One Team Seek Historic Final Four Berth in Star-Studded Elite Eight

One remaining team has never been to the Final Four, and an epic blue blood matchup awaits after the Sweet 16.

Published: 3/28/2026, 12:16:12 PM EDT

One Team Seek Historic Final Four Berth in Star-Studded Elite Eight — Head coach Rick Barnes of the Tennessee Volunteers reacts during the first half against the Iowa State Cyclones in the Sweet Sixteen of the 2026 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at the United Center in Chicago, Ill., on March 27, 2026. (Michael Reaves/Getty Images)

While the Sweet 16 mostly looked like a lineup of men’s college basketball blue bloods ready to vie for supremacy, one advancing team to the Elite Eight hasn’t made a Final Four before.

And it’s not Iowa, the No. 9 seed in the South Region. The Hawkeyes made Final Four appearances in 1955, 1956, and 1980.

Sixth-seed Tennessee, which beat No. 2 seed Iowa State 76–62 on Friday in the Midwest Region, has never reached the Final Four. The Volunteers have been close of late, amid a third consecutive Elite Eight appearance under head coach Rick Barnes.

“Very, very—it’s very important,” Volunteers forward Felix Okpara told reporters afterward regarding becoming the first team in program history to reach a Final Four.

“I’m happy to be here. It shows the hard work we put in, and I feel like last year we just had some—we had some unfinished business.”

“We felt like we should have won that game, that Elite Eight game, but it didn’t work out in our favor,” he added. “This year we’re going to come out on fire, and we’re going to get the job done.”

Last year, Tennessee lost to Houston 69–50 in the Elite Eight. Houston’s defense locked down the Vols with only 15 points scored in the first half.

Tennessee had a closer contest in the 2024 Elite Eight, a 72–66 loss to Purdue.

Tennessee will just have to do it against No. 1 seed Michigan on Sunday. The Wolverines beat No. 4 seed Alabama 90–77 behind another big game by Yaxel Lendeborg, who posted a double-double of 23 points and 12 rebounds.

“I mean, you got Yax playing like that, just the kind of competitiveness he had today, like, I think he’s the best player in the country without a doubt,” Michigan guard Roddy Gayle Jr. told reporters afterward. “He’s like that, we’re the best team.”

Michigan returned to the Elite Eight for the first time since 2021. The Wolverines seek a Final Four appearance for the first time since 2018 and a national championship for the first time since 1989.

Michigan State won’t be joining the Wolverines in the Elite Eight, as the No. 2 seed UConn Huskies dispatched the No. 3 seed Spartans 67–63 in the East Region on Friday. UConn pulled away late as Alex Karaban buried a three-pointer down the stretch. Karaban was part of the Huskies’ national championship teams in 2023 and 2024.

“He’s a calming influence for me,” Huskies head coach Dan Hurley humorously told reporters afterward before a pause.

“I’m waiting for you to laugh. It’s like having an associate head coach that is in the locker room, that lives in the apartments, that is in the dining, that is in the weight room, that’s peer pressuring his teammates to do extra. It’s like having a top assistant that’s on your team and always around your players.”

UConn is the most recent remaining national championship winner in the Elite Eight, and the Huskies face Duke next on Sunday. The No. 1 seed Blue Devils edged No. 5 seed St. John’s 80–75.

“What’s important is something that St. John’s does very well. They didn’t have any second-chance points in the first half; they ended up with only six,” Duke head coach Jon Scheyer told reporters afterward.

“We made a big commitment this year to really crash and make it part of what we do.”

Duke also benefited from the return of Caleb Foster from his broken foot. Foster had 11 points, all in the second half.

“That’s the first time he’s gone 5-on-5 with these guys,” Scheyer said. “There hasn’t been one second of 5-on-5 since he’s come back. I just think that speaks to what he did tonight.”

Duke and UConn have met in massive NCAA tournament games before, which include the 2024 Final Four and the 1999 national championship game. They last met in the Elite Eight during the 1990 season, 79–78 in overtime, when Hurley’s older brother, Bobby Hurley, played for Duke.

From The Epoch Times