College Basketball: The 10 Most Unlikely Final Four Teams Since 2000

4. 2016 Syracuse Orange

It seems like big-time coaches have a lot to do with improbable runs through the tournament. One of this era's best has been Jim Boeheim at Syracuse, who maybe did his best coaching job in 2016. His Orange were just 23-14 in the regular season with a quick exit in the ACC Tournament, sporting a nERD of 11.84.

However, 'Cuse played the nation's 16th-toughest schedule and posted wins over four ranked teams. Therefore, the Selection Committee placed them in the field with a 10 seed. Michael Gbinije, Malachi Richardson and Trevor Cooney took it from there, picking up steam from the very start of March Madness. They blew out two teams before meeting Gonzaga in the Sweet 16.

Syracuse won the matchup by three, and in doing so, earned the right to play ACC foe Virginia in the Elite Eight. In a tough one, the 10 seed overcame the 4 seed by six points and traveled to the Final Four.

But, the run stopped there. North Carolina set the pace and defeated Syracuse by 15 points, albeit after the Orange exceeded earlier expectations.