01 April 2024 , 23:00
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The Simpsons had earlier 'foreseen' an NCAA Tournament game nearly 10 years before a significant upset.
A Duke vs. NC State matchup, which transpired on 31st March, was accurately foretold by The Simpsons back in 2015 - nine years before the thrilling Easter Sunday clash between the two college basketball teams. In the episode from 2015, Homer Simpson is seen donning a blue Duke shirt while also waving an NC State flag.
The scene begins highlighting the date of 3/31, followed by Homer enjoying a daydream about celebrating his sobriety, stretching from St. Patrick's Day to the NCAA Tournament. Skip to almost a decade later, and in reality, NC State indeed played against Duke and pulled off a massive upset, securing a 76-64 victory to advance to the Final Four, where they are slated to challenge Purdue.
This isn't the inaugural occasion of The Simpsons seemingly forecasting the future. Other accurate projections include Donald Trump's presidency and various other apparent examples.
NC State carved out their own piece of history at the weekend. Being the 11th seed, they are the lowest-ranked seed ever to reach the Final Four. They share the record with teams such as the 1986 LSU, 2006 George Mason, 2011 VCU, 2018 Loyola Chicago, and 2021 UCLA.
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Center DJ Burns Jr. spearheaded their efforts, amassing a whopping 29 points on 13-of-19 shooting, in addition to three assists and four rebounds.
"We knew we had an advantage throwing the ball inside to [DJ]," remarked NC State coach Kevin Keatts. "They decided, which some teams do, not to double-team him, and obviously he shot 13 for 19 and had 29 points."
Keatts spoke up about NC State's miracle run: "Typically I play with two forwards Ben [Middlebrook] and Mo [Diarra] together. But when DJ hit the transfer portal, I was like, man, I got to change."
Homer Simpson was wearing a Duke shirt while holding an NC State flag on March 31st in a 2015 episode (Twitter)"[Burns] changed me. I've never thrown the ball inside as much as I have in the last couple of years.... It's changed the way I look at post guys now. I've now found out that I can have a mix of throwing the ball to a post guy and having guard play."
Meanwhile, reigning champions UConn and Alabama are up against each other on the other side of the Final Four bracket. The winners of these games will face off for the big game at the University of Phoenix Stadium in Arizona on April 8.
UConn's head coach Dan Hurley is sure that his team will keep their crown. "We've been the best team in college basketball," claims Hurley. "Obviously, March Madness is next week... who knows what will happen? But clearly, we've been the best this year."
Both Final Four men's matchups will unfold next Saturday (April 6), with Purdue and NC State going head-to-head first, followed by UConn and Alabama.