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Oregon coach Dana Altman and players on Final Four loss to North Carolina.
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North Carolina coach Roy Williams and players react to Final Four win over Oregon.
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South Carolina coach Frank Martin and players react to Final Four loss to Gonzaga.
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Gonzaga coach Mark Few and players on win over South Carolina in Final Four.
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USA TODAY Sports’ Dan Wolken previews the NCAA championship game, which will be a frontcourt-heavy battle between UNC and Gonzaga.
USA TODAY Sports
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USA TODAY Sports’ Dan Wolken recaps the two Final Four semifinal games, won in nail-biters by Gonzaga and North Carolina.
USA TODAY Sports
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FINAL FOUR: Fans react as Gonzaga survives late S. Carolina rally, advances to championship 77-73. (Alden Woods/azcentral)
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Grand Canyon University’s student section, The Havocs, were gifted tickets by their school administration to attend the Final Four.
USA TODAY Sports
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Fans arrive early for the festivities before the Final Four games Saturday at University of Phoenix Stadium. (Patrick Breen/azcentral)
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Will Phoenix become a basketball city? Dan Bickley discusses the Final Four in Arizona, NBA stars resting and more in the latest Shot Clock.
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Would you spend $7,500 for three games of the best college basketball? How about $275? Reporter Perry Vandell breaks down the action on the tickets before the big games. Patrick Breen/azcentral.com
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Oregon’s Tyler Dorsey and Dillon Brooks discuss what it would mean to win a national championship, at University of Phoenix Stadium on Friday, March 31. David Wallace/azcentral sports
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University of North Carolina talks nerves and expectations before Saturday’s game.
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South Carolina’s Sindarius Thornwell talks about missing Thursday’s practice because of illness and feeling better for Friday’s practice at University of Phoenix Stadium. David Wallace/azcentral sports
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Perkins and Karnowski talk injury, nerves and expectations before practice on Friday.
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A look at the paths taken by the remaining teams in this year’s mens NCAA basketball tournament.
By Jim Sergent and Ramon Padilla, USA TODAY.
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USA TODAY Sports’ Nicole Auerbach thinks you’ll be doing yourself a disservice if you don’t keep an eye on these players in the Final Four.
USA TODAY Sports
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South Carolina players answer the question that’s on the minds of so many college basketball fans: what the heck is a Gamecock?
USA TODAY Sports
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North Carolina’s Justin Jackson and Joel Berry II discuss being back to the NCAA Final Four and trying to win it all, in the locker room at University of Phoenix Stadium on March 30, 2017. (David Wallace/azcentral sports)
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Oregon’s Dillon Brooks, Dylan Ennis and Casey Benson, discuss counting their blessings, meeting Kobe Bryant and playing a Final Four in their home state, respectively, in the locker room on March 30, 2017. (David Wallace/azcentral sports)
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Gonzaga’s Przemek Karnowski, Jordan Mathews and Nigel Williams-Goss talk about rising to the moment of the NCAA Final Four in the locker room at University of Phoenix Stadium on March 30, 2017. (David Wallace/azcentral sports)
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South Carolina’s PJ Dozier and Duane Notice talk about their confidence and under dog status for the NCAA Final Four in the locker room at University of Phoenix Stadium on March 30, 2017. (David Wallace/azcentral sports)
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Downtown Phoenix gets ready to host the NCAA Final Four Fan Fest and house the teams as they play in nearby Glendale for the NCAA Final Four games. David Wallace/azcentral.com
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Luke Maye connected on a last-second jump shot to defeat the Kentucky Wildcats and send North Carolina to the Final Four.
Time_Sports
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USA TODAY Sports’ Nicole Auerbach goes behind the scenes of South Carolina’s win over Florida, which sends the Gamecocks to their first Final Four.
USA TODAY Sports
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The Oregon Ducks have reached the Final Four for the first time since 1939 after a 74-60 win over the Kansas Jayhawks in the Elite Eight.
Time_Sports
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USA TODAY Sports’ Dan Wolken breaks down Gonzaga’s Elite Eight victory over Xavier.
USA TODAY Sports
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The court for the NCAA Final Four tournament is put together at the University of Phoenix stadium in Glendale, Arizona. Thomas Hawthorne/azcentral
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azcentral’s Paola Boivin breaks down Arizona’s loss to Xavier in the Sweet 16. Video: Michael Chow/azcentral.com
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The Arizona Wildcats, who many had in the Final Four, are bounced from the NCAA Tournament. Plus, the Oakland Raiders may soon be the Las Vegas Raiders. Will that actually happen? Video: azcentral sports
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USA TODAY Sports’ George Schroeder looks at how the Jayhawks and Ducks prevailed to set up their upcoming matchup in the Midwest region of the NCAA tournament.
USA TODAY Sports
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ULCA head coach Steve Alford acknowledges the game against the two ‘bluebloods’ of NCAA basketball with the most championships between them.
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Considered all but done after losing their star point guard and dropping six straight games in February, Xavier has improbably made a run to the Elite Eight after defeating No. 2 Arizona in the Sweet Sixteen.
Time_Sports
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Arizona Wildcats head coach Sean Miller is the third highest-paid head coach in the NCAA Tournament and can earn close to $1 million in bonuses for winning the national title.
Wochit
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Take a look at some at the faces of celebration and dejection from the tourney.
USA TODAY Sports
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The massive scoreboard known as “Colussus TV” is installed at University of Phoenix Stadium for the upcoming NCAA Final Four games. David Wallace/azentral.com
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Being on network TV means this years NCAA tourney should easily overtake last year’s viewership. Richard Deitsch explains how to watch the Madness.
Time
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Oregon reacts to heartbreaking loss in Final Four
North Carolina on advancing to 2nd title game in a row
South Carolina on tough loss to Gonzaga
Gonzaga reacts to Final Four win over South Carolina
North Carolina-Gonzaga will be throwback national title game
Semifinal games come down to final plays
Gonzaga fans in Glendale react to win over S. Carolina in NCAA semifinal
The rowdiest student section at the Final Four isn’t even in the game
Fans pack University of Phoenix Stadium lawn for Final Four
Shot Clock: Phoenix a basketball city?
Which seats in the Final Four house are still available?
Oregon on what it would mean to win a national championship
UNC players talk about returning to Final Four
South Carolina’s Sindarius Thornwell on his illness and feeling better
Gonzaga’s Josh Perkins and Przemek Karnowski talk Final Four
Road to the Final Four means a lot of miles traveling
Top players to watch in the Final Four
Gamecocks explain what a gamecock is
North Carolina on being back to the NCAA Final Four
Oregon on counting their blessings
Gonzaga on rising to the moment
South Carolina on their confidence and underdog status
Downtown Phoenix gets ready for NCAA Final Four
North Carolina headed to Final Four with win over Kentucky
South Carolina makes history with Final Four berth
Oregon advances to first Final Four since 1939 with win over Kansas
Gonzaga advances to program’s first Final Four
Piece by piece, the court for the NCAA Final Four tournament is put together in Glendale
Paola Boivin recaps Arizona’s loss to Xavier
Shot Clock: Arizona knocked out; Raiders moving to Vegas?
Kansas and Oregon set up intriguing Elite 8 matchup
UCLA’s Steve Alford talks about playing Kentucky
No. 11 Xavier upsets No. 2 Arizona to head to Elite Eight
A closer look at Sean Miller’s salary and bonuses
March Madness: Craziest faces of the NCAA tournament
Scoreboard installed at University of Phoenix Stadium for Final Four
Media circus: A guide to March Madness
Live at the Final Four: Sunday in Glendale
Get the latest from the Final Four in Glendale.
This is the first time the signature event in men’s college basketball will be held in Arizona and the first time it’s been in the West since Seattle hosted it in 1995.
Keep coming back to this page for news and notes from University of Phoenix Stadium.
Final Four trivia
You are a true hoops savant if you knew that …
–Gonzaga is not the first West Coast Conference team to advance to the championship game. San Francisco was the last to do it, in 1956, beating Iowa 83-71 for the title. The Dons actually won back-to-back titles, led by shot-blocking sensation Bill Russell. By the way, the conference originally was known as the California Basketball Association, then the West Coast Athletic Conference, and finally the WCC in 1989.
–Gonzaga is not the first school from the state of Washington to reach the title game. Seattle, with tournament Most Outstanding Player Elgin Baylor, lost to Kentucky in 1958.
–North Carolina, which lost to Villanova in the title game last season, is the eighth team to return to the final after finishing runner-up the previous season. Kentucky was the last to win in its second trip, in 1998. The Tar Heels have 10 players on their roster who played last year.
–Gonzaga is trying to become the first team to win 38 games in a season and not be coached by John Calipari. His Kentucky teams won 38 in 2012 and 2015 and his Memphis team reached that mark in 2008, although those wins were later vacated.
–Finally, North Carolina is attempting to win the 48th NCAA team championship in school history. Gonzaga is seeking its first.
Final Four TV ratings soar
Saturday’s Final Four games at University of Phoenix Stadium drew the most television viewers for the national semifinals in 19 years.
North Carolina’s 77-76 win over Oregon was watched by an average of 18.8 million viewers. That’s an increase of 46 percent over 2016, and was the second highest average for the late Final Four game in 19 years. Viewership peaked at 20.5 million from 8-8:15 p.m.
Gonzaga’s 77-73 victory over South Carolina in the first game drew an average of 14.7 million viewers, 40 percent better than last year and also the second most-watched Final Four game in the early times slot since 2005. A peak of 20.6 million tuned in from 5:15-5:27 p.m.
Overall, CBS and Turner Sports say this is the most-watched NCAA Tournament in 23 years.
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