NEW YORK CITY – The Owls’ dance through the NCAA Tournament will now head to the Elite 8.

On Thursday night, FAU men’s basketball (34-3, 18-2 C-USA) took down the University of Tennessee Volunteers 62-55 in the Sweet 16 at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

Sophomore guard Johnell Davis led the scoring charge in the Owls’ first victory over Tennessee, finishing the night with 15 points and six rebounds.

The 4.5-point upset marks the Owls’ first advance into the Elite 8 in program history; there, they’ll face the Kansas State University Wildcats (26-9, 11-7 Big 12) on Saturday, also in the Garden.

Since suffering a first round exit in the Big 12 Conference, the 3-seed have danced their way to three NCAA Tournament victories. Most recently, a 98-93 overtime victory over the 7-seed Michigan State University Spartans in the Sweet 16. 

Kansas State is led by senior guard Markquis Nowell, who’s averaging 17 points. In their Sweet 16 victory over Michigan State, the 5-foot-8, third team All-American tallied a 20-point, 19-assist double-double sending the Wildcats to the Elite 8 for the first time since 2019.

FAU and Kansas State will face off on Saturday, March 25,  with the winner advancing to the Final Four at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas. Tipoff from Madison Square Garden is scheduled for 6 p.m and will be broadcast by TBS.

Cameron Priester is the Sports Editor for the University Press. For information regarding this or other stories, email [email protected] or tweet him @PriesterCameron