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In a Final Four nearly bereft of blue blood, a couple of party crashers hook up when Florida Atlantic battles San Diego State in the first NCAA tournament national semifinal Saturday evening in Houston. The Owls are the dual Conference USA champions this season and the East region champs as the No. 9 seed. The Aztecs are the dual champions of the Mountain West and the South region champs as the No. 5 seed. One of them will play in the national championship game Monday night. Which way are we going here for our free Final Four betting pick? Final Four Betting Odds The Final Four betting market opened San Diego State as a three-point favorite over Florida Atlantic, with an over/under of right around 131.5. Both figures were holding steady in the early betting action. According to Sagarin’s NCAAB ratings at USAToday.com, the Aztecs should be favored by 2.5 points for this match-up. Final Four Betting Preview Florida Atlantic played 18-2 in conference play this season to win the CUSA regular-season title, then won three games in three days to win the conference tournament. For what it’s worth, CUSA still had three teams playing basketball this week; North Texas beat UAB in the NIT championship game Thursday night. The Owls then opened this NCAA tournament with a 66-65 victory over Memphis, then took out Fairleigh Dickinson 78-70 to reach the Sweet 16. FAU then “upset” Tennessee 62-55, followed that up with a 79-76 win over Kansas State to reach the Final Four for the first time in program history. The Owls didn’t play one opponent during the regular season that made this NCAA tournament but played 19-9 ATS. They’re also 4-0 SU and 3-1 ATS in this Big Dance. The Aztecs, meanwhile, played 15-3 in-conference this season to win the Mountain West, then won three games in three days to win the conference tournament. San Diego State then opened this NCAA tournament with a 63-57 victory over Charleston, then brushed off Furman 75-52 to make the Sweet 16. The Aztecs then knocked off top overall seed Alabama 71-64, then outlasted Creighton 57-56 to also reach the Final Four for the first time in program history. So San Diego State is now 9-3, both SU and ATS, this season against teams that made this Big Dance. NCAA Tournament Betting Trends Higher seeds are 41-19 SU but only 29-31 ATS in this NCAA tournament. Totals Report The Overs are 18-17 in Owls games this season, averaging 145 total points. This season, the Unders are 22-14 in Aztecs games, averaging 137 points.
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