victories all in win-or-go-home situations, capturing the conference tournament championship and and the NCAA Tournament South regional title.
Now, DJ Burns Jr. and NC State will meet Zach Edey and No. 1 Purdue in the Final Four on Saturday, April 6. The other matchup is No. 1 UConn, the defending champions, against No. 4 Alabama, which made the last four for the first time in program history.
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So, are the No. 11 Wolfpack the lowest seed to ever make the men's Final Four? Here's everything to know about lower seeds in the Big Dance:
What's the lowest seed to make the Final Four?
NC State is now tied for the lowest ever seed to make the Final Four. That title is shared by five other schools that made a Cinderella run to the Final Four as an 11-seed. It was first done by LSU in 1986 followed by George Mason in 2006, VCU in 2011, Loyola Chicago in 2018 and UCLA in 2021. NC State has become the sixth.
What’s the lowest seed to make the NCAA championship game?
NC State is one win away from becoming the lowest seed to appear in the championship game as a double-digit seed has never made it that far. The lowest seed to appear in the final is No. 8 and it's happened four times: Villanova in 1985, Butler in 2011, Kentucky in 2014 and UNC in 2022.
What's the lowest seed to win March Madness?
The 1985 Villanova Wildcats were the only of those four No. 8 seeds to emerge victorious in the championship game.
Final Four appearances by seed
Here's a breakdown of all-time Final Four appearances by seed, including this year:
- 1: 71
- 2: 37
- 3: 19
- 4: 16
- 5: 10
- 6: 6
- 7: 4
- 8: 7
- 9: 3
- 10: 1
- 11: 6
- 12-16: 0
NCAA Tournament champions by seed
NC State could make history for teams seeded 9-16. Here's a breakdown of tournament champs by seed:
- 1: 26
- 2: 7
- 3: 5
- 4: 2
- 5: 0
- 6: 2
- 7: 1
- 8: 1
- 9-16: 0
