Florida Atlantic vs. Fairleigh Dickinson: Who do experts predict to win March Madness game?

There can't be many people who picked this matchup in their March Madness bracket.

The No. 9 seed Florida Atlantic will face No. 16 Fairleigh Dickinson on Sunday for a spot in the Sweet 16. Yes, you read that right.

The Owls (32-3) were champions of Conference USA and had a banner season, but coach Dusty May did not expect to be the higher seed in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Many experts didn't even have FAU making it this far, and they had to survive a thrilling first-round game against Memphis. Nick Boyd hit a driving layup with seconds left to give the Owls a 66-65 win, their first ever in the tournament.

FDU, meanwhile, became darlings of March Madness when they stunned No. 1 Purdue 63-58, becoming just the second No. 16 seed to beat a No. 1. Coach Tobin Anderson walked the walk after saying he liked his team's chances against the Boilermakers, despite the Knights (21-15) not even winning their conference regular-season or tournament titles.

Odds are in Owls' favor:Facing FDU, Florida Atlantic is most favored team left in NCAA Tournament. How do they match up?

FAU opens March Madness with a win:Nick Boyd's late layup vs. Memphis vaults Owls to first NCAA Tournament win

How it sounded:Listen to how Florida Atlantic basketball's game-winning shot vs. Memphis sounded on radio, TV

Who will move on to the Sweet 16? Here's what the experts are saying:

Bleacher Report: Florida Atlantic

"Florida Atlantic wins if its shots are falling at all. There was a long stretch against Memphis when FAU could not buy a bucket. But, normally, this is an efficient offense. And, normally, the FDU defense ranks among the worst in the nation. Florida Atlantic should cruise to victory, but maybe FDU's full-court press will shock the world again."

CBS Sports: Fairleigh Dickinson

Four of the five NCAA experts at CBS Sports picked FDU: Jerry Palm, Matt Norlander, Kyle Boone and David Cobb. Only Chip Patterson picked the Owls.

SI.com's FanNation: Florida Atlantic

"Per Synergy, FDU presses at the second-highest rate in the country. This allows them to force turnovers at a top-40 rate in the country, per KenPom," said Steven Hall for FanNation.

"It was successful against Purdue, but Florida Atlantic stands a much better chance of not only handling the pressure but exploiting it. Per Synergy, Florida Atlantic ranks in the 83rd percentile in press offense this season. The Owls also rank in the top 70 nationally in offensive turnover rate. As long as they can handle the press, Florida Atlantic should be able to score on FDU’s 353rd-ranked defense according to KenPom."

FiveThirtyEight: Florida Atlantic

FiveThirtyEight's data modeling gives FAU a 90% chance to beat the Knights. It had given the Owls just a 37% chance to win their first-round matchup against Memphis.

Jerry Carino, NorthJersey.com: Florida Atlantic 78, FDU 75

"Unlike Purdue, FAU won’t mind going up and down at FDU’s pace. This could be a wildly entertaining shootout. The truth is that FAU looks a lot like FDU – balanced, gritty, attack-minded. But they're more consistent – you don't win 32 games by accident – and won’t be taken out of their comfort zone as easily as the Boilers."

Devon Platana, FanDuel: Florida Atlantic

"After holding Purdue to 58 points on .358/.192/.789 shooting, Fairleigh Dickinson has another tough challenge ahead. Florida Atlantic owns the 26th-best offense in the country (77.8 PPG) and is more accurate than the Knights' last opponent, shooting 46.6% from the field (No. 42) and 37.0% from beyond the arc (No. 33).

"The Owls won't have issues being accurate on Sunday. Despite the Knights' solid defensive performance against the Boilermakers, the fact remains that they allow opponents to shoot 47.8% from the floor (No. 343)."

Action Network: Florida Atlantic

As of Saturday afternoon, all five expert picks on sports betting site Action Network were picking the Owls.

Gabriel Santiago, Draft Kings Nation: Florida Atlantic

"I have been thoroughly impressed with the Knights at various times this season, and picked them to win in the First Four. With that said, I think their Cinderella-run ends against FAU, who has not lost in over a month. Due to the Owls physicality, I believe they send FDU home for Spring. Still, I think the Knights should keep it close enough to cover a spread wide enough to parallel bark a bus in."

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: FDU vs FAU predictions: March Madness basketball experts make picks