astana tour team 2023

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Astana Qazaqstan Team for Tour de France 2023

Astana Qazaqstan Team is ready for the biggest cycling race in the world – the Tour de France, which will be held between 1st and 23rd July with the Grand Depart in Bilbao and the finish, traditionally, in Paris.

Rider roster: Alexey Lutsenko (KAZ), Mark Cavendish (GBR), Cees Bol (NED), Yevgeniy Fedorov (KAZ), David De La Cruz (ESP), Gianni Moscon (ITA), Luis Leon Sanchez (ESP), Harold Tejada (COL).   Sports directors in race: Alexandr Shefer (KAZ), Dmitriy Fofonov (KAZ), Stefano Zanini (ITA).

Race information: letour.fr

Supported by the General Partner “Samruk-Kazyna” and the Sports Support Foundation “SportQory”.

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Astana Qazaqstan Team

Born from the ashes of the Liberty-Seguros team in the wake of the Operación Puerto scandal in 2006, Astana entered the sport of cycling during a hugely turbulent time.

The team’s primary purpose is to promote its home country of Kazakhstan and give Kazakh riders a platform upon which they can showcase their talents to the world. Their biggest victories, however, have been taken by their foreign riders, namely Spain’s Alberto Contador and Italy’s Vincenzo Nibali who each won a Tour de France while riding in the team’s iconic sky-blue livery.

While Astana may have won the biggest race in the sport, twice, their glory days are long over and in recent years they’ve looked more like start-list fillers than big race winners. The departure of Nibali at the end of 2022 left a giant hole at the heart of the squad, one that Astana will hope the likes of Alexey Lutsenko, Gianni Moscon and their new talisman - Mark Cavendish - can hopefully fill.

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Provided by FirstCycling

• Nationality Kazakhstan
• Founded 2006
• Team Principal Alexander Vinokourov
• UCI Code AST
• Bike Sponsor Wilier Triestina

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Astana reveals roster for Tour de France 2023

Rider roster includes Alexey Lutsenko (KAZ), Mark Cavendish (GBR), Cees Bol (NED), Yevgeniy Fedorov (KAZ), David De La Cruz (ESP), Gianni Moscon (ITA), Luis Leon Sanchez (ESP), Harold Tejada (COL).

Alexandr Shefer (KAZ), Dmitriy Fofonov (KAZ), and Stefano Zanini (ITA) will serve as sports directors in race.

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Mark Cavendish joins Astana Qazaqstan for 2023 season as he looks to break Tour de France stage wins record

Updated 17/01/2023 at 13:39 GMT

Mark Cavendish will ride for Astana Qazaqstan for the 2023 season, the two parties have confirmed. Cavendish, 37, didn't have his contract with Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl renewed and was linked with several teams in recent months. However, he has now committed to Astana. The British national road race champion has won 34 stages at the Tour de France – a record he jointly holds with Eddy Merckx.

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Astana Qazaqstan unveil 'veins of mineral stones' kit for Tour de France

Fresh design for Mark Cavendish in final tilt at Tour sprints

Astana Qazaqstan have become the latest team to unveil a new kit for the 2023 Tour de France . Mark Cavendish and company will wear a redesigned jersey for the race, which gets underway in Bilbao on July 1.

The new kit retains Astana’s traditional blue and gold colours, but the pattern is designed to mimic the “veins of mineral stones.” 

The team explained that “the graphics used in the unique design combine the power of minerals and precious stones that the land of Kazakhstan is rich in.”

The redesign follows the news that Astana Qazaqstan had secured two new backers, namely KAZ Minerals and investment company Freedom Broker. The team described the companies as “two leaders of the Kazakh economy in their fields.”

The new jersey is not the only alteration at Astana prior to the Tour. On Thursday, the team announced that Cavendish’s former lead-out man Mark Renshaw has come on board for the Tour as a ‘sprint and lead-out consultant.’

Cavendish is riding his final Tour after announcing that he would retire at the end of this season, and he is chasing a record-breaking 35th stage victory in July. 

The Manxman currently shares the record with Eddy Merckx, having drawn level with the Belgian on his last Tour appearance in 2021.

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End of an era - Mark Cavendish and the Tour de France 

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Vinokurov Talks Development of Astana Qazaqstan Team, Challenges and Plans in Exclusive Interview

By Assel Satubaldina in Nation , Sports on 15 April 2023

ASTANA – The Astana Qazaqstan Team, a professional road cycling racing team based in Kazakhstan, aims to enter the world’s top 18 teams, said Alexander Vinokurov, former professional road cyclist and the team’s general manager, in an exclusive interview with The Astana Times.

Alexander Vinokurov. Photo credit: Sprint Cycling

Astana Qazaqstan Team was founded in 2006 and has since then competed in many major cycling events around the world, including Tour de France, Giro d’Italia, and Vuelta a España. 

The team has had several notable victories in these races. Some of the most successful cyclists to have competed for the Astana Qazaqstan Team include Alberto Contador, Vincenzo Nibali, Fabio Aru, Alexey Lutsenko, and Jakob Fuglsang.

Vinokurov, who retired from professional cycling after winning gold at the London Olympics in 2012 and has led the team since 2013, said it struggles to reach the results of 2014-2015 because of multiple challenges. 

“Look at our stats from 2014-2015 when we were top level, and riders were trying to join the Astana [team] to win a grand tour. After 2018, we just stayed at the same level while other competitors kept growing, investing in the team, having big budgets, and signing good cyclists,” said Vinokurov. 

The main team. Photo credit: Sprint Cycling

He recalled 2018, when the team had 40 wins in the season and was fourth in the Union Cycliste Internationale team rankings. Now the team has dropped to the 25th position. 

The past two years were pivotal for the team, from the change of staff to the dismissal of Vinokurov as a team leader in June 2021. He returned to his post later in August of the same year. 

“The team was feeling it,” he explained. 

Latest races  

At the beginning of the year, the team’s management discusses the schedule with each rider and member of staff. This is when it is decided in which race the team members will participate in.

Mark Cavendish, Cees Bol, Dmitriy Gruzdev, Yevgeniy Fedorov, Martin Laas, Igor Chzhan, and Gleb Syritsa participated in the Scheldeprijs race in Belgium on April 5. Cavendish finished third, leading at first, but at the end, falling behind the eventual winner Jasper Philipsen and second-placed Sam Welsford.

Britain’s Mark Cavendish, who has joined Astana Qazaqstan for the 2023 season, finished third in the 111th Scheldeprijs, the oldest race in Flanders. Photo credit: Sprint Cycling

The team also took part in the Paris-Roubaix on April 9 in France, the third of the five Monument one-day races.

Astana Qazaqstan Team also participated in the UCI World Tour stage race Itzulia Basque Country from April 3 to April 8.

Vinokurov said it is tough for the team to compete in several locations at once.

Paris Roubaix 2023. Photo credit: Sprint Cycling

“This year, we got off to a good start in February. In March, it was difficult. There was not a day when someone was not sick. Sometimes we have to change the program for riders at the very last moment. We have to adapt. We are not shining with results so far,” he said. 

The goal is to survive

“Now we need to adjust. But it takes time. It is easy to break, we have been building [the team] for at least ten years. In 2019, we dropped to sixth place in the overall rankings and in 2020 to 11th place,” he said. 

The team during the training. Photo credit: Sprint Cycling

The top teams are now British Ineos Grenadiers and the UAE Team Emirates, which has Tadej Pogačar, a Slovenian cyclist, on its team. Pogačar is the world’s No. 1 in the UCI individual rankings, breaking for the first time in history the 6,000-point barrier. 

“It is hard to compete when teams have very big budgets that are two to three times larger than yours,” said Vinokurov. 

The team is seeking a co-sponsor, something it has tried to accomplish since 2020 following criticism from Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev on the inexpediency of maintaining professional sports clubs entirely at the expense of the state. 

Alexey Lutsenko of Kazakhstan and Astana Qazaqstan Team celebrates winning during the first Clásica Jaén Paraíso Interior 2022 on Feb. 14, 2022, in Ubeda, Spain. Photo credit: Tim de Waele/Getty Images

Back then, Samruk Kazyna, the general partner of the cycling team, set a goal to cut half of the funding and introduce a co-sponsor to share the financial expenditure with Kazakhstan.

“But this is a difficult period not only for Kazakhstan but also for the world, given what is happening. We hope we will attract a second sponsor who will raise the budget to $25-$30 million, then we will be able to compete. Today, $25 million is the average budget of a world cycling team. We do not even come close to this average,” Vinokurov said.

He added Kazakhstan is still number one in Asia.

Strength and weaknesses

When asked about the team’s biggest strength, Vinokurov said the staff. 

“Riders come and go, but the personnel remain. You work together with them every day, sometimes for one and a half months, you live in one room, they become like a second family,” said Vinokurov. 

Kazakhstan’s Yevgeniy Fedorov wins a gold medal at the 2022 UCI Road World Championships in Wollongong, Australia. Photo credit: Sprint Cycling

The team lacks a leader, he added, yet finding one requires a budget. 

“The team clearly lacks a leader. It used to be Vincenzo Nibali and Alberto Contador. But Nibali has already retired. When you have an obvious leader, it is easier to build a team around him. The team’s wings spread, the guys can do the impossible. But to find a leader, you need a budget,” said Vinokurov.  

Among the near-term goals for the national team is preparing for the Asian Road Cycling Championship on June 7 in Thailand.

Raising hopes for juniors

Looking to the future, Vinokurov expressed great hope for juniors. There are currently two youth teams in Kazakhstan – the Vino SKO team based in the North Kazakhstan Region, where Vinokurov is from, and the Apple City team of Almaty, funded by the city akimat (administration) and Astana Group holding. 

Astana Qazaqstan Development Team 2023. Photo credit: Sprint Cycling

Vinokurov said they found the right person in Spain, a cycling fan, who is ready to train the junior cyclists. The first group will depart for Granada in May. 

“Young riders are from 19 to 23 years old, and if they show results, they are then promoted to the youth Astana team [referring to a UCI Continental team for under-23 riders, named Astana Qazaqstan Development Team]. If we see talent, we will sign them into the professional team, so we do not have to look for riders outside [Kazakhstan] or hire them,” said Vinokurov. 

He also emphasized the importance of involving women in the sport. Globally, women still face challenges in terms of representation and gender equity compared to men’s cycling.

“Women are more represented [in cycling] now. I have always said that you have to give women in Kazakhstan a chance. There used to be disagreement just ten years ago about why we need girls and women [in this sport], but I always knew that [it is necessary],” he added. 

Dream big and work hard

Vinokurov said dreaming big and working hard are key to success. Young riders, however, should not aim to get into a team but rather show results, he said. 

“Dream and work hard. If you have the desire, you can achieve more,” he stressed. “I tell the guys to not think about contracts. You have to think about the result – if you manage to achieve it, the contract and the money will follow.”

Vinokurov himself is a demonstration of how strong will and perseverance can bring accomplishments. The Kazakh rider has overcome numerous obstacles and setbacks in his career to become one of the most prominent cyclists of his generation.

Alexander Vinokurov wins the cycling road race at London 2012 London Olympics. Photo credit: Sprint Cycling

Born on Sept. 16, 1973, in Bishkul, Vinokurov began cycling at a young age, honing his skills on the rugged terrain of his homeland. It was in February 1984 when a 23-year-old novice coach Sergey Kruchina walked into a class in a secondary school in the village of Bishkul in the North Kazakhstan Region and announced the opening of a cycling section at a local sports school. Many kids agreed to visit the section. Fourth grader Alexander Vinokurov was one of them.

“When I first started [cycling], there was no professional sport. We did it because we just liked it. We never dreamed of getting into professional sports. Today the kids have all the steps and stages [laid out for them],” he said. 

Vinokurov won more than 60 high-profile races, including overall classification and three stages of the Vuelta a España grand tour, four stages and podium (third place) of the overall classification of the Tour de France grand tour, overall classification of the Paris-Nice stage race two times, Criterium Dauphine and Giro del Trentino stage races, Liege – Bastogne – Liege classical race two times, Amstel Gold Race classical race, silver medal at 2000 Olympic Games and the 2012 Olympic Games, just a year after he suffered a serious injury.

Vinokurov sings the national anthem of Kazakhstan at the Olympic Games in 2012. Photo credit: Sprint Cycling

“The hardest moment was in 2011, when I broke my femoral neck and became an Olympic champion a year later. I felt like something wasn’t finished,” he said. 

Meeting with President Tokayev last year

Vinokurov noted that the support he received from President Tokayev during their meeting in April 2022 meant a lot to him. 

Preparing to meet Tokayev, there was only one question in his mind – what is the future of the team. 

“He told me, ‘Alexander Nikolaevich, we are not going to end this. Astana is a recognizable brand in the world. We have invested money for 17 years. We should continue to move forward.’ I was happy to hear this and I’m ready to work to raise another Olympic champion for my country,” said Vinokurov, recalling his meeting with Tokayev.  

Vinokurov and Tokayev during their meeting in April 2022. Photo credit: Akorda.kz

For him, it was a sign that “things are getting better.” 

“Astana [team] is indeed the calling card of our country. In any country that we visit, everyone knows Astana. Our project lives on and our riders are showing results,” concluded Vinokurov.

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It's all about the detail: the new livery for the Astana Qazaqstan Team in 2023

In the modern cycling world, being easily recognised is key. Astana Qazaqstan Team has just made official the signing of the Manx Missile : Mark Cavendish . A world-class athlete who will generate quite the buzz when races are set alight by sprint finishes. But there will also be horizons for those who love breakaways and adventures, like Alexey Lutsenko , Samuele Battistella and Gianni Moscon .

The words spoken by Michele Gastaldello , CEO and Product Manager at Wilier Triestina , prove - even for the 2023 season - how much care has also gone into the purely aesthetic aspects and recognisability of the Astana Qazaqstan Team bikes. “Choosing the right livery for a frame is crucial because it contributes to defining the character of a high-end bike, especially if it is set to accompany a World Tour team for an entire season. Moreover, for us, there is no such thing as a minor detail. We put great effort into visually translating an idea that represents a sports project that aims to be one of the most competitive in the world. It is one of our calling cards for the tremendous audience of cycling fans: a community that we want to treat with the highest regard. Because it is also through the Astana Team new colour schemes that we can continue to assert that our utmost attention to detail is one of Wilier Triestina 's primary objectives. A way of working that, after all, has been our creed since 1906” .

The bike of this article

Filante SLR - Astana 2023; Glossy

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Riders to Look Out for at Dwars Door Vlaanderen Men in 2024

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2023 Men’s WorldTour Pro Cycling Team Kits & Jerseys 

Mathew Mitchell

• Published on December 17, 2022
• in Men's Cycling

The new 2023 men’s WorldTour jerseys are starting to be unveiled with some new designs and some copy paste efforts from 2022. For the first time in a while (maybe the first time properly), we’ve had some promotion and relegation from the men’s WorldTour. As such the likes of Israel-Premier Tech who have released their jersey, can’t be found on this page. However, the likes of Alpecin-Deceuninck and Team Arkéa-Samsic will be able to be seen here once they have released their new designs.

Table of Contents

As the WorldTour teams release their kits, I shall keep this page updated to include all of them. Traditionally EF Education-EasyPost is the last to announce theirs, with the hype and secrecy that goes with that final position as a result. Last year they kept it very under wraps until they accidentally leaked it just a day before the proper announcement.

Last updated: 19th January 2023

The 2023 Women’s WorldTour jerseys can be found in a post here .

2023 Men’s WorldTour Pro Cycling Jerseys

Ag2r citroen team.

Alpecin-Deceuninck

To be confirmed

Astana Qazaqstan Team

Bahrain Victorious

Bora Hansgrohe

EF Education-EasyPost

Groupama-FDJ

INEOS Grenadiers

The INEOS Grenadiers jersey can be bought via Bioracer here

Intermarché-Circus-Wanty

Jumbo-Visma

The Jumbo-Visma jersey can be bought via the Jumbo-Visma team’s site here

Movistar Team

The Movistar jersey can be bought via the Gobik site here

Soudal-Quickstep

The Soudal-Quickstep jersey can be bought via Castelli here

Team Arkéa-Samsic

Team BikeExchange-Jayco

The Team DSM jersey can be bought via the team store here

Trek-Segafredo

The Trek Segafredo jersey can be bought via Santini here

UAE Team Emirates

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team EDITION HELMETS

The last grand tour of the 2023 men's road cycling season is here. This 78th edition of the Vuelta will cover 3156.5 km, having started in Barcelona on Saturday, August 26, and finishing in the Spanish capital Madrid on Sunday, September 17.

Twenty-two teams and 176 riders started the first stage at the Platja del Somorrostro, one of the Catalan capital's city beaches, where the only team time trial in a Grand Tour this season took place to decide who would wear the first coveted leader's Red Jersey.

Astana Qazaqstan has unveiled its selection for the Vuelta a España 2023. They are Italians Samuele Battistella and Fabio Felline, who are participating in the Iberian race for the second and fourth time, respectively. The former U23 world champion put himself in the spotlight last year, coming close to victory on two occasions, while the 33-year-old from Turin managed, in 2016, to win the points classification, albeit without any partial successes. The two azzurri will almost certainly be deputed to chase stages, especially starting from a distance, and so should the experienced Luis Leon Sanchez (14th Vuelta and 31st Grand Tour for him) and Andrey Zeits.

When the road climbs, it will instead be David De La Cruz (a stage winner in 2016) and Joe Dombrowski who will try for a good result, with the former presumably aiming for the top-10 already hit three times (seventh in 2016, 2020, and 2021), but youngsters Vadim Pronskiy and Javier Romo (the latter on his absolute debut in a three-week race) can also try to prove themselves on the more challenging days.

Also for La Vuelta, as for the Tour de France, Limar has created a limited edition of helmets that the athletes will wear for the next three weeks. A new version with a stunning look for what promises to be an exciting race full of twists and turns. The graphic reproduces the effect of turquoise, a mineral stone Kazakhstan is rich in. This beautiful gemstone has captured the human imagination all over the world for thousands of years. Its rarity and beauty make it a highly coveted and sought-after stone.

Its unique charm comes from the color affinity with the blue of the sky and the gold of the sun, also representative elements of the flag of Kazakhstan.

Limar, always proud to protect riders of one of the most established and successful UCI World Teams in professional cycling, wishes the whole team great success and good luck.

Limar Road Helmets

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UConn vs. Purdue in title game | 9:20 p.m. ET

🏆 UConn and Purdue's unique path to Monday

👀 See the bracket

Check your bracket

Kaitlyn Schmidt | NCAA.com | April 6, 2024

Tracking 2024 march madness men's records by conference.

There are 10 conferences with two or more teams in the 2024 March Madness men's tournament. You can track their progress below.

Here are the current conference-by-conference standings, updated through the Final Four national semifinals. Last year, the Big East went 12-4, with UConn winning the national championship.

2024 NCAA tournament schedule, scores, highlights

Saturday, April 6 (Final Four)

• (1) Purdue 63 , (11) NC State 50
• (1) UConn 86 , (4) Alabama 72

Monday, April 8 (National championship game)

• (1) UConn vs. (1) Purdue | 9:20 p.m. ET | TBS/TNT/truTV

Tuesday, March 19 (First Four in Dayton, Ohio)

• (16) Wagner 71 , (16) Howard 68
• (10) Colorado State 67 , (10) Virginia 42

Wednesday, March 20 (First Four in Dayton, Ohio)

• (16) Grambling 88 , (16) Montana State 81
• (10) Colorado 60 , (10) Boise State 53

Thursday, March 21 (Round of 64)

• (9) Michigan State 66 , (8) Mississippi State 51
• (11) Duquesne 71 , (6) BYU 67
• (3) Creighton 77 , (14) Akron 60
• (2) Arizona 85 , (15) Long Beach State 65
• (1) North Carolina 90 , (16) Wagner 61
• (3) Illinois 85 , (14) Morehead State 69
• (11) Oregon 87 , (6) South Carolina 73
• (7) Dayton 63 , (10) Nevada 60
• (7) Texas 56 , (10) Colorado State 44
• (14) Oakland 80 , (3) Kentucky 76
• (5) Gonzaga 86 , (12) McNeese 65
• (2) Iowa State 82 , (15) South Dakota State 65
• (2) Tennessee 83 ,   (15) Saint Peter's 49
• (7) Washington State 66 , (10) Drake 61
• ( 11) NC State 80 , (6) Texas Tech 67
• (4) Kansas 93 , (13) Samford 89

Friday, March 22 (Round of 64)

• (3) Baylor 92 ,   (14) Colgate 67
• (9) Northwestern 77 , (8) Florida Atlantic 65  (OT)
• (5) San Diego State 69 , (12) UAB 65
• (2) Marquette 87 ,   (15) Western Kentucky 69
• (1) UConn 91 , (16) Stetson 52
• (6) Clemson 77 , (11) New Mexico 56
• (10) Colorado 102 , (7) Florida 100   
• (13) Yale 78 , (4) Auburn 76 
• (9) Texas A&M 98 , (8) Nebraska 83
• (4) Duke 64 , (13) Vermont 47
• (1) Purdue 78 , (16) Grambling 50
• (4) Alabama 109 , (13) College of Charleston 96
• (1) Houston 86 , (16) Longwood 46
• (12) James Madison 72 , (5) Wisconsin 61
• (8) Utah State 88 , (9) TCU 72 
• (12) Grand Canyon 77 , (5) Saint Mary's 66

Saturday, March 23 (Round of 32)

• (2) Arizona 78,  (7) Dayton 68
• (5) Gonzaga 89 , (4) Kansas 68
• (1) North Carolina 85 , (9) Michigan State 69
• (2) Iowa State 67 , (7) Washington State 56
• (11) NC State 79 , (14) Oakland 73
• (2) Tennessee 62 , (7) Texas 58
• (3) Illinois 89 , (11) Duquesne 63 
• (3) Creighton 86 , (11) Oregon 73 (2OT)

Sunday, March 24 (Round of 32)

• (2) Marquette 81,  (10) Colorado 77
• (1) Purdue 106,  (8) Utah State 67
• (4) Duke 93 , (12) James Madison 55 
• (6) Clemson 72 , (3) Baylor 64
• (4) Alabama 72 , (12) Grand Canyon 61
• (1) UConn 75 , (9) Northwestern 58
• (1) Houston 100 , (9) Texas A&M 95 (OT)
• (5) San Diego State 85 , (13) Yale 57 

Thursday, March 28 (Sweet 16)

• (6) Clemson 77 , (2) Arizona 72
• (1) UConn 82 , (5) San Diego State 52
• (4) Alabama 89 , (1) North Carolina 87
• (3) Illinois 72 , (2) Iowa State 69

Friday, March 29 (Sweet 16)

• (11) NC State 66 , (2) Marquette 58
• (1) Purdue 80 , (5) Gonzaga 68
• (4) Duke 54 , (1) Houston 51
• (2) Tennessee 82 , (3) Creighton 75

Saturday, March 30 (Elite Eight)

• (1) UConn 77 , (3) Illinois 52
• (4) Alabama 89 , (6) Clemson 82

Sunday, March 31 (Elite Eight)

• (1) Purdue 72 , (2) Tennessee 66
• (11) NC State 76 , (4) Duke 64

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World Rapid and Blitz Team Championships to take place in August

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2024 men's NCAA Tournament Final Four dates, game times, TV, location, teams and more

And then there were four.

It wasn't that long ago when 68 teams joined the dance, and now the 2024 men's NCAA Tournament is nearing its end. After Sunday night, just four teams remain in the fray, with UConn and Alabama punching their tickets to Arizona on Saturday. Purdue joined them on Sunday with NC State earning the last spot.

UConn has the opportunity to repeat, but the Huskies have to get two more wins to call themselves back-to-back champs.

The 11th-seeded NC State Wolfpack surged past No. 4 seed Duke in the second half to win 76-64 and set up a date with the Boilermakers, led by Zach Edey . With the win,  NC State advanced to its first Final Four since winning it all in 1983 .

Here's everything you need to know about the 2024 men's Final Four:

FOLLOW THE MADNESS: NCAA basketball bracket, scores, schedules, teams and more.

When is the Final Four?

• Date: Saturday, April 6
• Start time: Games scheduled for 6:09 p.m. and 8:49 p.m. ET

The 2024 men's Final Four is scheduled Saturday, April 6, at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. No. 4 seed Alabama and No. 1 seed Connecticut are set to square off at 8:49 p.m. ET, with No. 1 Purdue will face No. 11 seed North Carolina State at 6:09 p.m. ET.

What TV channel is the Final Four on?

TBS is televising both the national semifinals, on Saturday, April 6, and the national championship, on Monday, April 8, this year.

Where is the Final Four?

• Location: Glendale, Arizona
• Venue: State Farm Stadium

The 2024 Final Four is set to be played at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. The stadium is home to the Arizona Cardinals in the NFL .

The national championship game will be played in the same stadium on Monday, April 8.

Final Four bracket

The bracket is all but set. Here's the field:

• (1) Connecticut vs. (4) Alabama
• (1) Purdue vs. (11) North Carolina State

Who is in the Final Four?

On Saturday, March 30, UConn defeated Illinois to punch its ticket to the Final Four. Alabama followed suit by downing Clemson to advance to the national semifinals.

On Sunday, March 31, Zach Edey and Purdue outlasted Tennessee to advance to the Final Four. North Carolina State continued on its remarkable March run by defeating ACC rival Duke in the Elite Eight. The Boilermakers take on the Wolfpack on Saturday, April 6.

Perfect Champs! South Carolina WBB upends Iowa to win 2024 NCAA national title

Deferred. Not denied. And never in doubt.

Sweet, sweet revenge.

No. 1 South Carolina defeated No. 1 Iowa 87-75 in the NCAA championship game Sunday at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland.

The Gamecocks completed their “revenge tour,” having redeemed their 2023 Final Four loss to the Hawkeyes and, in doing so, won the program’s third national championship. This USC team is the 10th in Division I history to go undefeated (38-0) and win a national title.

“So proud. So proud. So proud,” a tearful Dawn Staley told ESPN after the game.

South Carolina started guards Te-Hina Paopao, Raven Johnson and Bree Hall along with forward Chloe Kitts and center Kamilla Cardoso.

These Gamecocks scored in double digits Sunday: Cardoso (15), Paopao (14), Tessa Johnson (19), Kitts (11).

Here are three takeaways from the championship game

Tough start, strong response for USC

Iowa opened the championship game on a 10-0 run.

South Carolina started 0-of-6 from the field. Not the kind of beginning a team would hope for when playing the nation’s best scoring offense.

But the Gamecocks showed poise and fought back, leading to five ties and three changes in the first half. They capitalized off Iowa turnovers, turning its five lost possessions into 11 points. USC’s depth also shined in the resurgence, scoring 22 of the team’s 49 points before intermission.

Defense also tightened up after the first period. Iowa’s Caitlin Clark score 18 points in the first 10 minutes. South Carolina held her to just 3 in the second and 4 in the third.

USC outscored Iowa 29-19 in the second quarter and 19-13 in the third. Iowa went on an 8-0 run during the fourth and later cut it to five (80-75), but South Carolina held on.

South Carolina dominates the boards

As they usually do, the Gamecocks outrebounded the Hawkeyes handily Sunday.

Through three quarters, USC had 38 boards (25 defensive and 13 offensive) to Iowa’s 25 (19 defensive six offensive). South Carolina turned those 13 offensive boards into 21 points, and the defensive boards denied Iowa many chances to score.

The Gamecocks ended the night with 51 rebounds, led by Cardoso’s 17.

New Gamecocks make a difference

MiLaysia Fulwiley, Tessa Johnson and Te-Hina Paopao contributed big to South Carolina’s gritty first-half performance.

Fulwiley, as she is prone to do, provided an immediate spark for the Gamecocks coming off the bench. She dropped a nice pass to Sania Feagin inside to cut Iowa’s lead to single digits for the first time and scored 7 points in her first three minutes on the court.

Tessa Johnson hit big shots, including a 3-pointer to tie the game at 34 apiece. Paopao hit three 3s in the first half.

Fulwiley launched a pass from one end of the court to the other for Tessa Johnson, who drained the wide-open 3 in the third quarter. It was her third 3 of the game and USC’s eighth overall.

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