Have blueprints been laid? Final Four could be sign of things to come
HOUSTON — The memories of an unlikely Final Four are still fresh in the mind of college basketball, but as is often the case in sports, thoughts immediately turn to the future.
Talks of dynasty, what ifs and what may be looming.
The foursome that arrived at NRG Stadium for college basketball’s biggest weekend were a combination of unheralded and unlikely.
Florida Atlantic had never won a game in the NCAA Tournament before this season and unpredictably strung four wins together and were seconds away from playing for a national championship.
FAU is already changing scenery, moving to the American from Conference USA and San Diego State would undoubtedly jump if the Pac-12 comes calling, as many presume.
Miami and UConn were more traditional names, but schools that utilized new tools available to them — new name, image and likeness rules and the transfer portal — to quickly build their team into national title contenders.
But the question to be asked is if what happened in Houston was simply an aberration of a sign of things to come?
Are the days of No. 1 seeds predictably waltzing to the final weekend of the season numbered? Or will bluebloods again reign in the sport as they long have.
The safe bet is probably somewhere in the middle.
No. 1 seeds will be stronger some seasons and softer others — that is the nature of an ever-changing game — but usually at least some of the biggest names in the sport find a way to work its way through the maze that is the NCAA Tournament.
The UConn men are usually overshadowed by the highly successful women’s program at the school, but with their fifth title in 25 seasons, the Huskies have legitimately earned their permanent seat at the big table.
UConn is now one of six programs to win at least five national championships, along with the most historic programs in college basketball — UCLA, Kentucky, North Carolina, Duke and Indiana — a feat even Kansas hasn’t reached.
THE BIGGEST CHANGE
Teams do not have to feel banished to the bottom of their league for long.
As Texas A&M-Corpus Christi showed under Steve Lutz, smart recruiting and use of the transfer portal can quickly refurbish a roster.
The Islanders went from a 5-win team to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances.
UConn coach Dan Hurley did quick self-evaluation of the Huskies roster last season after falling to New Mexico State in the opening round of the tournament, and went to the portal to fill the gaps, leading to the arrival of Tristen Newton (East Carolina), Nahiem Alleyne (Virginia Tech) and Joey Calcaterra (San Diego).
A year later Hurley and the Huskies played for a national championship and cut down the nets.
As teams gain greater knowledge of the portal and how best to use it and the NIL-era matures, undoubtedly it will rise to the top of the food chain, just as one-and-done players were eventually embraced by traditional heavyweights.
Programs will adapt or get left behind. But as this March proved, even the little guy can use tools at their disposal and force their way into the discussion.
By Monday’s national championship game more than 1,200 players had entered their name into the transfer portal, which is now the norm rather than the exception.
In sports success is copied and improved and there is no doubt teams will look and see what the Huskies did, how they got to Monday night and look to mimic their path.
It is possible that the 2023 Final Four was a fluke and a one off, but it is more likely a sign of what is to come in men’s college basketball.
This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times: 2023 Final Four could be sign of things to come for college basketball
